Star Trek Online is Cryptic's massively multiplayer stab at the Star Trek franchise, but it won't take a system from 400 years in the future to run it. A PC with 1GB of RAM, an Intel Core 2 Duo of 1.8Ghz or higher, and a NVIDIA GeForce 7950 or ATI Radeon X1800 or better should do nicely. Those are pretty modest, all things considered. Hell, my toaster requires 2GB of RAM to burn a piece of bread, so this is downright child's play.

Of course, if you want the game to look good you'll have to step up from System Requirements to Recommended Specs, in which case you'll want a faster Core 2 Duo, enough RAM to power my toaster, and a beefier video card, but I'm sure you'll make due.

Check out the full specs below, and be sure to read AJ's preview to see how she felt about the game's mix of ground-based and ship combat.

System Requirements

OS: Windows XP SP2 / Windows Vista / Windows 7 (32 or 64-bit)
CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo 1.8 Ghz or AMD Athlon X2 3800+
Memory: 1GB RAM
Video: NVIDIA GeForce 7950 / ATI Radeon X1800 / Intel HD Graphics
Sound: DirectX 9.0c Compatible Soundcard
DirectX: Version 9.0c or Higher
HDD: 8GB Free Disk Space
Network: Internet Broadband Connection Required
Disc: 6X DVD-ROM
Recommended System Configuration

OS: Windows XP SP2 / Windows Vista / Windows 7 (32 or 64-bit)
CPU: Intel E8400 Core 2 Duo or AMD Athlon X2 5600+
Memory: 2GB RAM+
Video: NVIDIA GeForce 8800 / ATI Radeon HD 3850+
Sound: DirectX 9.0c Compatible Soundcard
DirectX: Version 9.0c or Higher
HDD: 8GB Free Disk Space
Network: Internet Broadband Connection Required
Disc: 6X DVD-ROM

Minimum System Requirements:
Operating System:
Windows XP or Vista
Processor:
2.4+GHZ Intel or 2.0+GHZ AMD
Memory:
1 Gigabyte Ram (XP)
2 Gigabyte Ram (Vista)
Video Card:
NVIDIA GeForce 6 series(6800GT or better)
ATI 1300XT or better (X1550, X1600 Pro and HD2400 are below minimum system requirements)
Hard Drive Space:
12 Gigabytes
Sound Card:
DirectX 9.0c compatible sound card and drivers

Recommended System Requirements:
Operating System:
Windows XP or Vista
Processor:
2.6+GHZ Intel or 2.4+GHZ AMD
Memory:
2 Gigabyte Ram
Video Card:
NVIDIA GeForce 7900 GTX or higher.
ATI X1800 XL series or higher
Hard Drive Space:
12 Gigabytes
Sound Card:
DirectX 9.0c compatible sound card and drivers - 5.1 sound card recommended

Mass Effect System Requirements revealed [Strategy Informer][image]

With Unreal Tournament 3 hitting computers next month it's time to start worrying over what exactly you might have to do to get your computer to run the game.

Midway shot me the system requirements today and they are, not surprisingly quasi hefty:

Minimum System Requirements
• Windows XP SP2 or Windows Vista
• 2.0+ GHZ Single Core Processor
• 512 Mbytes of System RAM
• NVIDIA 6200+ or ATI Radeon 9600+ Video Card
• 8 GB of Free Hard Drive Space

Recommended System Requirements
• 2.4+ GHZ Dual Core Processor
• 1 GBytes of System RAM
• NVIDIA 7800GTX+ or ATI x1300+ Video Card
• 8 GB of Free Hard Drive Space

Gizmodo dug up the FCC filings for the new PSP, PSP-2000. Isn't that the greatest model number ever? The manuals and such have a bit of new details buried in them which they, and I, were able to dig up. Most importantly though, are the specific size and weight details:

The current PSP is 170mm x 74 mm x 23 mm and weighs about 230 grams with the battery in, while the new PSP is 169.4 mm x 71 mm x 18.6 mm and weighs 189 grams.

Hit the jump for a short list of some other things you might not know about the new PSP.

