What I wish the PS4 were

[+Asmodai MVC]

You can't rely on the cloud or even assume everyone else that buys the system does so as well. There's data caps from various ISPs as well as bandwith speed limitations. The dedicated to the most casual gamer would not put up with having to wait an average of 1 to 5 minutes for a game save to load, simply to compromise faster level loading times. (if not, see how happy the wiiU owners where about that 5gb+ patch they got on week 1) An HDD is still a viable and preferred option over a space-limited SSD

You don't have to RELY on cloud storage, it's an OPTION. Sony still sells a 12GB PS3 and it launched with 20GB and 60GB so even the 120GB would be perfectly functional even without an internet connection at all. The PS4 games would still play off the discs and while they may have an OPTION to install parts for faster load times they wouldn't REQUIRE it. Save games would still load and save locally they'd just sync to the cloud (if available) so again if a connection isn't there you're still fine (you just can't go to a different PS4 and continue where you left off). If you chose to store Movie and Music in the cloud instead of downloading it locally you could play it by streaming it instead of having to fully download it each time. You could play that stuff anywhere too, off your phone, off your tablet, off your PC just log into your PSN account through a browser and stream away. If you don't have a connection though that stuff is all optional you can still play PS4 games off discs, Blu-Ray movies, etc. just fine.

[shakey]

I want the ability to be able to plug in a flashdrive and have the ps4 take that into either storage or more ram for it to use. Other than that, I'm sure it will be awesome. I'm already happy with where consoles are at in terms of graphics and such. Coming from what I grew up with, these are great times and only getting better.

[Jason S. Global Moderator]

No, it doesnt. Crysis 2 is a bad example because the PC version was a PORT from the consoles.

Try a PC-optimized (no port) game such as DMC, and you'll notice the obvious difference

or even a PC exclusive which was later on ported to consoles (like FarCry 2)

im talking about current PC games compared to future consoles. you havent seen the PS4 so no one knows what the graphics will look like. Historically, when consoles are 1st released, the graphics are on par with current-gen PC graphics b/c they share similar hardware.

[Crisp]

Why 8GB of RAM? I don't even see games on my PC use that much and that's with a hefty OS.

Maybe you'll need it for MMO's, with the player count, but publishers don't like them anyway because the cost it brings server side.

You could argue "DDR3 is cheap these days", but over a large productions line, it'll add up.

[The Evil Overlord]

More than 2 usb ports please, I have to run a hub to charge more than 2 devices and have an external hard drive for my music and pics

[Jason S. Global Moderator]

Why 8GB of RAM? I don't even see games on my PC use that much and that's with a hefty OS.

while i'd tend to agree w/ you, you have to think about 5-6 years in the future. that 8GB now might be a great idea then...

[TheLegendOfMart]

PS3 had 256Mb of RAM, I think they are fine with 4Gb, 8Gb is a bonus but not necessary.

[+Asmodai MVC]

Why 8GB of RAM? I don't even see games on my PC use that much and that's with a hefty OS. Maybe you'll need it for MMO's, with the player count, but publishers don't like them anyway because the cost it brings server side. You could argue "DDR3 is cheap these days", but over a large productions line, it'll add up.

Games on PC's CAN'T use more than 8GB of RAM. 32bit Windows without a special setting is only capable of addressing 2GB. WITH the special setting (that Joe user isn't going to have set) it can go up to 3GB. Game developers aren't going to release boxed games in 64bit anytime soon because of the number of people out there still running 32bit Windows (even on 64bit CPUs). On a 64bit OS a 32bit game still DEFAULTS to using only 2GB of memory but the developer can set a compiler flag to allow it to use up to 4GB.

So why 8GB? Exactly because it's an area where consoles can beat PCs. Allowing a developer to develop a game that REQUIRES more than 2GB of RAM and supports more than 4GB is something PC's wont able to offer anytime soon. Also more memory is important on a console because console games typically run off of an optical disc which is very slow compared to the HDD a PC game is installed on. With more memory more data can be loaded into memory reducing how often the game needs to access the slow optical disc. Another thing to keep in mind is the 8GB is unified, meaning it is shared by the CPU and graphics cards (Like the Xbox360 but unlike the PS3). This allows developers to decide how much is devoted to graphics and how much is for other aspects. The split memory of the PS3 is a common complaint of console devs when comparing the 360 to the PS3, this fixes that. Just FYI though the most recent rumors are that the Xbox720 does in fact have 8GB RAM though the PS4 apparently only has 4GB, so my wish list isn't quite as crazy as some seem to think (in that area at least). Source: www.nowgamer.com/news/1770306/now_the_ps4_is_more_powerful_than_the_xbox_720.html

More than 2 usb ports please, I have to run a hub to charge more than 2 devices and have an external hard drive for my music and pics

Yeah I just picked 2 because that's what Sony went with on the most of the PS3 versions and I assumed there was a reason for that (I can't imagine they saved very much money in dropping 2 usb ports). I have the original 60GB model (with upgraded HDD) and it has 4 and I still have hub to connect everything.

