Intel in Talks With Nintendo?

Hmm, The much safer option would be ATI (Wii/GC)/Nvidia as they have more experience. Whenever I think of Intel graphics the first word that springs to mind is 'integrated' which sends a shiver down my spine.
Is it possible that they could be having talks for the main processor for the next gen (NG). *Dreams of i7 on NG) I mean thats where their forte lies. Though, nintendo seems to know what they are doing, I'm just hoping that they don't knock us off with crappy graphics like this Gen, as they have always had relatively powerful graphics in the previous generations.

1 Word -

Nightmare,
Nintendo doesn't need this UNTILL Wii ratings go down and games come to a dead hault
Nivdia Nvida Nvidia has a good idea Though

Ah nice, that could mean a possible kick in the but for IBM, which is always a good thing, i9 core powered Wii with Nvidia graphics would be- like my pc (in the future I will have that i9 Core!) meh a strong Quad core Processor and decent graphics should do, Nintendo could possibly benefit from this as Intel has Core i7 and Quad Core Extreme on laptops nowadays relatively cheap.

So no need to spend millions investing on a new processor that needs massive cooling space a la PS3. Meaning they can keep their small form factor but with massive power, keeping the appeal on casuals as well as the Hard core. Pretty good timing, good thing Intel had AMD to compete and went that extra mile, Consoles don't need to spend millions investing on this tech, researching, etc because these companies do it already. Very good timing. (y)

Lol until echoes reminded me about IGPs I forgot intel even did graphics....not sure using them would be great...?

Seeing as I want to buy my Wii2 for about £200, and that the i9 costs about 700, I really doubt/hope that they don't do that...

I don't think the Wii2 even needs a quad, games don't really scale well with quad cores yet - a nice 3GHz dual core + like a 5870 graphics card should be cool...imo

No doubt a successor is coming, but 2011 seems early...

...but the specs don't really matter that much to me, as long as the results are there. I don't care about the cores or de hz's or the rams. I care about the results: for instance, nintendo bought the viper s3tc technology once and had gamecube put out the better graphics opposed to ps2. Same goes for the texture layering, it made the proper games really come alive, for instance pikmin or metroid.

Whatever they do, a don't-cost-a-fortune good console with great gameplay possibilities is welcomed at my place. But the wii needs hd - AND graphic capabilities that really match properly with the competition.

I absolutely hate the idea of a HDWii...its crazy.
Do a full new system when ready, none of this half-step nonsense.
While, sure, yes, you could in theory upgrade the chips and gpu and run special code to render games at higher res and output over HDMI...its a crazy amount of effort for such little result.

Just wait till the next gen. And, frankly, I want that to be at least 4-5 years away.
The Wii has hardly been used to the max either in controlls or graphics by 99% of games released for it.


As for Intel/ATI...I'm natural.

What I do suspect though is Nintendo will get the best they possibly can...without a lose-leader...for 150GBPish consumer cost.
And in 4-5 years time that will probably be a rather amazing bit of kit. 360/PS3 power level, with solid state components (thus Wii-fast loading speeds).
I dont think Sony or Microsoft will actualy gain much by increaseing their processing power again. They could do, but its getting diminished returns now. Developers cant keep up, budgets arnt high enough for more detail.

Thus I suspect next gen Nintendo will still be the weakest of the 3 in terms of spec..but by a much smaller margin.
Meanwhile, their continue dominance of the "new era of controller" would have paid of.
[/predictions]

@Simon: I don't mean Nintendo Will make a console with the i9, I'm saying I will get one in the future because it won't be as expensive. Nintendo could go just with a Quad Core which is pretty cheap nowadays and a decent Nvidia gfx and you got yourself a machine.
The Wii i9 was sarcasm, it's a tech not even out yet and Nintendo prob won't incorporate it until it's cheap, good on them, they found that not going so hard out on Hardware could give them good return.

This is one to watch, in my opinion. I used to be a huge Nintendo fan (hence my membership on this site), but they really lost me with the Wii. I\'d like to see Nintendo come back with a console that can handle all the latest games just as well as the competition. Just because they went low-tech this gen doesn\'t mean they will again, so we\'ll just have to see what happens.

( Edited 28.12.2009 16:14 by Martin_ )

Well from this Wikipedia article, Larrabee looks like it's actually good (besides alot of it being unreliable info), and if Nintendo decide to go with an i5 or i7 to go with it, the Next console will probably be better than any of this gens games consoles.