-The new PSP (PSP-2000) doesn't come with a Remote Control and you can't use the original PSP's remote with it.
-You can charge the PSP with a USB cable. (It takes about two hours, 20 minutes to charge with AC and five with USB)
-Display button: Pressing it changes between three levels of brightness, holding it for more than one second turns off the backlight and holding for more than five switches to video output.
- Its TA-085 PCB motherboard is homebrew-conducive.
- The battery has been shrunk from 1800mAh to 1200mAh, but retains hour rating.
- WLAN switch has been relocated to top.
- TV-out cable is not included.
- USB cable is not included.

PSP 2000, OET list [FCC]

Ars Technica reports that someone has dug up the details on the Broadway chip used in the Wii.

Looking at the details, the site reports that the Broadway chip is really just an over-clocked Gekko chip, used in the GameCube, that runs cooler and with less power.

A poster at the Ace's Hardware message board has dug up a new IBM datasheet for the 750CL, which is a new derivative of the IBM 750 (a.k.a. the G3). Based on the information revealed in the datasheet, the 750CL is basically just a 90nm die shrink of the Gekko hardware that's intended to run at up to 900MHz. IBM almost certainly would not go to the trouble of launching an updated version of Gekko on a new process, unless what many have said all along is in fact true: Broadway is a faster, lower-power version of the GameCube's Gekko hardware.

This confirms what we've all suspected, the Wii is really the GameCube 1.5... but that's only looking at the specs. What Nintendo is really selling with the Wii is a new way to play games, not a new way for developers to show us the same games we've been playing for years. So when you open that box on Nov. 19, remember it's really just about the controllers. Brian Crecente

Wii Brain Revealed [Ars Technica]

And looks like everyone was right to be skeptical. Jon Hannibal Stokes, a gearhead over at Ars Technica, took a closer look at the "leaked" Wii specs. They seemed strangely familiar somehow. Finally he placed them:

Oh, waitaminute... I'm sorry. Those are specs I copied and pasted from one of the many pages of unofficial Gekko documentation that I was able to dig up on Google with a few keystrokes. The MaxConsole list features the same data, in the same order, with a few phrasing tweaks and the MHz numbers revised upwards.

For what it's worth, I even went back to my own archive of official GameCube docs to verify the specs above, and I picked through the MaxConsole post looking for something that might set their information apart as different from Gekko—an enlarged buffer, a reduced latency, a new functional block, anything—but I came up empty-handed.

So either the Wii is just an overclocked Gamecube, or the entire thing was a cut-and-paste scam. But we think Stokes is right when he says: "Personally, I have a hard time imagining that IBM, ATI, and Nintendo have invested all this time and money into a product that's basically a speedbump of an existing product." Back to incredulity. Florian Eckhardt

A closer look at the "leaked" Wii specs [Ars Technica]

Take this with a pinch of salt and a swig of tequila, but game site MaxConsole has the details. I can't be the only one sick of hearing rumored Wii power info, can I? Thought the point was that the machine isn't a powerhouse super console like the 360 and the PS3. That being said, the bit on the Wii's controller is rather interesting. True or not, hit the jump for the full details. Brian Ashcraft

The Wii Hardware

- Nintendo Wii's 'Broadway' CPU operates at 729MHZ with a maximum bandwidth of 1.9gbyte/sec.
- Nintendo Wii's 'HollyWood' GPU is clocked at 243MHZ, the internal memory of it includes 3mb of embedded graphics memory and 24megabytes of high speed main memory.
- 64megabytes of GDDR3 (MEM2) as the external main memory. Just like the internal memory, it can be accessed from the CPU and GPU with a maximum bandwidth of 4gbytes/sec and can also store programs in the MEM2.
- The GPU of the Wii is identical to the GC's but it is on average 1.5X faster.

Wii's Optical Disc Drive

- Optical Disc Drive (ODD) supports single and dual layer Wii disks, discs eject with software or button and the maximum read speed is the equivalent of DVDx6.
- Two main disc types supported the single sided 12cm single sided 4.7gb and the double sided 8.51 GB. Nintendo GC discs also supported. Some of the capacity of the discs are used by the system and games can not use full disc space.
- Inserting a disc will start the Wii console, even if it was already in an off state. Pressing the eject button will change the console to an on state to take out the disc also.

