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Report: PC GPUs now 24 times more powerful than Xbox 360

Written by Andre Yoskowitz @ 15 Jun 2012 1:31 User comments (19)

Report: PC GPUs now 24 times more powerful than Xbox 360 According to a new report by New Scientist, new release GPUs for PCs are 24x more powerful than the one in 2005's Xbox 360 console.
The source, Nvidia engineer Simon Green, says one of the company's most recent card, the GTX 680 is the only card needed to demo the new Unreal Engine 4.

Nvidia's most recent, the GTX 690, is twice as powerful as the 680 and will play all games at the highest framerate possible.

The real future is in cloud gaming, says Green, with the "the whole idea of owning a separate piece of hardware to play games on might be completely redundant" as technology evolves.

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19 user comments

115.6.2012 14:29

With gpu's that powerful ... emulators will be much more efficient.

215.6.2012 14:38

Originally posted by 21Q:
With gpu's that powerful ... emulators will be much more efficient.
The thing with emulators, they won't be more efficient. The emulators themselves will work the same way. They take the code written for Xbox, etc.
Convert it to the DX Api then that converts it to code the gpu can use.

It is the different conversion steps which decrease efficiency more so than the hardware used, which is why most games don't look 24x better than they do on the xbox.
This message has been edited since its posting. Latest edit was made on 15 Jun 2012 @ 2:39

315.6.2012 15:07

That last paragraph is illogical...you don't need a good gpu for cloud gaming, that's the whole point. Also, separate gaming systems have been redundant for a long time. The only thing offered by dedicated consoles are exclusive titles like gran turismo and exclusive features like ps home.

415.6.2012 16:14

Well, I believe that for consoles like the Xbox and PS3, they can use a substantially less powerful graphics card than a PC and still provide par or superior performance. Since the next Xbox is reportedly going to use a graphics card that's less powerful than my old Radeon HD 5770, it seems odd that the console may still be able to outperform my computer simply because of the huge amount of optimization that can be done on a console vs PC due to the exactness of the hardware that will be used.

515.6.2012 16:15

Originally posted by KillerBug:
That last paragraph is illogical...you don't need a good gpu for cloud gaming, that's the whole point. Also, separate gaming systems have been redundant for a long time. The only thing offered by dedicated consoles are exclusive titles like gran turismo and exclusive features like ps home.
I have to disagree a bit. While, yes it is redundant to have a dedicated gaming system, I find it easier in my home to gather around the wide screen in the living room and play what ever game with my kids, or friends that come over. I have a separate room for my computer rig and that would be a smaller room for people to gather around.

I still remember the days of keyboard controls only, no joystick or mouse. Up until recently, I played call of duty with a keyboard and mouse. Computers for the most part were ahead of the game systems. Maybe when Sega original and Coleco Vision came out, they were a bit more advance in graphics than the 8 bit and 16 bit EGA graphics.

615.6.2012 18:42

Well duh, computers will always be miles ahead of any console. A console, by definition, is old technology the moment its produced.

This message has been edited since its posting. Latest edit was made on 15 Jun 2012 @ 6:42

715.6.2012 18:47

As powerful as the 690 may be, it still doesn't justify the $1000 price tag.

816.6.2012 06:19

Originally posted by KillerBug:
That last paragraph is illogical...you don't need a good gpu for cloud gaming, that's the whole point. Also, separate gaming systems have been redundant for a long time. The only thing offered by dedicated consoles are exclusive titles like gran turismo and exclusive features like ps home.
console exclusives are why I will always stick with them The Last Of Us & Beyond 2 souls had amazing graphics great gameplay as well from what I have seen of them.

916.6.2012 11:21

Cutting edge technology... also means cutting into that grocery bill. Maybe back when I thought eating ramen & bologna (when 'that' was actually cheap) for 24 days out of the month was a good idea, but not any more.

I'm settling for whatever video card goes on sale around the $250 mark & then try to SLI it a month or two later. I'm not blaming my kids for anything, but after you have a wife & couple of kittens "cool & the latest fashion" tends to go by the wayside really fast unless you have one of those 1%-er jobs they seem to continually comment on in the news these days.

1016.6.2012 22:22

Only PC gaming freaks (not meant in a bad way) get high-end GPUs for their PCs. The vast majority of PCs that most home users have aren't even as capable as Xbox 360 or PS3...esp. if they have integrated Intel HD graphics.

By the way, am I the only one who rolls their eyes when someone mentions "cloud" anything regarding computers???

This message has been edited since its posting. Latest edit was made on 17 Jun 2012 @ 1:05

1117.6.2012 03:30

Originally posted by Notcow:
Well, I believe that for consoles like the Xbox and PS3, they can use a substantially less powerful graphics card than a PC and still provide par or superior performance. Since the next Xbox is reportedly going to use a graphics card that's less powerful than my old Radeon HD 5770, it seems odd that the console may still be able to outperform my computer simply because of the huge amount of optimization that can be done on a console vs PC due to the exactness of the hardware that will be used.
Are you CRAZY? The consoles are NOT EVEN CLOSE in terms of performance compared to a high end PC! Not even a new console will be.

