Page 1 of 3 123 LastLast
Results 1 to 16 of 47

Thread: News - Next Xbox will be “Always On, Always Connected”

  1. #1
    HEXUS.admin
    Join Date
    Apr 2005
    Posts
    31,709
    Thanks
    0
    Thanked
    2,073 times in 719 posts

    News - Next Xbox will be “Always On, Always Connected”

    You’ll have to install the games to HDD and “play from the optical drive will not be supported.”
    Read more.

  2. #2
    Senior Member Smudger's Avatar
    Join Date
    Oct 2005
    Location
    St Albans
    Posts
    3,873
    Thanks
    681
    Thanked
    620 times in 452 posts
    • Smudger's system
      • Motherboard:
      • Gbyte GA-970A-UD3P
      • CPU:
      • AMD FX8320 Black Edition
      • Memory:
      • 16GB 2x8G CML16GX3M2A1600C10
      • Storage:
      • 1x240Gb Corsair M500, 2TB TOSHIBA DT01ACA200
      • Graphics card(s):
      • XFX Radeon HD4890 1GB
      • PSU:
      • Corsair HX520
      • Case:
      • Akasa Zen
      • Operating System:
      • Windows 10 Home
      • Monitor(s):
      • Dell 24"
      • Internet:
      • Virgin 200Mbit

    Re: News - Next Xbox will be “Always On, Always Connected”

    And sod your leccy bills!

  3. #3
    Super Nerd
    Join Date
    Jul 2008
    Location
    Cambridge
    Posts
    1,785
    Thanks
    22
    Thanked
    105 times in 72 posts

    Re: News - Next Xbox will be “Always On, Always Connected”

    Quote Originally Posted by Smudger View Post
    And sod your leccy bills!
    Because we're all so energy efficient...

    I assume in can drop back to a low-power, "GPU-off, 1 CPU core" type mode as with most other modern systems, even when doing things like updates and having the disk active the idle draw could easily be <10W with a good efficient PSU, just look at a NUC or other SFF device. Unless you've got posh LED bulbs then just leaving one light on is many times worse.

  4. #4
    Senior Member watercooled's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2009
    Posts
    11,478
    Thanks
    1,541
    Thanked
    1,029 times in 872 posts

    Re: News - Next Xbox will be “Always On, Always Connected”

    As I've mentioned elsewhere, I'm interested in what the power consumption of various states will be like for the next consoles, as it's pretty horrendous for the current Xbox/PS3, although better than it was at release.

    This always-on has to be done right, 10W 24-7, doing nothing, is unacceptable nowadays. It might not be that much vs some other stuff depending what you leave on, but however much it is, it's another needless, wasteful drain. They will have had to put a serious focus on efficiency if they don't want to be ridiculed, e.g. aggressive component gating, spin down the HDD when it's not needed, etc. It's possible, you only have to look at mobile devices, but we're still yet to see a decent amount of effort put into AC-powered hardware.

  5. #5
    Senior Member
    Join Date
    Aug 2005
    Location
    London (almost)
    Posts
    1,080
    Thanks
    20
    Thanked
    34 times in 28 posts

    Re: News - Next Xbox will be “Always On, Always Connected”

    My sockets still have power switches fortunately.

  6. #6
    Senior Member watercooled's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2009
    Posts
    11,478
    Thanks
    1,541
    Thanked
    1,029 times in 872 posts

    Re: News - Next Xbox will be “Always On, Always Connected”

    Wonder if it has a graceful total-shutdown option? Switching off during an update or something could be bad...

  7. #7
    Senior Member
    Join Date
    May 2008
    Location
    London town
    Posts
    427
    Thanks
    8
    Thanked
    21 times in 16 posts

    Re: News - Next Xbox will be “Always On, Always Connected”

    Quote Originally Posted by watercooled View Post
    As I've mentioned elsewhere, I'm interested in what the power consumption of various states will be like for the next consoles, as it's pretty horrendous for the current Xbox/PS3, although better than it was at release.

    This always-on has to be done right, 10W 24-7, doing nothing, is unacceptable nowadays. It might not be that much vs some other stuff depending what you leave on, but however much it is, it's another needless, wasteful drain. They will have had to put a serious focus on efficiency if they don't want to be ridiculed, e.g. aggressive component gating, spin down the HDD when it's not needed, etc. It's possible, you only have to look at mobile devices, but we're still yet to see a decent amount of effort put into AC-powered hardware.
    Absolutely agree 10w is not acceptable - any thing over 1w is nowadays. You can run a full laptop at idle in 10w - including a semi-dimmed screen.

    Having said that, last time I looked, the Sky+ acted as brilliant room heaters, even when notionally turned off.

  8. #8
    Registered+
    Join Date
    Dec 2012
    Posts
    36
    Thanks
    0
    Thanked
    1 time in 1 post

    Re: News - Next Xbox will be “Always On, Always Connected”

    Always on console? Depending on how this works they will lose this gen. At least there wasn't anything retarded like that, that I noticed, from the ps4 announcement.

