End Game

Recently, Nvidia's senior VP of content and technology, Tony Tamasi, had a few choice words about the state of the mobile chip market. On one hand, there's certainly a promising future in store for such chips, but on the other, this gain in power may not be as surprising as some would think, especially on the surface.

Tamasi's remarks, delivered to Bit-tech, described a future in which the next generation of Nvidia mobile chips would be on par with--indeed, at least somewhat better than--the current lineup of console game systems. Yes, the next generation of mobile chips will be on par with the Xbox 360 and the PlayStation 3, and that's certainly not bad news, especially for mobile gamers.

Console gamers, meanwhile, are likely having a brief worm of doubt emerge in the back of their collective unconscious that grins evilly and says "Yeah, that's great and all, but the PS4 will probably be on shelves by Christmas." That worm's got a point, folks, and what it didn't mention is that the new Xbox is at least reasonably likely to follow suit, which we'll likely spot when E3 comes around in a couple months.

Additionally, that worm of doubt didn't specifically say--though it sure did imply--that the issue here wasn't so much that mobile chips are really gaining in terms of power, so much as it was that the current generation of gaming consoles is really rather old. Most of what's out on the shelves right now is closing in on eight years old, specifically, so for the next generation of mobile chips to be as powerful as what will likely be, by then, nine or ten year old chips isn't really out of line, nor is it saying much.

Still, objectively, it's something to consider.