Tesla Launches Games Console, Pretends It's a Car

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Model S Plaid 'more powerful than a PS5'

The infotainment unit in a Tesla Model S showing The Witcher III
(Image credit: Tesla, Inc)

The infotainment system inside a Tesla Model S is now as powerful as a PlayStation 5, according to company chief executive, Elon Musk, speaking at a public launch of the Model S Plaid. 

The car is quicker, more expensive, and has a longer range than previous Model S, but what’s really important is that in-car computer, which was shown running Cyberpunk 2077, with Musk commenting that the game can run at 60 fps, on what we’re assured is an AMD Navi 23 GPU. This new RDNA2 entry-level graphics chip packs up to 2048 stream processors and 8GB of GDDR6 VRAM, though Tesla hasn’t confirmed the precise specs. It pushes the car’s main 17-inch touchscreen, which has a resolution of 2200×1300, 

Tesla does, of course, have form in this area, having already shown off a 10 TFLOP in-car rig, but with no specifics beyond that. The new system’s CPU has not yet been revealed, but the game recommends an i7-4790 or Ryzen 3 3200G, so it’s clearly going to be a much better spec than either of those. 

Also visible at the event was a Tesla-branded game controller, with sticks in a PlayStation configuration. A standard Xbox One pad was also spotted sitting on the passenger side of the car’s fascia.

The Tesla Model S Plaid is on sale now, starting from $122,990.

Ian Evenden
Ian Evenden
Freelance News Writer

Ian Evenden is a UK-based news writer for Tom’s Hardware US. He’ll write about anything, but stories about Raspberry Pi and DIY robots seem to find their way to him.

7 Comments Comment from the forums
  • USAFRet
    but what’s really important is that in-car computer, which was shown running Cyberpunk 2077, with Musk commenting that the game can run at 60 fps

    I sincerely hope that when the fool doing this crashes, they are the only person involved.
    Reply
  • -Fran-
    USAFRet said:
    but what’s really important is that in-car computer, which was shown running Cyberpunk 2077, with Musk commenting that the game can run at 60 fps

    I sincerely hope that when the fool doing this crashes, they are the only person involved.
    Imagine someone playing Carmaggedon and getting pulled over. I wonder what face the police officer would make...

    Wait, would the car even notice the police? o.O

    Clearly the driver wouldn't... Too busy playing Carmaggedon!

    Regards.
    Reply
  • Flemkopf
    The Tesla Model S Plaid is on sale now, starting from $122,990.

    Ouch! And you can bet that they're going to be selling that on a seven year loan, so most people are going to be spending a lot more than that over the lifetime of that loan. I know it's being billed as a luxury car competing with Porsche and the like, but wow that hurts even thinking about it.
    Reply
  • danlw
    Great... Now all the scalpers will buy them up and resell them for 2.5x MSRP...
    Reply
  • jkflipflop98
    Flemkopf said:
    Ouch! And you can bet that they're going to be selling that on a seven year loan, so most people are going to be spending a lot more than that over the lifetime of that loan. I know it's being billed as a luxury car competing with Porsche and the like, but wow that hurts even thinking about it.

    I mean, it's the fastest 0-100 car on the planet. The fact that you're getting it for <$130k is actually a steal. And to some people $130k is pocket change that they blow in Vegas over a single weekend.
    Reply
  • terminator3
    How would cops react to someone playing any of the Need for Speed, Gran Turismo or GTA games?
    Reply
  • USAFRet
    terminator3 said:
    How would cops react to someone playing any of the Need for Speed, Gran Turismo or GTA games?
    Just like someone playing Minesweeper.
    Distracted Driving.

    And if a crash is involved, I hope someone is going to jail.
    Reply