Ideas

Luke summers console presentation from Luke Summers

Research

Research

Questionnaire 

Results

Reviews

The above review is from IGN, they are one of the widely known online game reviewers. From their review of the Xbox One, I can see the positives and negatives that they have listed about the console, looking at these I can get an idea of what I should and shouldn't feature in my console. From this review, I can see that IGN wants a high powered console, withe gameplay streaming, with and online community in which voice chat can be used, a high standard controller is necessary and navigation should be easy throughout the console.The above review is from tech radar, they are renowned on the internet for game and game console reviews. They have listed what they are "for" and "against when it comes to the PS4, from what they have listed, I can see what they thin makes and ideal console and what they would prefer one would feature. From this review I can see that tech radar want a console with lots of games, a good interface with easy navigation and not issues, DLNA streaming, MP3 playback, great performance, good value, a DualShock controller, good graphics and working remote play. 

From what I have learnt from reading the interviews from to leading online reviewers, I will now be able to go on to design my own console, keeping in mind what is most preferable, referring to the reviews and my market research.

LAN

Log

Date	Activity	What I had to setup	Evidence
18th March	SNES setup + games	CRT TV Snes Power adaptor Pad Scart Lead
19th March	Laptop World Of Warcraft graphics alteration	Laptop, charger, game launcher

19th March	Xbox 360 set up + games	Xbox 360 HDMI cable Power adaptor Pad
19th March	World Of Warcraft Online	Laptop World of Warcraft game

Setup Log

Glossary Of Terms

RAM

Random access memory

Also known as “RAM” is used to temporarily store data that needs to be processed in order to carry out an action and run a program such as a game, if you play a game that you know is rather demanding you will definitely need a high GB of RAM, for most high end games today, to run at a high standard you would need at least 8GB of RAM, obviously you will need a high end processor and graphics card. There are two main types of RAM, DDR3 and DDR5, DDR5 is the fastest and is used in the PS4 and DDR3 is used in the Xbox One.

CPU

Central processing unit

The central processing unit is the main unit within the PC hat is responsible for all the processing on the computer, this is key to run anything on your computer. Processors come in differnt cores, such as dual core, quad core and six core, each haver differing speeds. The more cores, the faster the processing speed. The speed of a CPU is measured in MHZ, this number represenst the number of procceses done per second. There are many different Processors made by companies like AMD and Intel.

Graphics Processor

The graphics processing unit in a computer is the processor responsible for displaying images, without this, you would not see anything on your screen. There are different GPU's varying in qulity made by companies such as NvIdea. The Asus Nvidia GeForce GTX650 1 GB GDDR5 1058MHz Graphics Card and the ATI Radeon 8500 are examples of fairly new graphics card that is used in high end PC's to run the latest games. The better the quality of a graphics card, the higher the quality of models you see in game are displayed.

Video Display/Output ( LCD, Monochrome, Colour)

There are different ways that images are displayed, LCD, Monochrome and colour display are the most commonly used.

LCD – A flat panel display, electronic visual display, or video display that uses the light modulating properties of liquid crystals. You would typically see this term when buying a TV.

Monochrome – A monochrome monitor is a type of computer display which was very common in the early days of computing, before colour monitors became popular.

Colour display – Colour display is simply a when a monitor displays colour, this is used in all monitors and televisions today and is a necessity.

Sound/Audio

Sound (Audio) Is what allows you to hear things from your computer or an other device, such as music, if there is no sound device, then you will not hear sound on your device.

Storage Media

The storage media is internal and external storage devices that can hold data either in your computer or to be transferred to another device. An internal hard drive in a computer would be screwed in place and is nesessary for a computer to work. An external hard drive is less of a necessity and is used for extra storage if you PC is full or to transfer data between systems.

Power Supply

The power supply is what keeps a computer switched on and provides power to all the components of a computer allowing it to run whatever you wish. As with storage media, power supplys are both internal and external. The PS4 has an internal power supply, which has been modified to stop the console overheating and the Xbox One has an external power brick, allowing more space in the console and stops any chance of the console overheating.

