Xbox Series S "perfect" for next-gen says ex-Sony engineer

Xbox’s still unannounced Xbox Series S console may be lower in power than the powerful Xbox Series X, but an ex-Sony hardware engineer has revealed that the console will be “perfect” for next-gen gaming. 

The cheaper, lower-powered Xbox Series S (aka Project Lockhart) is reported to have the same CPU and SSD of its more premium Series X counterpart, but will see a lower-powered GPU that will render games at a lower 1080p resolution.

The Verge’s Tom Warren took to Twitter last week to reveal a key detail about Series S’ lower power GPU: it has just 20 CUs aka compute units. However, as ex-Sony engineer Matt Hargett explains, the next-gen architecture of the Lockhart SoC will enable it to stay in the next-gen competition.

“Tom is often fast and loose with technical facts, but I’m with him on checking people who think that having “only” 20 CUs will hold back next-gen games,” said Hargrett. “Twenty 5nm RDNA2 CUs seems perfect for a modern portable gaming hardware profile at 720p/1080p that’s compatible with 900 games.”

Tom is often fast and loose with technical facts, but I’m with him on checking people who think that having “only” 20 CUs will hold back next-gen games. Twenty 5nm RDNA2 CUs seems perfect for a modern portable gaming hardware profile at 720p/1080p that’s compatible with 900 games https://t.co/Lu4nIeQoE3

— Matt Hargett (@syke) July 2, 2020

While Xbox still has yet to reveal the Xbox Series S, multiple details regarding the lower powered console keep getting revealed through leaks and insiders. For example, Microsoft’s own operating system and even developer documents highlight the unannounced console.

As for juicier details, the Series S console will not look like the smaller cube-shaped design that has been making the rounds – which we will have certainly used for this article’s banner image because we have nothing else to use – but will instead look more like an Xbox One S or Xbox One X.