General Overview

- An optional wired LAN adapter that connects to a USB port is in the pipeline for users who do not possess a wireless LAN set-up currently.
- Internal non-removable 512MB flash memory used to storage game save data and downloadable content thus eliminating the Need for a memory card.
- Both Wii discs and GameCube discs can be played via an intelligent mode swap. When running in GC mode, the Wii's CPU and GPU will lower to the respective speeds of the GC and some of the MEM2 functions as ARAM.
- Software development environment is an upgrade to the 'Dolphin SDK' used with the GC; the same libraries are used so developers can get up to scratch easily as well as the possibility of ports being easier.
- The following interfaces are included with the Wii; SD card slot, Wireless controller, two USB 2.0 ports, wireless LAN, 4x GC controller ports, 2x GC memory card slots and an AV multi output jack (only an analog jack).
- Supports Wii disks (one sided 12cm) and GC discs (one sided 8cm) and console auto switches depends on what disk is inserted
- More than just the Nunchaku is planned as an extension. GC peripherals such as DK bongos can be used in both Wii and GC modes.
- Three power status, on, off and unplugged. To prevent mistaken turn offs, the power button must be held for about a second.

The Wii Control System

- The Wii controller features; Direct Pointing Device, Three axis accelerometer, Wii power button (remotely turn console on/off), buttons, wireless connectivity, indicator LED's, rumble, battery powered (two AA alkaline batteries) and ability to connect extension unit.
- The Wii controller supports three types of operations; by itself, with a nunchuk extension or with a classic controller. Classic controllers will ship to developers during August 2006.
- The SYNCHRO button on the Wii controller exchanges wireless ID numbers when pressed at the same time as SYNCHRO on the Wii console. Wireless communications are only possible with consoles which have been authenticated.
- The rumble motor can be turned on and off and the intensity can be changed.
- The Wii remote has a pointer for fine movements as well as a motion sensor +/- 3.4G suitable for larger body movements, the nunchuk attachment has a sensor of +/- 2G
- The sensor bar must be placed above or below a TV set, the pointer measures coordinates between the ends of the bar which are about 20cm apart.
- The Wii remote has four status, disconnected, communicating, establishing connection and pairing wait status.
- The pointer can measure co-ordinates within bounds of rectangle centered upon the sensor bar, thus it can also measure points beyond the screen. It also responds to strong light sources, windows, fluorescent lamps, fireplaces, mirrors etc.
- Due to players hands shaking while holding the controller, a ring buffer allows a precise direction to be created to hold and average accelerator samples.

Broadway CPU

Broadway is Wii's CPU. Broadway functionality and specifications are as follows.

Operating speed: 729 MHz
Bus to main memory: 243 MHz, 64 bits (maximum bandwidth: 1.9 gigabytes/sec)
32-kilobyte 8-way set-associative L1 instruction cache
32-kilobyte 8-way set-associative L1 data cache (can set up 16-kilobyte data scratch pad)
Superscalar microprocessor with six execution units (floating-point unit, branching unit, system regis
ter unit, load/store unit, two integer units)
DMA unit (15-entry DMA request queue) used by 16-kilobyte data scratch pad
Write-gather buffer for writing graphics command lists to the graphics chip
Onboard 256-kilobyte 2-way set-associative L2 integrated cache
Two, 32-bit integer units (IU)
One floating point unit (FPU) (supports single precision (32-bit) and double precision (64-bit))
The FPU supports paired single floating point (FP/PS)
The FPU supports paired single multiply add (ps_madd). Most FP/PS instructions can be issued in
each cycle and completed in three cycles.
Fixed-point to floating-point conversion can be performed at the same time as FPU register load and
store, with no loss in performance.
The branch unit supports static branch prediction and dynamic branch prediction.
When an instruction is stalled on data, the next instruction can be issued and executed. All instructions
maintain program logic and will complete in the correct program order.
Supports three L2 cache fetch modes: 32-Byte, 64-Byte, and 128-Byte.
Supports these bus pipeline depth levels: level 2, level 3, and level 4.
Reference Information: Broadway is upward compatible with Nintendo GameCube's CPU (Gekko).

Hollywood GPU

Hollywood is a system LSI composed of a GPU and internal main memory (MEM1). Hollywood is clocked at 243 MHz. Its internal memory consists of 3 megabytes of embedded graphics memory and 24 megabytes of high speed main memory.

Hollywood includes the following.
Graphics processing unit (with 3 megabytes of eDRAM)
Audio DSP
I/O Bridge
24 megabytes of internal main memory
Internal main memory operates at 486 MHz.
Maximum bandwidth between Hollywood and internal main memory: 3.9 gigabytes per second
Possible to locate a program here
Reference Information: Hollywood is similar to Nintendo GameCube's Flipper and Splash components.

