This and the never ending amount of AI pre/post processing stuff that keeps getting added also supports that direction. NV says 5090 is still here but I have a feeling that whatever they or AMD do for the next launch, things are really going to look a lot different than what were used to.
We have several factors pushing us into a SOC based commoditized compute market for home use.
1. Connection speeds are getting to a point where for home consumer use there is no need to buy anything better than say 1 gig and that is pushing it.
2. Fab time to make anything is more expensive, and every dollar spent needs to be towards maximizing profit or fulfilling contractual obligations.
3. Memory prices for all types of memory be that dense storage or memory type storage is through the roof.
4. RMR is still king for any company today.
You add all of this up... and here is what will be delivered to the average consumer... A SOC appliance (like a gaming console) with JUST ENOUGH compute and graphics power to do some local gaming but for the best experience you will need a subscription to a service to offload the rendering and such. This will be the common solution in more urban areas. (Kind of as it is today but a broader use case.)
People owning powerful local compute will evolve into the folks like many of us here. Willing to spend thousands of dollars to keep that. And even we will have to find ways to make this make sense. (Or keep piecemealing upgrades on bunny hop steps like when we were younger DIY enthusiasts because the parts are likely to cost what a system did. Looking at you Graphics cards.)
We will still be out there... there is always a use case today for local compute.
For some single person households the phone will the the SOC of the future where you connect it to your TV for entertainment. It will likely be the preferred method of doing things.
DIY people like us in compute will become perceived audiophile folks that exist today. A bit antiquated in their ways, and willing to spend obscene amounts on something everyone else can get good enough to for much less money.
What I see as the flip to this script.
Where I see this becoming different is the need for AI compute and the slowing of AI datacenters. Then there will be VERY powerful consoles capable of great local gaming. SOC solutions or even fully built systems that are truly top tier performers with far more performance than a household could need. This will be something that everyone at the house connects to... it will replace the modem/Fiber box in your home. All devices will connect to it and receive household services including top tier triple A gaming. And it's cost will be nearly free.. as a matter of fact it could very well lower the costs for those willing to have these in their homes. Because it will also host AI and be part of a large grid infrastructure. You will need a minimum of a 5 gig internet connection (Paid for by the AI company) and maybe even an upgraded power delivery to your home (Also paid for... heck it might even come with a home battery backup and a solar panel solution.).
The second option I gave just above that "flips the script" will be ostensibly the death of DIY compute that looks anything like what we have today. Yea there will still be a few people willing to have or having gutted one of those AI boxes has their own. but by and large it will be that device that displaces independent home compute.