But then, there were reports that Nintendo were talking with Nvidia aswell, which could lead to Nintendo going the opposite way from the usual IBM/ATi combo they've had the past two gens.

Well, according to this article they are still in talks which is a good thing. I would be surprised if something came out in 2011 because its so soon. Maybe it would be another peripheral or add-on to make the Wii HD or something.

Personally, I do believe that the Wii needs to
"C'mon step it up!" sorry couldn't resist.

This would help graphics fanatics sooth their cravings. I think I might be one of them.

With the way things are going, I'm pretty sure the next generation Nintendo console will be nothing more than an HD Wii. Of course, with more features, but I don't expect a huge power boost.

But thats the madness; HD resolution on its own adds very little to the graphics.
Smoother lines isnt necessary much better without a texture resolution increase to go with it.

Indeed that is the madness when the graphical power from the previous generation is not that much of a jump. Let me put it this way, when I can go on internet sites like Youtube which is free and I can get HD on the videos there is a problem. To be quite frank, because there is so much talk about HD and the Wii/sequels to Nintendo Systems is a good indicator that

A.) People talk about graphics. They matter.
B.) The Wii needs to catch up with their rivals graphically.

It\'s almost insulting as it is lazy for Nintendo to overlook things like this. I look at games like Final Fantasy Crystal Bearers and I think \"wow that looks great, but that could look so much better\".

I don\'t know if you\'re a multi-console owner, but I\'m constantly comparing my 360 and Wii. It becomes more blatant when you\'re able to see the difference. I think this is a good move for Nintendo.

I also agree with you in not seeing another console for at least another 3 years.

( Edited 29.12.2009 05:37 by Teetrab )

An add-on simply to make the Wii "HD" probably won't happen, in my opinion. My point lives or dies depending on on what you consider the term "Wii HD" to mean. If you just mean the Wii exactly as it is now, but able to output it's games at 720p and higher - I don't see the point. You'd just notice the low polygon-models and low-res textures and stuff even more.

If by "Wii HD" you mean an upgrade to the console which renders it on a par with the 360/PS3, not just with output resolution, but everything... that's a big ask from a simple upgrade attachment. In my opinion, such a thing would have to be an entirely new console. Maintaining a double-tier of Wii systems, one of which is what we have now, and one of which is upgraded (via an attachment or just as a new model like DSi) would be a massive headache.

Not just for Nintendo, either. It would present big coding challenges to developers who wish to support both Wii configurations in a single game. Those who only support the tarted-up Wii would probably suffer low sales due to small install-base when compared to the bog-standard Wii. This leads to developers not really wanting to take true advantage of the upgrade, and the most you'll get with the majority of games is an extra lick of detail, not even barely bringing it up to 360/PS3 levels. So I don't think that's realistic.

Nintendo are better of just keeping the Wii as it is, and then if they wish to get back into the running on the tech stakes - just leave that until the next console. Keeps things simple for consumers and developers. I'd say the Wii could last another couple years. If they go down the upgrade attachment route - they better be careful. They risk fucking everything up if they do it wrong.

I am sure Nintendo have companies knocking on their door all the time - this is no exception. Of course Intel would like nothing more than a huge player like Nintendo to incorporate their gfx chip now that Intel announced they had dropped Larrabee as a consumer product a few weeks back.

I am sure Nintendo listened, supped the coffee, dunked the hob-nobs and then smiled politely and said thanks .. but, no thanks. Larrabee has a few shortcomings right now - the main one for Nintendo being the power the chip consumes - sorta flies in the direction they took with the Wii - right. The other is that it isn't ready if you believe Nintendo plan to launch a HD Wii in 2010. N is a conservative company at it's core and this is a big leap o'faith. Besides, they have had an excellent partnership with ATI/AMD and if it ain't broke .. etc etc

Finally, a multi-core CPU (eg i5, i7 etc) coupled with this chip will mean a consumer RRP of at least 300GBP - again, going against the direction they have taken with the Wii AND it would lose them money in the short term .. something that have NEVER done so I can't see this AT ALL folks ...

More likely would be a continued IBM/AMD partnershipfor a "Wii 2/HD"
machine based on a next-gen evolution of the existing (and VERY good) architecture they already have.

Cheers,
DazJ

I would have to say, short answer is no. Long answer...I couldn't tell you. Short answer does have an explanation. It would lose backward compatibility with GameCube and Wii. The long answer is I don't know because it depends on how flexible an x86-based video processor. I don't understand as why Intel would take a processor already full of problems plaguing the x86 line back to 8088 and 8086.