Neogaf: Sony patent: PS3 refresh or BC box for PS4?

[MerrickG]

Per the neogaf thread:
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthre...3#post84499873

From another Sony patent find by onQ123: A technique (memory controller and wiring) to use the same Stacked memory for two different CPUs/GPUs/Accelerators that have different requirements for memory access: 1) Fast and narrow buss and 2) Wide buss and slower.

MEMORY SYSTEM, METHOD FOR CONTROLLING THE SAME, AND INFORMATION PROCESSING DEVICE

Typically, the main system 304 can operate at high operating speeds but has a narrow data bus width. On the other hand, the subsystem 306 has a wide data bus width but operates at low operating speeds. Because of this situation, there is typically a significant difference in an operating frequency and a data bus width between the main memory 308 and the sub memory 310. As a result, the conventional information processing device 300 needs several different kinds of memories making it difficult to reduce the component cost. In addition, a wiring between the main system 304 and the main memory 308 and a wiring between the subsystem 306 and the sub memory 310 are respectively required, and this increases the production cost.

Possible use for a refreshed PS3.5 which will have ARM IP for the Sub system that can use wide IO and Cell (Main system) which requires a very fast but narrower memory buss.

I'm guessing here that it's primary use will be using the same wide IO memory with narrow but faster memory buss CPUs which already exist rather than just designing/redesigning both the main and sub systems to use the same stacked wide IO memory. The patent is for a two chip stack, the size of the stack: 2 high and the example, a slower wide read converted to two faster narrow reads with the reference to Wide IO likely means only one memory chip and this limits the amount of memory given current technology to about 1 GB (as far as I know and I am not in the industry). Perfect for a PS 3.5 but too small in size and buss width for a PS4.

Recent news has China opening up to allow Game consoles. This changes the end of life for both the PS3 and Xbox 360. Sony has known about this since before Jan 2011; they created a R&D center in China to develop home grown games for the PS3.

Criteria for a refresh: Price, power use and SECURITY.

What do you guys think? Nothing would thrill me more than having an Addon on box that enables full BC for the PS3 on PS4, but that would seemingly undercut Gaikai.