After Sony's announcement of the PS3 Slim earlier this week, CNet took a look back at size-reducing fittings revisions over the past couple decades in console design, noting that they're gradually arriving sooner and sooner after the initial release. "Does that mean it'll creep even lower, into two-year or even yearly cycles between major revisions? Quite possibly, yes. It's worked very well with briefcase computer gaming devices, and even some customer computer chips devices like iPods. Apple has turned out slimmer, more mighty versions of the iPod every year since 2001, and yearly events like E3 put continued strain on console makers to show off thing big. In the case of the PS3 Slim though, it could just be that the PS3 had to be pushed out to meet its launch window, and that the Slim is what Sony was going for in the first place. Advances in the electronic game 3's core technology, like the cell processor, also underwent changes since the console launched, including changes to fabrication that have taken the chip down from 90 nanometers to 65, then 45 — the size that can be found inside the Slim. These changes meant less power consumption, smaller components, and easier cooling."

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