Software Kernel (operating system)

The operating system is what is featured on your computer allowing you to navigate through your system to access the data you need. One of the most common OS's today is Windows 8, it's usually built in with any Laptop or home computer you buy.

HCI

Human–computer interaction – This is the term used to describe the interaction between a user and a computer. This could be using the mouse to navigate through the features on a computer using the display on your screen or devices such as Kinect for Xbox that allow you to navigate through the consoles features using hand gestures and voice commands.

LAN

Local area network - LAN is a computer network that interconnects users computers in a limited area such as at home. This method of connection isn't typically used today, as it is outdated, but some people and small business's still use it. Some gamers use it to run old games over a netowrk so they can play together.

GPRS

General Packet Radio Service - GPRS is a packet oriented mobile data service on the 2G and 3G mobile communication system's for mobile communications. This allows people to connect over their phones with each other and connect to the internet. You will usually find the GPRS function on your smartphone.

WAP

Wireless Application Protocol - WAP is a technical term for accessing information over a mobile wireless network that allows you to connect to the internet using devices such as a laptop or console to connect wirelessly.

Cache

The cache is used to store data that needs to constantly be accessed as it is key to running certain programs or even keeping the computer switched on, if you OS (operating system) suddenly stopped being assessed and processed then your computer would not be able to run.

MCP

Media Communications Processor – The MCP is designed to create and distribute digital media. It processes audio, video, graphics, fax and modem procedures using a multimedia subsystem.

2D v 3D graphics processing

2D graphics processing is the processing of 2D images, this is a much older method of pressing, though still used, 3D processing is much more modern and is necessary for running anything 3D.

Subscription TV

Subscription TV is when you subscribe to view different channels and stream content such as movies. Netflix and LoveFilm are examples of subsciption TV that allow you to stream content through multiple devices, such as your home console and Smart TV.

ETV

Enhanced Television – Enhanced TV is an example of interactive TV, referring to the connection between a TV and a computer. This could refer to streaming films on your Computer and your TV at the same time.

API (Graphical and Sound)

Graphically API is the software that renders what you see on your screen, DirectX 9 is a graphics API.

In sound, API is the software that processes the sound that you hear, Java is an example of a sound API.

Interpreted programming languages for games

An interpreted language is a programming language that executes instructions directly, without previously compiling a program into machine-language instructions, some examples are Jave and Python.

Compiled programming languages for games

A compiled language is a programming language whose implementations are typically compilers and not interpreters.

Object-oriented programming

OOP is a programme that represents concepts as objects that have data fields and associated procedures known as methods. 

Scripting languages for games

Scripting languages are Programme languages that add functionality to a web page. Examples are: JavaScript, PHP, Perl and C++.

Design Spec For Console

Spec breakdown and justification

RAM

The RAM used in my console will be 8GB of GDDR5, because this is a very high quality of RAM and is one of the fastest out there and it would not take up too much space in the console.

CPU

AMD x86 Jaguar 1.6GHZ 8-Core, this is the same CPU used in the PS4, I have chosen this because it is of a very high quality and will be enable the console to play new games with no problems.

Graphics Processor

AMD next-generation Radeon-based graphics engine, I will use the latest possible to ensure high quality and optimised gameplay.

Video Display

HDMI output, I have chosen this because most homes have at least one TV with HDMI support enabling the console to run HD game content.

Sound/Audio

HD sound output, standard HD sound suitable for all games and can be used for surround sound. I have chosen this so the user of the console will get a immersive experience when playing the games featured on the console.

Internal

500GB hard drive, suitable for gamers wishing it save games to the console and it doesn’t take up too much space in the console.

Portable Storage media

Optical discs, the most common storage media used today and very suitable and preferred for this console.

Power Supply

The power supply will be an external power brick to reduce space used in the console and it better for the health of the console.

Controller

Standard controller similar to the Xbox controller, wired and wireless compatibility, connects to console via wireless or USB.

Connectivity

Features 2 USB ports on front, HDMI and Ethernet port on back.

Operating system

Dedicated OS, can be programmed to make navigating through the consoles features very easy, will also feature a game point system allowing the user to earn points for playing games in which they can compare to the friends points on the online

Artwork, console (front and rear view) and controller with annotations