[remixedcat]

I wanted it to have nvidia GPU though :(

[hooko22]

rolf, I'm with you there. A native Pandora app would be nice too since the crappy browser on the PS3 keeps running out of memory if I keep it on playing music through the house all day.

I wish they'd just give up with their own broswer and work with Google to put Chrome on... in fact they could make the PS4 include the whole GoogleTV software suite in addition to the PlayStation specific stuff. Sony already makes Android phones (including the Xperia Play), uses Google Maps on the Vita, and makes stand alone GoogleTV boxes.

Hehe Yea I think chrome would be nice. Hell I always laugh at people that say internet explorer is bad, they have never experienced ps browser!

Oh and yes why not include GoogleTV software, I mean I would have thought it all came down to making the user happy.

[medhunter]

With the ramping up of rumors about the impending announcements of the PS4 and Xbox720 I thought it would be fun to define what I wish the PS4 would have been. NOTE this is NOT a guess as to what it is, I know the rumors are that it's a AMD based x86 design and such this is just a fun little post about the direction I wish they had gone. It does however maintain the assumption that the Cell architecture died and thus making a PS4 with hardware compatibility with the PS3 was not doable. So here goes:

CPU:

4+ core 64bit ARMv8 SoC

Why? Full hardware compatibility with the 32bit 4 Core ARMv7 CPU in the PS Vita. Great power to performance ratio.

GPU 1 (on same SoC as CPU above):

4+ core PowerVR Series 6 "Rogue" GPU (6+ if they can emulate SPEs -- see below)

Why? Full hardware compatibility with the 4 Core PowerVR Series 5 GPU in the PS Vita.

GPU 2

AMD "Southern Islands" or nVidia "Kepler" based

Why? Traditionally Consoles have matched the current state of the art for graphics AT LAUNCH, this maintains that.

Memory

8GB Unified Memory

Why? With a 64bit CPU the console can break the 4GB limit. This gives them an advantage over off the shelf PC games that will remain 32bit for the foreseeable future because of the large 32bit OS install base. The memory is also unified so the GPUs use this as well so you can think of it as 6GB System RAM and 2 GB of Video RAM or any other combination adding up to 8.

Storage

240GB SSD Drive (user replaceable) supplemented by Cloud Storage

Why? Hard drives are going out and SSD prices are falling. They are already under $1/GB in many cases.

Media

128GB BDXL Drive (compatible with CD's, DVD's, and Blu-Ray discs)

Why? Storage and speed improvement while still backwards compatible.

Network

Gigabit Ethernet Port

Integrated WiFi 802.11bgn (ac/ad?)

Bluetooth 4.0 (compatible with PS3 controllers, remote, etc.)

Ports

USB 3.0 x2

Concept:

The system has a 64bit Hypervisor and when on runs with the SoC running in lower power mode matching the PS Vita and the AMD/nVidia GPU disabled. PS Vista, PS2, and PSOne downloadable games all play in this mode, as does playing CD's, DVD's, and Blu-Ray movies, he default OS (messaging, tropheys, etc) runs in this mode as well. Insert a PS4 (BDXL) game disc though and the SoC ramps up to full power and the AMD/nVidia GPU enables. Game developers have the full 8GB of memory to use and can use the SoC GPU for OpenCL such as a physics engine while the AMD/nVidia GPU handles the graphics. Limited cloud storage is provided with the console with storage upgrades available for a small fee. This storage is for games, movies, music, etc. Cloud saves don't count against your total nor does your saved system settings or non-free DLC for disc based PS4 games (storage fee included in DLC cost).

Pie in the sky:

No idea but it would be really cool if they could figure out a way to emulate the dual threaded PPE of the PS3 with 2 cores of the ARMv8 CPU (other two reserved for Hypervisor and OS) and if they can get a 6 core PowerVR Series 6+ Rogue GPU where each of the cores is able to emulate one of the SPEs from the PS3. Not knowing these architecures very well at all that may be totally unrealistic but it sure would be nice, rofl.

Again, this is just some fun dreaming... keep in mind though that SoC CPU/GPU (or something very similar) will likely be in tablets/cell phones by 2014/2015 so this isn't quite as far fetched as it may at first appear. Instead though we seem to be getting budget PC hardware.

Amen to that.But I object to ARM and see really that any SSD is worth it whatever capacity it contains.

[+Anarkii Subscriber²]

Id love to see what was proposed by OP a premium build of the PS4. A budget version would include all that but say a 1TB HDD (sata 3) and 4GB RAM. Ram and HDD upgradable any time by the user. THAT would be awesome.

Also - game developers can and do use more than 8GB in their games. Infact the more memory, the less texture buffering needs to be done, as well as higher quality textures in general.

With 4GB ram, unless the video card has alot of onboard video memory, you won't see much of a increase in graphics from this current generation of games in the foreseeable future.

The Last of Us will be the last game on the PS3 to really show off what it can do, and I suspect that Uncharted 4 will be the first on the PS4 that shows off what it can do.