OUYA could unintentionally turn Android into a serious gaming platform

[Dumac]

I can't really see this succeeding

$100 is pretty cheap though....

 

[mosco]

Throwing some water on the Ouya dreams:

http://penny-arcade.com/report/edit...e-doesnt-match-the-hype-why-you-should-be-ske

seems pretty spot on.

 

[AstroManLuca]

This is why I don't contribute to kickstarter projects.

 

[abaez]

Kickstarter projects like this - no. I've contributed to four of them and have gotten/am getting something pretty unique for each.

 

[Anubis]

kickstarter donations close today BTW if anyone cares

 

[Mopetar]

Not a bad haul.

I'm a bit skeptical of their success after reading that Penny Arcade article, but I wish them the best of luck all the same. The gaming industry is in need of a good shakeup.

 

[Robert Munch]

Stinks that this device is hardware dependent.

 

[Aikouka]

The only thing that I'm not sure of is their price. $100 seems awfully cheap when you consider that the kickstarter page says an extra controller costs $30. If you consider that there's probably a 1/3 mark-up on it, that's a $20 manufacturing cost. So, since the unit comes with one controller, to break even, they need to be able to manufacture the console at $79.

That would probably be pretty easy for a large company like Apple or any of the other large phone OEMs, but a small company like this? That $79 figure doesn't even include all the work they need to do to tailor Android to their console. It might be plausible if they have people doing this as more of a hobby in hope for eventual reimbursement through the Ouya Store (considering all app stores skim off sales).

Frankly, I think the console itself isn't a bad idea, but I don't know how they're going to do it at that cost.

 

[ChronoReverse]

I dunno, it shouldn't be impossible to break even.

The Nexus 7 costs $159 including manufacturing. The display and touchscreen is $62 so minus that it's already down to $97. Knock out the battery for $12.75 so that's $84.25. The "mechanical" parts of the N7 is another $20 but the Ouya is a simpler and larger shell from the images. So dipping it down to $79 (minus $5.25) doesn't seem unreasonable especially since it'll come out significantly later than the N7 so part prices will likely dip a bit.


Obviously there's issues like volume and such but it's not impossible either.

 

[Anubis]

The only thing that I'm not sure of is their price. $100 seems awfully cheap when you consider that the kickstarter page says an extra controller costs $30. If you consider that there's probably a 1/3 mark-up on it, that's a $20 manufacturing cost. So, since the unit comes with one controller, to break even, they need to be able to manufacture the console at $79.

That would probably be pretty easy for a large company like Apple or any of the other large phone OEMs, but a small company like this? That $79 figure doesn't even include all the work they need to do to tailor Android to their console. It might be plausible if they have people doing this as more of a hobby in hope for eventual reimbursement through the Ouya Store (considering all app stores skim off sales).

Frankly, I think the console itself isn't a bad idea, but I don't know how they're going to do it at that cost.

raspberry pi costs 25$ they shoudl be able to do what they want for 3x that

 

[NikolaeVarius]

There is very little chance this is going to become viable. It will be just like onLive, a potentially cool idea that dies out because its just not that useful.

 

[cl-scott]

I don't know about this being an effective game console, but now that XBMC has announced that they will be making sure it runs on this device, it could become a great alternative to the various media streaming devices out there, including the Boxee Box.

It might also become a great little device for retro gaming via emulators. Sort of like the original Xbox was if you put a modchip into it, or did a softmod. So if Nintendo and Sega wanted to release a bunch of their old classics, they might be able to find a niche, but profitable, market.

 

[Chiropteran]

There is very little chance this is going to become viable. It will be just like onLive, a potentially cool idea that dies out because its just not that useful.

I don't think they are similar at all. Onlive lets you play the same games you could play on an xbox or ps3, but instead of buying the games you pay a monthly fee, and there are apparently some lag issues.

The monthly fee kills it for most kids, who don't have a regular income, and the extra lag kills it for adults who can simply afford to buy a ps3 or xbox and play the games "for real" instead of over the internet with onlive. It was sort of a solution to a non-existing problem.

OUYA on the other hand has no monthly fee. You can buy one for $100 and you have a fun toy to play with with no additional payment obligation. It lets you play games on your TV, which overlaps with consoles such as a PS3 or Xbox or wi, but it's at a lower price niche and it's already going to be basically compatible with the whole android gaming market.

I am not 100% convinced it will be a wild success, but I certainly wouldn't say it is similar to onlive, at all.

 

[MrX8503]

I dunno, it shouldn't be impossible to break even.

