Microsoft wasn’t the only gaming console developer to unveil its next-generation hardware recently. Both Sony and Nintendo revealed the PlayStation 3 and Revolution consoles, respectively, at the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) in Los Angeles last week. The Japanese gaming giants seemed poised and ready to take on their competitors in the next round of these so-called video game console wars. What can we expect out of these two upcoming consoles, and what will be powering both of these video game marvels? The next few paragraphs should shed a little light on both of these questions.

Sony unveils the PlayStation 3
The PlayStation 3 will use Sony’s proprietary Cell processor, which runs at a clock speed of 3.2 Ghz and feature 2.18 teraflops of performance.

The unit will have a total of 256MB XDR main RAM with 256MB of GDDR VRAM at 700MHz.The PS3 will also come equipped with six USB 2.0 ports. The system will use a 550MHz graphics processing unit (GPU) designed by graphics chip maker NVIDIA.

The PS3 will use Blu-Ray discs, which is a dual-layer technology that has a storage capacity of up to 54GB. The system will also use flash memory and will feature Memory Stick standard/Duo, PRO x 1 SD standard/mini x 1 Compact Flash (Type I, II) slots. A detachable 2.5″ hard disc drive slot will also be available for even more storage space.

Sony revealed that the console will be backwards compatible with both the original PlayStation and the PlayStation 2.

The PlayStation 3 is expected to ship to retail outlets in the spring of 2006.

Nintendo’s E3 Revelation, the Revolution…
Compared to the Xbox 360 and the PlayStation 3, the Nintendo Revolution might seem underpowered. But in actuality, the system will be a worthy competitor in the HD (also known as high definition) console wars. Not much was revealed about the Revolution’s IBM co-developed processor chip, codenamed Broadway, as Nintendo suggested that it will be releasing more info on the system at a later date. The Revolution’s GPU will be an ATI-designed graphics chip.

The key issue right now with these next-gen consoles is backwards compatibility and not only will the Revolution be backwards compatible with the GameCube, but it will also offer gamers the opportunity to download titles from Nintendo’s back catalog from as far back as the 8-bit Nintendo Entertainment System. Read more…

The “For the Gamer” column is a weekly article that I write for [here] magazine based out of New Brunswick, Canada.