Don't think of it as a "Slim". They won't be able to make it significant smaller anyhow.
No, what I asume is they'll enable 4k playback and give it a new design, and maybe some internal changes to make it as cheap to produce as possible, and that's pretty much it. So, basically, this new SKU might also be able to play 4k Blu-Ray and streams, but won't have the extra beef of Neo.
I doubt Sony can afford to introduce a non-4k (playback) capable SKU now that MS has announced XBOX One S.
The VCE in the PS4 APU does not support HEVC encode while the XB1 VCE does. VCE is a low latency hardware encoder AMD provided for Game streaming. It can not be used for commercial media.
http://wccftech.com/amd-unveils-polaris-11-10-gpu/ said:
the new multimedia cores and the new display engine in Polaris. Which will enable gamers to record and stream 4K gameplay at 60 FPS with no performance cost.
The VCE is not on/in the ARM block. Sony moved the ARM block out of the APU to Southbridge so that they could use GDDR5 memory. The ARM block in APUs also handles Network standby which can't use GDDR5 memory as it uses too much power. Polaris GPUs use GDDR5 but rely on Motherboard and/or APU to support Network standby. I'd guess Sony will again move all ARM IP to Southbridge while Microsoft has to wait on HBM2 (Vega GPU) which can support low power network standby.
At this time we have only publicly demonstrated a GDDR5 configuration of the Polaris architecture.It’s important to understand that HBM isn’t (currently) suitable for all GPU segments due to the current HBM cost structure. In the mainstream GPU segment, GDDR5 remains an extremely cost-effective, efficient and viable memory technology
Which explains the XB1 Scorpio delay till Holiday 2017 using the Vega GPU with HBM2. The power savings in using HBM over GDDR5 is then used for the GPU allowing two extra TF at the same TDP.
Edit: The Linkedin cite with a AMD employee testing compatibility for three APUs from Polaris (hindsight) to Launch APUs have to be XB1 Slim, PS4 NEO and a PS4 slim. XB1 Scorpio is still a year out and a different GPU family.
Three AMD Polaris GPUs have been recently released and one of them could be used in a PS4 slim resulting in a bump from 1.8 to 2.2 TF GPU.
AMD Radeon RX 460
Sony started advertising the PS4 in China last month (whole family playing including Grandma) for name recognition, apparently for casual games and Sony is expecting 2017 to exceed all yearly gross sales since 1998 with a 10% profit margin largely due to the PS4 and network services.
To my mind the lack of a h.265 VCE and a need to have a cheap PS4 for the China market makes it a lock that a PS4 Slim is being released this holiday season along with Firmware 4.0 as the Media update introducing the features we were told at Launch the PS4 would support.
When you add the PS4 media firmware update to the PS4 hardware you get a combination that Sony expects to make them money. When you add PS3 firmware 5.0 to the PS3 hardware you get a combination that Sony expects to make money due to Network services. Sony says; "they will have the largest yearly gross in 2017 since 1998 with a 10% profit margin due to the PS4 and Network services".
“8” is written as “八” in Kanji. 八 is considered “末広がり(Suehirogari)” from its shape which widens toward the end. Suehirogari is to become more and more prosperous as time goes.