Mark Cerny: "they know how to design PS4 so it won't overheat"

GR-UK writes: Gamereactor Spain caught up with Mark Cerny shortly after he delivered his Road to PS4 presentation at this year's Gamelab in Barcelona.

As part of a longer GRTV interview, we asked Cerny how the PlayStation 4 would cope with the intense summer heat that Spain's currently sweltering under.

"I think it will be fine," he replied. "They know how to design the console so it doesn't overheat. If you notice that PlayStation 4 is smaller, it's because power consumption is less; simple as that."

[first1NFANTRY]

amazing team over at Sony. You can tell they really know how to design hardware with their history of expertise.

the fact ps4 doesn't even have a power brick while being so small is ingenious.

[Animal Mutha 76]

Yeah apart from the localization reason that MS tout for the xbox I don't know why they cant get all the transformer into the box ala PS3. The xbox brick even on the newer slims is still far too big.

[RavageX]

I assume it adds to heating and they'd rather keep it outside of the system than in.

That's just a guess though.

[IcicleTrepan]

It is a more modular design as well. Power supplies do tend to fail, especially if not protected behind a surge suppressor. If your Xbox power supply fails, you can get a new one without sending your whole machine in. Also there are third parties selling power supplies for Xbox so you can always replace it if it fails and are waiting for a replacement. Playstation design, while more elegant, offers the downside that if the power supply fails, you have to send the entire unit for repair.

[dennett316]

There's no room in their case thanks to the ENORMOUS fan they've put directly above the CPU/GPU. They also keep the PSU outside to reduce heat...basically, they're taking no chances on another RROD situation. Also, they're just not quite as elegant when it comes to design as Sony or even Nintendo.

[darthv72]

power supply, internal or external doesn't matter to me. Im just glad we have moved past the days of the wall wort style (think nes, snes, genesis...2600) those big blocks that you cant fit on a power strip because it blocks another outlet on one side or the other.

As to the failure of a power supply, yeah it sucks when that happens. The PS went out on my PS1 and it was easy to get inside and replace but of course if i open the system i void the warranty (at least back then).

The argument of internal vs external is just as petty as replaceable batteries vs rechargeable ones. Its moot because if the batteries go dead in either case you still need to plug in or replace and that takes what...10 seconds at most?

Not to mention that in either case, if your controller loses connection the game pauses instantly (at least on the 360 it does).

[fr0sty]

icicle, power supplies do fail, however in many cases the failure doesn't just stop there. I've seen PSUs take entire systems with them when they died.

Also, PS3's PSU is about the easiest part to self-replace other than the HDD, though I do agree that just being able to buy a new one is more convenient than having to repair your system.

[Utalkin2me]

@dennett316

The 360 had/has power supply on outside, how did that work for them?

@IcicleTrepan

Power supplies do not tend to fail. I have had 2 power supplies to go bad in 2 decades, one was a original xbox and the other was in my PC.

[MWong]

I was hoping XBone didn't come out with another power brick, oh well. At least my PS4 will be small and sleek looking. I gotta buy a side stand too.

[ShinMaster]

There's a reason why Microsoft is primarily a software company, not a hardware one.
It's not their strength.

[GrandTheftZamboni]

@IcicleTrepan

Sure, make the design so modular so all components CPU, GPU, memory are outside and easy to replace when one fails.

BTW, if the power brick fails, the main box won't be usable until MS ships a new one.

[SkyGamer]

Laptop specs people. Mobile components. Of course it uses less wattage than desktop counterparts.

[rainslacker]

In my time, I've repaired over 300 PlayStation systems, along with various other systems with internal power supplies, when I did that stuff for a side job, and never once has a repair been for a power supply. Anything power related was always a fuse on the motherboard due to internal design of other parts drawing too much current. A fuse is exponentially more difficult to replace than a power supply.

Yes they can go bad, but it's exceedingly rare. More often than not, if they are damaged it's by surges, and in that case it wouldn't matter if it were internal or external as the damage would be done on the internal motherboard components at the same time. External power supplies aren't some magical surge protection device.

Otherwise, I find the power brick argument silly. Consoles cords typically sit behind a Tv, and they are rarely just laying out on the floor like many people claim to be some sort of eyesore. Hardly something worth basing a purchasing decision on. At most it's interesting to see how well a system is designed.

[Persistantthug]

I still have my 80GB PS3...so if I bought a PS4, I'd be very confident with it.