External Main Memory (MEM2)

Wii uses 64 megabytes of GDDR3 (MEM2) as external main memory. Like internal main memory, MEM2 can be accessed directly from Broadway and the GPU at high speed and has a peak bandwidth of 4 gigabytes/sec. Programs can also be placed in MEM2.

Reference Information: Nintendo GameCube ARAM is used as auxiliary memory for the DSP. The CPU and GPU did not have direct access to it.

More Here [MaxConsole]

I spent some time over the weekend trying to mock up a desktop that would let me use at least some of my current bits and pieces.

I'm not exactly thrilled with all of the components in the system, but staying at about $1,000, this seems to be the best I could do.

I leaned heavily, very heavily, on Ars Technica's Hot Rod specs for this system. (thanks, Dan) I also tried building systems with Alienware, Falcon Northwest, Voodoo PC and Hypersonic. I found that Alienware was the most reasonably priced (they came in at $2,120), but I wasn't happy with some of their options, including graphics card, so I think I'll build my own.

I think I'm going to go with an Abit KN8 Ultra motherboard. It isn't SLI-capable, but I don't think I will be using that anytime soon, and it's super affordable, coming in at under $90.

For the processor I decided to go with AMD's Athlon 64 X2 4600+. I'm still going back and forth on the processor speed. The 4200 runs $350, while the 4600 comes in at $530. I'm not sure if it's worth the extra money. I'm a little worried about the whole AMD over Intel. I know I probably shouldn't be, but I was one of those people who bought an AMD chip right when they were getting started and it wasn't a pleasant experience.

As you guys almost all suggested, I'll be going with two 1GB sticks of ram. I'm leaning toward the Kingston PC3200s (about $88 each), but if you have a better suggestion I'm all ears.

My graphics card selection was between Radeon's X1800XT or X1900 XT (both with 512) or Nvidia's GeForce 7900GT. The Radeons were considerably less expensive and since I opted for a non-SLI card, I think I'll go with either the 1800 or 1900. There's a $90 price difference between the two, so I'm still pondering which to choose.

I'm going to stick with my two Barracuda 7200 120GB harddrives. I'm also going to keep my SoundBlaster sound card and my three flat panel monitors.

Since my power supply is way too weak (250 watts), I'm going to go with an Antec SLK3800B case which comes with a built in 400W power supply. I'm a little worried that even 400W, won't be good future proofing, but upgrading that down the line shouldn't be a problem. My other option is to stick with my Gateway case and just buy a power supply like the 600W Coolermaster, which uns about $78.

This system rings up at about $1,000 to $1,200 (depending on my choices), which isn't that bad.

So here are my main concerns. Is it a bad idea to skip out on the SLI-enabled motherboard and go with ATI? And, do you think mixing AMD and ATI is a bad decision? Brian Crecente

Ars System Guide [Ars Technica]

Sissily slapping Charlie Demerijian to death with their purple electronic purses, the Cylons over at Slashdot have taken umbrage at The Inquirer's earlier portrayal of the PS3's Cell as "slow and broken".

Look, there's no one currently on staff who is a hovering cybernetic brain; consequently, no one here at Kotaku is smart enough to tell you what these nerds' beef is. Here's the best layman's summary in the thread we can find, from gabebear:

The Cell reads from the graphics card's memory at glacial speeds, so they run the headline "PS3 hardware slow and broken" and fail to point out the fact that you would almost never want to do this in a game.

A respectable article would have pointed out that this doesn't have any impact on games, but will effect applications. The 256MB of RAM connected to the video card is really only good for vertex data and textures, so you are only left with 256MB to run the executables in. The practical implications of this information means that Linux will only be able to use 256MB of RAM. The RSX(graphics card) can render out of it's own local memory or main memory(almost as fast as local mem), anything that needs to be modified by the Cell must stay in main memory because of this bandwidth issue.

Luckily, games contain a lot of static models and static textures that will easily fill up the 256MB of local mem on the RSX; stuff that the Cell would never read from....