    I mean, you can't even tell people to install all games when your HDD space is limited. Sounds like a console to avoid already.

  9. #9
    Registered User
    Join Date
    Mar 2013
    Posts
    1
    Thanks
    0
    Thanked
    0 times in 0 posts

    Re: News - Next Xbox will be “Always On, Always Connected”

    "Always on, Always connected." Except for when your Internet service drops... Also should people expect to be unable to play if their connections goes out somewhere down the line. This leaves them spitting distance from always online DRM which isn't what people want.

    "installation system is being designed so that games can be played even as they are being installed, so you can get to the fun quicker." Sure, yeah that's why.... It's more because if players had to wait they'd definitely flip their ****.

    "“Play from the optical disc will not be supported”" I don't see why they would even go this route, seeing as you CAN play the game from the disc *see above*, unless there is something in the works for DRM and used games.

    "“Every Durango console will be sold with a new high-fidelity Kinect Sensor, which will be required for the system to operate”" So does that mean that if it breaks the system stops working? That would be hilariously stupid.

    "“All games will be installed on the hard drive. Play from the optical disc will not be supported”" So if your hard drive goes so does your ability to play your games huh?

    This all just smells a little funny to me, every way features have a way of improving play experience also has ways that they could lead to horrible experiences.

  10. #10
    Editable... jimbouk's Avatar
    Join Date
    Aug 2005
    Location
    Exeter
    Posts
    3,145
    Thanks
    333
    Thanked
    294 times in 242 posts
    • jimbouk's system
      • Motherboard:
      • Asrock B450M-HDV R4.0
      • CPU:
      • AMD Ryzen 5 3600
      • Memory:
      • Corsair Vengeance LPX 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4 3200 MHz C16
      • Storage:
      • Sabrent Rocket Q 1TB NVMe PCIe M.2 2280
      • Graphics card(s):
      • PowerColor Radeon RX 6700 XT 12GB Fighter
      • PSU:
      • Seasonic Core Gold GC-650
      • Case:
      • Lian-Li PC-V1100 ATX
      • Operating System:
      • Windows 10 Pro
      • Monitor(s):
      • AOC CU34G2/BK 34" Widescreen
      • Internet:
      • EE FTTP

    Re: News - Next Xbox will be “Always On, Always Connected”

    Quote Originally Posted by krazy_olie View Post
    My sockets still have power switches fortunately.
    Haha, yeah. I've got switched extension leads for my TV and consoles. Unless they're building in a UPS then good luck!

    Not that the next Xbox was on my shopping list anyway...

  11. #11
    Not a good person scaryjim's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2009
    Location
    Gateshead
    Posts
    15,196
    Thanks
    1,232
    Thanked
    2,290 times in 1,873 posts
    • scaryjim's system
      • Motherboard:
      • Dell Inspiron
      • CPU:
      • Core i5 8250U
      • Memory:
      • 2x 4GB DDR4 2666
      • Storage:
      • 128GB M.2 SSD + 1TB HDD
      • Graphics card(s):
      • Radeon R5 230
      • PSU:
      • Battery/Dell brick
      • Case:
      • Dell Inspiron 5570
      • Operating System:
      • Windows 10
      • Monitor(s):
      • 15" 1080p laptop panel

    Re: News - Next Xbox will be “Always On, Always Connected”

    Quote Originally Posted by kingpotnoodle View Post
    I assume in can drop back to a low-power, "GPU-off, 1 CPU core" type mode ...
    Well, it's got an AMD-based GPU so zero-core is an option, possibly an even more heavily gated version. Then there's AMD's fabric which would allow ARM cores as helper cores - wonder if it's got a multi-core APU with low power ARM core for idle processing - you could power-gate pretty much the whole silicon and leave it sitting in an incredibly low power idle state most of the time. Interesting concept.

    Not sure how well the "install everything" mantra is going to work though: it'll need a huge hard drive or easy upgrades to satisfy every customer, particularly if they're going to supply games on blu-ray - that could be > 50GB of content per game: 20 games and you've filled a 1TB drive

  12. #12
    Senior Member
    Join Date
    Mar 2010
    Posts
    2,567
    Thanks
    39
    Thanked
    179 times in 134 posts

    Re: News - Next Xbox will be “Always On, Always Connected”

    current xbox 360 ships with a 250gb hdd , with a 320 as the adddon option

    so sticking a 500 in there would be easy.

    and allways on? its been on teh cards for ages - and i would stunned in the PS4 didnt require an allawys on connection as well (they just kept it quiet)

  13. #13
    Senior Member
    Join Date
    Oct 2010
    Posts
    375
    Thanks
    0
    Thanked
    13 times in 13 posts

    Re: News - Next Xbox will be “Always On, Always Connected”

    Quote Originally Posted by HalloweenJack View Post
    current xbox 360 ships with a 250gb hdd , with a 320 as the adddon option

    so sticking a 500 in there would be easy.

    and allways on? its been on teh cards for ages - and i would stunned in the PS4 didnt require an allawys on connection as well (they just kept it quiet)
    500 ? need more like 5000.
    At least they're still selling the games on media and not relying on everyone having a fttc broadband.