[RedDeadLB]

Hmm, I had two 60GB PS3s. Both got the YLOD. I plan on getting the PS4, but I will be sorely disappointed if anything similar happens out of warranty.

[Utalkin2me]

Still on my original phat 40 gig PS3. I did upgrade the HDD though.

[starchild]

My 80gb PS3 shows graphical artifacts in most games. The GPU is bad. This happened only after about 2 years of owning it.

My PS3 and Xbox 360 both had hardware failures, while my PC has never had a hardware problem at all and I use it the most.

This makes me a little reluctant to get a console at launch. But I'll probably cave and get a PS4 anyway.

[lento]

Launch 60 with a upgraded 500 gig hard drive still working like a charm.

[LonDonE]

Exactly i have a launch fatty PS3 which i gave away to my little brother and it still works flawlessly, and so does my 80gb fatty and slim 160 gb, PS3 is a great console and is infinitely more reliable then a xbox 360, hell i had 7 xbox 360's due to red ring of death, i had all the models too, it didn't make a difference, a bad and flawed design is always a bad and flawed design, it shocked me how bad Microsoft treated their consumers, after owning the arcade model,the premium, the elite, the slim, and in some cases multiples on said version, still all failed on me, and its not because i didn't take care of them, i am a core gamer and so game for long periods at a time, and the simple truth is the console was designed like shit!!! i take better care of my gaming stuff then, my own 2 kids, LOL

And what made me more angry was that most companies after you send them a faulty piece of hardware send you a replacement which has said flaw rectified, Microsoft did not do this, instead they were giving refurbished still flawed faulty consoles back to its customers, this is why i will not be buying a xbox 1 NEVER!! in my opinion, the red ring of death factor, and the forced atrocious policies, which they didn't change due to gamers outcry, they only reversed them when they saw pre order sales were terrible compared to PS4, and the mandatory spy camera, these are why i would never buy a xbox1!

I did love my 360, but it was so flawed, and ms did nothing to rectify the problem,until years later with the slim, which also had problems like the red dot of death, and with that they can get screwed!!! my Sony and nintendo consoles have never failed on me!
I still own all my Sony and nintendo consoles from the past, for each gone generation, and all work flawlessly, just like my Sinclair spectrum, and my Sega consoles, even the o.g xbox of mine is working as is my o.g soft modded crystal xbox, but the 360 is another story all together!!

I am not worried at all for the reliability of the PS4, i know Sony build great products, i always buy Sony, my Sony bravia hdtv, my Sony Ericsson phone, my Sony xperia smart phone,my Sony surround sound hifi stack system,my Sony lap top, EVERYTHING, and all are great pieces of tech,i got the Sony bug from my parents, who also always bought Sony tech!! they are a great tech company, PERIOD!!!

Its xbox1 customers who should be cautious of buying the xbox1 at launch my advice would be to everybody pay that bit extra and get the extended warranty, its well worth it!

[showtimefolks]

i love the design of ps4 also xbox one is very nice design

what i really like about ps4's design is, its small and has bunch of fans so no over heating hopefully

mark cerny better start working on ps5 lol

[Auron]

power brick helps keep extra heat out.

[Gameratheart]

Yes, they know how to design systems... The ps1 failed constantly(flip it upside down to play it), the ps2 failed constantly (disc read errors caused by poorly designed lasers), Sony lost a class action lawsuit over the ps2... But yeah! Sony are the greatest designers! Even the ps3, ylod, wasn't perfect. I have the ps4 pre saved and paid in full, I just hope it doesn't fail on me.... Like ps1-2-3 did. This is Sony's last chance with me.... Yes the 360 was a POS, but it never cost me a dime when it failed.... So don't crown Sony yet.... Nintendo has the lowest failure rate, you can look it up yourself, if you don't think so.

[AceBlazer13]

lol you have really bad luck with ur consoles

[timl241]

"I think it will be fine." - Do I even need to say anything. He thinks it will be fine? Damn, if Phil Spencer and Bullmer ever said those words it would be the end of the world.

"They know how to design the console so it doesn't overheat." - Okay...Doesn't mean they are going to make it withstand 100 degree heat plus the heat that comes from the PS4.

If this was an Xbox One article people would be shitting down the throats of whoever said this and you all know its true.

[Reborn]

"I'm ready, Cerny. I'm on my knees, ready to feel your warm glory all over my face." I expect that line to catch many off guard.

On-Topic: Sounds good, Mark. I can't wait to get mine.

[SilentNegotiator]

I don't think too many people read past the first sentence before hitting "agree"

[Cryptcuzz]

You made me almost spit my coffee out while reading your comment!

Mark Cerny is a genius that deserves all the success he has had in his life. I could not see anyone more fitting to being the system architect of the PS4 and I am so thrilled that he is.

[iceman06]

Be glad that it was just COFFEE!!! LOL

[Cryptcuzz]

@iceman6

You weren't so lucky as to spit coffee but something else? LOL

[greedybear88]

The PS4 is an absolute beast. Can't wait to get one!

[Tatsuya]

That's what I like to hear! It's the little things like this that makes SONY a winner!

[Gunsmoke]

Sony is far from a winner. They have lost billions over the years and could only post a profit after they sold real estate.

[dcj0524]

Sony as a whole is fine. Its the electronics division that isnt doing so hot. Mainly because of samsung.

[kewlkat007]

Looking at Sony that past 10 years, t hey have been far from doing fine...
https://www.google.com/fina...

[kenshiro100]

Go preach doom and gloom elsewhere. This has NOTHING to do with their financial state. If Sony was in such bad shape, there would be no PS4.

Nice try troll.

[Gameratheart]

Wow, tell it like it is, and some fanboys can't handle it. Sony is not doing fine "as a whole".... They need to make some serious money, and quick, before they are anywhere near fine.... I hope they do turn it around, my ps4 is counting on it...

And shadowgeist.... So by your guestimation, sega was doing great
When they released
The dreamcast, right?..... Right???? Because the dreamcast would never have come out if sega were hurting, right??? Yeah, ok.... Sure.

Look, Sony is ailing, it's a fact. This happens to the best of em. Hopefully they can turn it around, quickly. I would hate to see my ps4 stop being manufactured, losing a historical company, like Sony, would be terrible. I hope they turn things around, and looking at the way they're handling the ps4, it's a good sign. I'm excited for it, that's why I paid for one.....

[kenshiro100]

Gameratheart: What does Sega have to do with anything I just mentioned? I never implied that everything at Sony was rosy and peachy. I said that their situation isn't as dire as some of you trolls make it out to be.

[Ashunderfire86]

Finally my room won't feel like summer when I turn on the PS4. When I turn on the PS3 my room was just to hot, but it is really good for winter lol!

[first1NFANTRY]

do you live in a cupboard or something? lol jks

i know what you mean. i have a phat 80 gig ps3 and with the noise it makes i fully expect it to explode at any moment now.

oh well, i'll just fix it for cheap and trade it in for a ps4 problem solved :)

[Ashunderfire86]

I had an 80 gig also, but now I upgrade it to 300 gig hard drive. Still hot like fire lol!

[TheFutureIsBlue]

My phat PS3 sounds like a vacuum cleaner lol. Im hoping it lasts until the PS4 comes out.

[ShwankyShpanky]

I've been saying "gotta crack open my phat and vacuum it out" for the last six months. :-P My slim is still quiet as a mouse, though.

[NeoTribe]

Thats funny, my original phat did that. Literally heated my room. The first slim i have now doesnt do it and is quite. It actually was good in winter lol.

[RedHawkX]

no one should even be worried about a sony console lol. the real people who have to worry are day one xbox one buyers. I have no idea why anyone would buy that console day one. get a ps4 first for cheaper so you can have the most powerful hardware thn later on when you know for sure xbox one wont blow up on you and when it gets a price drop then you can get that console if you still want the 1 or 2 exclusives it will have. i just dont get how some people are getting an xbox one lol

[Ashunderfire86]

I will get it When Titanfall(June 2014 rumored), or Halo 5 comes out. Perfect time to get it. What is Xbox without it's mascot. I no fanboy just a gamer. I will get the PS4 first though. As a matter of fact, I preorder it June 10th in the evening seconds after Sony announce the price. All I had to do was refresh the page on Amazon and Bam! It said you can now preorder PS4!!! Man I was happy lol(Gonna save big). Amazon, Gamestop, Bestbuy, and etc had the price in their hands, but waited for Microsoft and Sony to announce the prices before they release.

[Sayai jin]

It's down to person taste. Some people want the games that will be on the PS4 while others don't. Others want games that are coming out on XB1 and others don't...and some want both.

The 360 had a serious issue in the red light o death. not doubt. The PS3 had a very minor issue in the yellow light. The first xbox did not have any significant issues, but the PS2 had a serious disk read error on it. So even though Sony makes great hardware, but they do not always make perfect hardware.