The Nexus 7 costs $159 including manufacturing. The display and touchscreen is $62 so minus that it's already down to $97. Knock out the battery for $12.75 so that's $84.25. The "mechanical" parts of the N7 is another $20 but the Ouya is a simpler and larger shell from the images. So dipping it down to $79 (minus $5.25) doesn't seem unreasonable especially since it'll come out significantly later than the N7 so part prices will likely dip a bit.

Obviously there's issues like volume and such but it's not impossible either.

Uh...you can't compare the N7 linearly to the Ouya. First of all the company that built the N7 is much much bigger than the kickstarter company.

 

[ChronoReverse]

Uh...you can't compare the N7 linearly to the Ouya. First of all the company that built the N7 is much much bigger than the kickstarter company.

Of course not, I'm just pointing out it's not an impossible thing. These are all pre-existing parts and all a year later. The prices are within reason.

 

[MrX8503]

I think everyone knows that its not impossible, but its near to impossible. Also the comparison to N7 is irrelevant.

 

[Kenmitch]

I think everyone knows that its not impossible, but its near to impossible. Also the comparison to N7 is irrelevant.

They do have quite a few 10k plus backers tho....Possibly a big player or two.

The uses beyond games is were it gets its value: I'd think.

 

[ChronoReverse]

I think everyone knows that its not impossible, but its near to impossible. Also the comparison to N7 is irrelevant.

Are they? It's just a tear-down costs and the actual cost for the manufacturer is likely even lower. If you think it's completely irrelevant that's fine but I think it's still useful for ballpark measurements of component costs. Do I think they'll make a profit per unit? Haha, beyond unlikely but they shouldn't lose a fortune either.

No, the real issue with this project is the software they're promising. The hardware should be manufacturable by next year considering it's only this year's hardware (and not even the fastest available) but I'm more skeptical they'll have a robust framework ready for their content concept in less than a year.

 

[MrX8503]

Its irrelevant because you're overlooking too many variables. Does a dual core 3ghz cpu equal a single core 6ghz CPU?

 

[soccerballtux]

wish they would use a Tegra4 with higher mem bandwidth.

 

[ChronoReverse]

Its irrelevant because you're overlooking too many variables. Does a dual core 3ghz cpu equal a single core 6ghz CPU?

No but a 2.67 GHz Q9450 can easily be compared to a 2.83 GHz Q9550. But if we're being disingenuous here there's no reason to take this further. In the end despite the buffed up GPU, the variance for the Tegra3 isn't going to be enormous (it'll always be under $30).

 

[Mopetar]

wish they would use a Tegra4 with higher mem bandwidth.

Has nVidia even announced it yet?

Kind of difficult to use parts that don't exist yet. Also, nVidia probably has established customers that are going to buy up the early production of these parts, so I doubt that these guys could get parts in quantity anytime soon.

 

[soccerballtux]

Has nVidia even announced it yet?

Kind of difficult to use parts that don't exist yet. Also, nVidia probably has established customers that are going to buy up the early production of these parts, so I doubt that these guys could get parts in quantity anytime soon.

Sortof. Since they're launching April, using a Q1 part would attract a lot of attention.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nvidia_Tegra#Upcoming_releases

Tegra3 only has 8 pixel shader units.
T4 entry level would have 24.
I fear T3 is going to be massively bandwidth constrained.

 

[lothar]

kickstarter donations close today BTW if anyone cares

Hmm...So I could have paid $100 two days ago and may never see that money again, or $110 today and I have assurance I will either get a product or my money back?

Seems like today would be the better option.
Or better yet, how about April when they release it?

 

[lothar]

I don't think they are similar at all. Onlive lets you play the same games you could play on an xbox or ps3, but instead of buying the games you pay a monthly fee, and there are apparently some lag issues.

The monthly fee kills it for most kids, who don't have a regular income, and the extra lag kills it for adults who can simply afford to buy a ps3 or xbox and play the games "for real" instead of over the internet with onlive. It was sort of a solution to a non-existing problem.

OUYA on the other hand has no monthly fee. You can buy one for $100 and you have a fun toy to play with with no additional payment obligation. It lets you play games on your TV, which overlaps with consoles such as a PS3 or Xbox or Wii, but it's at a lower price niche and it's already going to be basically compatible with the whole android gaming market.

I am not 100% convinced it will be a wild success, but I certainly wouldn't say it is similar to onlive, at all.

The problem with that is no game on Android/iOS/etc is good enough to make me want to hook it up and play on my TV.
It was mostly stupid when Nintendo tried doing this with the GameBoy series several times, and it's even more stupid now especially when most people that get this will simply use this to play Angry Birds.

If I want to play games on a big screen, I'll stick to either my PC games or consoles.