The Xbox Series S, also known as Lockhart, has become one of the main points of discussion of the next generation of consoles, despite not having been officially announced yet. The rumored 20 CUs featured by the console should not hold back next-gen games, according to an industry veteran.
Speaking on Twitter, the PlayStation 5 former principal engineer Matt Hargett stated that the Xbox Series S 20 CUs will not hold back next-generation games in any way, as they are perfect for a gaming device that is not targeting 4K resolution.
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
In his tweet, Hargett says a couple of interesting things. Console manufacturers haven't confirmed the production process for the next-gen consoles, but Hargett suggests that the 5nm process is being used for the Xbox Series S, as the efficiencies of the process would do great for the initial product introduction. As 5nm is still new, however, it would lead to limited stock at launch, but this wouldn't be a huge problem considering the current economic situation.
It totally would, but if you need the efficiencies of 5nm for the initial product introduction, and you’re looking at a global recession that limits purchase ability, maybe limited stock for the initial holiday sales is an okay pill to swallow.
— Matt Hargett (@syke) July 2, 2020
The other extremely interesting thing that Hargett said in his first tweet is that the Xbox Series S will be a "portable" console. This sounds extremely unlikely for a lot of different reasons, so it's definitely more probable that he is referring to a small form factor that lets players carry it around with ease. This also falls in line with another report that revealed that the console is being disguised inside Xbox One X cases by Microsoft employees traveling around.
Last week, we learned that the Xbox Series X devkit includes a special Lockhart profile that is being used to test games. This profile suggests that the Xbox Series S will feature 7.5 GB of usable RAM, a slightly underclocked CPU speed, and around 4 teraflops of GPU performance.
The Xbox Series S has yet to be officially announced. We will keep you updated on the console as soon as more come in on it, so stay tuned for all the latest news.
About the author: Francesco De Meo has been covering video games and technology since 2012, starting his career at small outlets like Gamersyndrome and GeekSnack. After joining Wccftech gaming section in 2015, he quickly expanded his video gaming coverage with in-depth reporting, interviews with iconic industry figures such as Grasshopper Manufacture founder and No More Heroes creator Goichi "Suda51" Suda, Resident Evil series creator Shinji Mikami, Team NINJA's president and Nioh series director Fumihiko Yasuda, and Silent Hill creator Keiichiro Toyama, reviews and on-the-ground coverage of major industry events such as Gamescom and E3. When he's not reporting or reviewing, Francesco can be found playing the genres he loves most, spending time with his six cats, reading, writing music, playing guitar and drumming for his progressive rock band.
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