I don't know what you are smoking, but I want some!

1217.6.2012 04:58

Originally posted by brockie:
Originally posted by KillerBug:
That last paragraph is illogical...you don't need a good gpu for cloud gaming, that's the whole point. Also, separate gaming systems have been redundant for a long time. The only thing offered by dedicated consoles are exclusive titles like gran turismo and exclusive features like ps home.
console exclusives are why I will always stick with them The Last Of Us & Beyond 2 souls had amazing graphics great gameplay as well from what I have seen of them.
Because there aren't any PC exclusive titles?

Mario, Gran Turismo and other top brand console-exclusive franchises do not negate the fact the PC has by far the most platform-exclusive titles. The only real winning move is either to buy whatever has the most titles you want, or simply to buy both.

1317.6.2012 09:15

While PC's offer a huge advantage in graphical horsepower compared to consoles, a lot of the time the games are just ports from the consoles. If you have a good card they will run at better frame rates and higher resolutions. Yes they will, but will it look a ton better compared to the console, not really. I'm not saying there's no difference, there will be an improvement but not a huge one. Now when you have a just for PC game that is when the hardware will shine. You also miss the exclusives, and that's usually the best games on the consoles. They are exclusive for a reason, it's to help get gamers to buy there console.

To joebloe12, I also agree with Notcow, try using a card that is on par with the 360 and PS3 in a PC I doubt it will run as smooth as the on the systems. The big reason is they are codding for a closed system. On the PC side they have to make sure there software will accommodate all kinds of hardware. That is why you see when you download the newest drivers for your GPU it will say 20% performance increase on this so and so game. They know they are working on limited hardware but they push it to the max and squeeze everything they can get out of it.

This message has been edited since its posting. Latest edit was made on 17 Jun 2012 @ 9:18

1417.6.2012 12:06

I'd wager that with a good display, there are still some pretty sizeable advantages to be gained from using PC ports. That plus of course keyboard/mouse control and sometimes better online play.

It's not always the case, and there are plenty of bad ports out there but it's not quite fair to tar them all with the same brush. Even a mediocre console port native at 2560x1600 versus the console game running at 1024x640, the graphical difference alone is often pretty substantial.

1520.6.2012 07:13

It seems odd no one mentioned that even with a crummy port, the pc game is usually better just because of the community. Free level packs and unofficial bug fixes are almost as much of a reason to get the pc version as any of the other advantages. Of course, I still think the controls are the best reason...even if you prefer to use a console controller you can, and you can set it to work how you want it to (you will get spanked in online play, but you can do it.)

BTW...I've heard that family room excuse for having a dedicated gaming system before and it just does not hold up...not when you can run dvi through the ceiling for less than the cost of a used ps3. Maybe you could claim the ps3/360 is so people could play different games at once.

1622.6.2012 11:55

Originally posted by KillerBug:
It seems odd no one mentioned that even with a crummy port, the pc game is usually better just because of the community. Free level packs and unofficial bug fixes are almost as much of a reason to get the pc version as any of the other advantages.
I've mentioned something to the effect in the past, but I was whining about Steam & having to constantly be connected online because of DRM control because the publisher thinks I'm a thief. Which negates the DRM if I do download the game illegally because i won't be online at all for the publisher's evil handshake to begin with... go figure.

Yeah, it's interesting how the hacking community can add game fixes, bonus levels & value added material within 48-72 hours after someone asks (personal attention), but the game manufacturer sends you to a redundant Q&A, FAQ that basically tells you to erase their software & reload until it works.

Hmm... keep repeating an action that produces the same 100% negative reaction in hopes that it will change... sounds like the definition of 'stupid' to me.

1723.6.2012 09:22

hi all was wondering would it be possible to buy a wireless router and set it up here in little old ireland to use for surfing and ps3

1823.6.2012 09:26

Originally posted by KillerBug:
That last paragraph is illogical...you don't need a good gpu for cloud gaming, that's the whole point. Also, separate gaming systems have been redundant for a long time. The only thing offered by dedicated consoles are exclusive titles like gran turismo and exclusive features like ps home.
hi was wondering is it possible to set up a wireless router and get rid of isp to use for at home here in ireland for ps3 and surfing would be great to if u knew thx.

1911.3.2013 15:52
ss12
Unverified new user

Originally posted by 21Q:
With gpu's that powerful ... emulators will be much more efficient.
can they please stop saying that cloud gaming is the future?
nobody wants to pay for games they don't have any rights to and play on laggy ass cloud servers. having a beast pc is half the joy of pc gaming

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