    I do hope they take into account people turn off plugs when they're not in use...
    We live in days where phones remind you to unplug chargers when they're not in use to save all of 10w/year.

    I was tempted to say that i'd send ms my leccy bill for all the resources they've squandered, but on further reflection i'm just not going to bother I don't play my x360 enough as it is.

  14. #14
    Senior Member watercooled's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2009
    Posts
    11,478
    Thanks
    1,541
    Thanked
    1,029 times in 872 posts

    Re: News - Next Xbox will be “Always On, Always Connected”

    Quote Originally Posted by Najja_Mallace View Post
    "“Every Durango console will be sold with a new high-fidelity Kinect Sensor, which will be required for the system to operate”" So does that mean that if it breaks the system stops working? That would be hilariously stupid.
    Aside from that, it's bound to add a fair chunk to the sale price even for people who want nothing to do with the arm-wave-detection-system e.g. myself and almost everyone I know on XBL. Kinect not selling well enough? Make it mandatory for the next system to force it onto everyone so we can add silly features to more games without having to program an alternative input.

    I agree, a lot of the 'features' are just shortcomings that marketing have put a positive spin on.

    @scaryjim: I hadn't really thought of that but yeah that could be a problem. Whereas now you can have your most frequently games installed, and run other stuff from disc, would you have to persevere with stupid-long install times if you like to hop between a lot of games, or just feel like re-visiting an older title?

    I mean I get that the access time and transfer speed of optical media isn't great, and is even an obvious problem with some current gen games (texture popping when not installed, for example) but storage space isn't unlimited. Still, just because they have 25-50GB available, I don't expect many titles will come close to filling that, at least initially.

    @HalloweenJack: Sony have already said the PS4 will not be using draconian DRM, I see little reason to remain online in light of that? Auto-updates and quick boot are just excuses, they're not worth constantly staying online for - updates should take all of a few minutes* and if it needs to stay powered on for boot time to be reasonable then that's down to incompetence of the software team.

    *Also, they could be downloaded and scheduled when the console is powered on, to install on next shutdown, or to nag the user after a timeout period if they stay online for ages.
    Last edited by watercooled; 20-03-2013 at 06:00 PM.

  15. #15
    Previously known as Wozza365
    Join Date
    Sep 2012
    Posts
    439
    Thanks
    0
    Thanked
    18 times in 17 posts
    • Wozza63's system
      • Motherboard:
      • ASUS M5A99X EVO
      • CPU:
      • FX 8150 @4.2GHz
      • Memory:
      • 8GB Kingston HyperX 1600MHz
      • Storage:
      • Intel 120GB SSD, 4TB Seagate
      • Graphics card(s):
      • XFX R9 390
      • PSU:
      • Corsair TX850
      • Case:
      • Akasa Venom Toxic
      • Operating System:
      • Windows 7
      • Monitor(s):
      • Acer XG270HU + Iiyama E2473HDS x2

    Re: News - Next Xbox will be “Always On, Always Connected”

    Quote Originally Posted by watercooled View Post
    Wonder if it has a graceful total-shutdown option? Switching off during an update or something could be bad...
    Yes surely upgrading during a power cut will result in the whole OS breaking...

    I don't like this at all, and my friends wonder why I play games on PC these days

  16. #16
    Senior Member
    Join Date
    Jan 2013
    Location
    West Sussex
    Posts
    530
    Thanks
    50
    Thanked
    44 times in 33 posts
    • Chadders87's system
      • Motherboard:
      • Asus P8Z77-I Deluxe
      • CPU:
      • Intel i5 3570k
      • Memory:
      • Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2x4GB) 1600mhz
      • Storage:
      • Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB (Sata3)
      • Graphics card(s):
      • Sapphire AMD Radeon 7870 2GB
      • PSU:
      • BeQuiet 450w (140mm)
      • Case:
      • BitFenix Prodigy
      • Operating System:
      • Windows 7 Home Premium
      • Monitor(s):
      • Samsung 21.5'
      • Internet:
      • Sky Unlimited

    Re: News - Next Xbox will be “Always On, Always Connected”

    In an attempt to STOP the bandwagon:

    . The console will be ready instantly when users want to play, and will always maintain a network connection
    This does not say "Will REQUIRE".

    Simply this appears to be a convenience mechanism. The console will keep your connection active even in sleep / hibernate mode to allow quick start-ups and background updating. Sounds good to me, I hate going to play games and waiting 10 minutes for console or game updates.


    As for the rest of the details, I hope this is accurate because it looks fantastic. I will finally be able to use Kinect and no more disc swapping... What's not to like!

    Sincerely hope they offer ample storage though.. 4GB simply won't be enough this time around Microsoft.

Page 1 of 3 123 LastLast

Thread Information

Users Browsing this Thread

There are currently 1 users browsing this thread. (0 members and 1 guests)

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •