It's basically like a simplified CPU. There are 12 in the Xbox One and 18 in the PS4. It is very powerful for running programs split as small jobs in parallel, much better than a traditional CPU for certain tasks. At the moment it is envisaged that it will be used to improve AI, physics, compression/decompression, audio ray tracing (providing better sound based on the environment), and so on.
Article is WRONG.
It's BITS per pixel, not BYTES!
Most computer graphics at the moment are 24bpp = 3 BYTES per pixel, one byte each for red, green, blue, producing ~16.7 million colors.
So for example the memory needed fo 24 bit color is 5.93MB, not 47.46MB!
Still, there's not enough ESRAM but it's better than what the article states.
This version of the infographic is more accurate - check the little notes!
http://i.imgur.com/auq2AE9....
Full footage was shown at the PS4 live reveal event. Watch the ~6 mins here:
http://www.youtube.com/watc...
Obviously you haven't seen this:
http://www.youtube.com/watc...
Oh, and the PS3 is not doing too bad either (also running in real time):
http://www.youtube.com/watc...
Surely Microsoft and Sony know their own sales figures right?
In October 2012 Microsoft reported that Xbox 360 sales had reached 70 million. In November 2012 Sony reported that PS3 sales had also reached 70 million.
Since the start of 2011 the PS3 has outsold the Xbox 360 worldwide for 95 of the 111 weeks. The only time that the Xbox 360 really sells more are the few weeks around christmas.
"very little data is actually being sent small little packets"
Then most of the compute is on the client, not the server, defeating the purpose of the cloud!
What they demonstrated requires either
a) about 1Mb/s constant streaming data with collisions, initial position, velocity, rotation and angular velocity computed on the server and subsequent (until the next collision) velocity, angular velocity, position and rotation computed *on the cl...