[zpoc]

just to keep things in perspective - i've had one xbox 360, one ps3 and two wiis all hardware fail on me so... just because the 360 is more known for it doesn't mean it doesn't happen to the others, too...!

but yeah, i'm with you - buying a ps4 now, and waiting and seeing what happens with the xb1. i'll probably get one in a year or two once the price drops if there are a bunch of exclusives i want to check out.

[SatanSki]

Solution was simple - put low end components that dont generate much heat inside

[dcj0524]

Lol

[dennett316]

If the PS4 is low end, what's the Xbone?

[Cryptcuzz]

That would make it lower end, unless someone is buying it just as an add on to their cable box.

[RedHawkX]

the xbox one is no end just empty space inside the thing lol. you use your imagination and dont even have to turn on the tv lol. pretend like you are playing games and such.

[SatanSki]

If Xbone is even lower end, whats WiiU? Who cares. The fact that MS decided to make even weaker console doesnt change anything.

[PSN_ZeroOnyx]

If Sony has low end parts the xbox got their parts from the recycling bin.

[SatanSki]

What an intelligent response. COngratulations

[edgeofsins]

Low end components generate more heat.

[Zhipp]

What are you talking about? A 7850 generates less heat than a 7970, and a jaguar CPU generates less heat than AMD's top of the line desktop Visheras. Low end doesn't necessarily mean shoddily built, it simply means it's on the lower end of the power spectrum. They're still quality components, and a perfect fit for small boxes like the PS4 or Xbox One.

[edgeofsins]

@Zhipp

Try getting a 7850 to the same performance as a 7970. It won't be nearly as cool as the 7970.

Higher performance parts run cooler. Sure a higher end card tends to have higher temps. But the point is that a lower end card clocked up to that performance is either not going to work or it will overheat or be much higher heat because it has cheaper/lesser components.

As you definitely should be able to tell, the newer series of cards runs similar temperature or cooler in some cases then the older series while having significant performance upgrades.

Welcome to PC hardware.

If you think Xbox 1 isn't terribly built by being so huge with the kind of hardware it has and still having an external power brick to cut down on size isn't bad then just wait.

[Zhipp]

I know that this is an old post but I feel that I need to tell you that you still missed my point entirely.

Here's a hint: I'm not trying to defend the Xbox.

[edgeofsins]

@Zhipp

Who said you were defending X1?

Things go right over your head.

I assume you are referencing when I said "If you think Xbox 1 isn't terribly built by being so huge with the kind of hardware it has and still having an external power brick to cut down on size isn't bad then just wait.".

Which is my reply to when you said "They're still quality components, and a perfect fit for small boxes like the PS4 or Xbox One.".

You don't have an argument. Explain to me how a low end card can't run as powerful as a high end card at the same temperatures. Going by your first reply you are saying everything high-end is higher temperature, which is not true whatsoever. I have a 6870 and my friend has a 7950 and another has a 7970 and theirs run so much cooler then mine. Higher performance means less struggle and that means higher framerate with less heat ups.

If you noticed, I never said low-end components meant shoddily built, it was all you being ignorant and saying a bunch of things, that aren't true. I just hope you have the decency to admit you are wrong. If I am wrong then go ahead and prove me wrong. Right now that possibility is 0 seeing how I'm telling you the facts.

[StoneyYoshi]

Edgeofsins is right. Low end components do create more heat due to being cheaply built and inefficient.

[bumnut]

You are misunderstanding what low end means, like Zhipp said.

[edgeofsins]

@bumnut

1. He misunderstood what low-end meant by talking about low-end-rated hardware when we talked about actual construction and components.

2. Zhipp was wrong either way.

3. He mentioned a high/mid-range GPU compared to one of the top of the line GPU's.

He is just going off-topic.

Once again, talking about the same hardware he mentioned. Underclock a Vishera and it will run cooler with higher performance then tons of processors because it is newer and built better. It isn't just higher clock speeds. If you really think AMD has been using the same chip the whole time and just increasing clock speeds then you are wrong. They have better build quality and components now to achieve higher clock speeds while running cooler then what they used to be. Try getting an old CPU to 5 GHz without liquid nitrogen. The AMD FX-9590 can run 5 GHz without overclocking and doesn't need that extensive of cooling hardware.

[tigertron]

Hopefully this means the fans will be quiet and if that does turn out to be the case then Cerny and Sony will gain even more respect from me.