I dunno. This all just seems so analogous to sniffing someone's underpants in order to ascertain what they had for lunch. Let's just wait for the games. FLORIAN ECKHARDT

PS3 Cell Processor 'Broken'? [Slashdot Games]

Every time I try to report on the technical angle of gaming — how many triangles are being squirted per second out of a console's positronic sphincter and what not — ten thousand of you instantly email me to point out that I got it all wrong. So I'm not even going to try this time. Read for yourself why the PS3 is "slow and broken."

For local memory, the measured vs theoretical bandwidth is missing, I wonder why? RSX is at a solid 22.4GBps for both read and write, good job there green team. Then comes the blue team with Cell. Local memory write is about 4GBps, 40% of the next slowest bandwidth there. Then comes the bomb from hell, the Cell local memory read bandwidth is a stunning 16MBps, note that is a capital M to connote Mega vs a capital G to connote Giga. This is a three order of magnitude oopsie, and it is an oopsie, as Sony put it "(no, this isn't a typo...)".

The author claims that the PS3's hardware is inferior even to last year's 360... not necessarily surprising, considering the mediocrity of the demos we saw at E3. A more important question is: if the games are fun, does it matter? I'm tempted to say no, but at this point, even the most credulous gamer has to ask themselves at this point what they are spending $600 bucks on. The answer? Blu-Ray with a subpar, underpowered game console grafted to the side. FLORIAN ECKHARDT

PS3 Hardware slow and broken [The Inquirer]

According to official Nintendo documentation, the IMB produced "Broadway" CPU is clocked at 729 MHz. To put things in perspective, the GameCube's Gekko CPU powered at 485 MHz, while the Xbox 360's CPU runs at 3.2 GHz. The original Xbox's clocked at 733 MHz.

The Revolution's ATI-developed "Hollywood" GPU runs at 243 MHz, compared to the GameCube's GPU that clocked at 162 MHz. "The 'Hollywood' is a large-scale integrated chip that includes the GPU, DSP, I/O bridge and 3MBs of texture memory," a studio source told IGN.

Other numbers include 88 MBs of system RAM, while the GameCube sported 40 MBs of RAM. The original Xbox had 64 MBs of RAM. However, the PS3 and the Xbox 3 boast 512 MBs of RAM.

So what does this mean? Well, pretty much what Nintendo has saying the entire time: they are not competing with the muscle consoles. Compared to the PS3 and the Xbox 360, the Revolution is underpowered. But while the specs may not exactly be mind-blowing, cheap games and invention are.

Full Piece Here [IGN]

Let's get the numbers out of the way. The Revolution's alleged, totally unconfirmed specs that IGN reported are:
About 108 MB of RAM
A processor code-named Broadway, which is supposed to be two to three times faster than the current Gekko in the 'Cube
A graphics processor called behind closed doors "Hollywood," done by ATI

Developers IGN interviewed called the Revolution a "souped up Xbox." This news has fanboys crying tears into Mario pillows, because the Revolution isn't aiming at the HD-era that Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 are making their battleground.

Where Metal Gear Solid 4 and Halo 3 will do battle, is not where the next Mario game will end up. But is this a problem? Nintendo's eccentric stance on the next generation of video games was pretty obvious when they unveiled the Revolution's controller, should consumers be any less surprised to find out that the aim of the console is skewing away from the HD battlefield the rest of the console race is going to be?

The point here, is the specs don't matter. The games do. I don't know if the Revolution is going to be amazing, or if its going to be vile trash, but chances are the 108 MB of RAM the thing uses isn't going to mess up my experience on the console. Just like the 360s ass-whooping tons of RAM doesn't promise it success, the Revolution isn't promised failure because of its RAM amount.

I don't really think I'd want to see Mario's mustache in HD, anyway. That could be a little much.

Revolution Tech Details Emerge [IGN]

Games Industry reports that Jim Merrick, Nintendo of Europe's marketing director is saying that the specs for the next-gen Nintendo console may never leak. The company wants to emphasize fun, playable games and not have people focus on the nitty gritty of technical specs.

Merrick also says that no Revolution games will be shown this year and that screenshots and media won't be released till the games reach a playable form. He added that next-gen iterations of Nintendo classics (Mario, Zelda, Metroid et cetera) are coming along nicely.

So, Merrick says no showing this year and rumors are still swirling about the possibilty of seeing a Mario game in December. Unfortunately the only fat plumber you may see this year is the one coming to unplug your sink after you got a little intense with the garbage disposal.

Revolution Technical Specs to Remain Under Wraps [Games Industry]
Mario Revolution In December?