EA: Console 'Arms Race' Has Slowed, Relevance of Hardware Updates Has 'Subsided'

I think we are getting to the point with consoles that TV's have reached.
It's just like the SD/DVD/720/1080 stepping. I feel like the current consoles would be comparable to a 720 HDTV, they look really darn good, and there is room for improvement, but the improvement won't be as dramatic as it was from the last gen. I'm thinking that after the next gen is released we'll see an even longer console life, which really is a good thing for everybody.
A longer console life means that hardware manufacturers have time to get production costs below retail for a longer period. Consumers get to save money on hardware upgrades and instead spend it on software. The devs get more time to get comfortable with the system and make great games, and the console manufacturer really makes their money on the software royalties anyways so it's happy happy fun time.

I'm actually happy it has slowed down. It gives developers time to really get every drop of power out of these consoles. Some of the most impressive(graphics-wise) games of the PS2 came late in it's life cycle. I hope this is a trend going forward.

I made a comment that Sony shouldn't have rushed the PS3 and this probably applies to them all now.

The PS3 could have waited a year to mature and release at a lower price even. Sony could have ridden the PS2 for much longer and they still do. I mean PS2 versions of Multiplatform titles sold better than when the 360 versions after release.

The whole "Next Gen begins when we says it does" would have worked in a way. MS will probably learn their own experience and release a robust console from the get go. All the console launches are huge movers and no one of the three launched with surplus consoles (except MS in Japan).

Has the arms race slowed or has it just migrated to new user interfaces?

Its slowed, but not because people arent willing to buy new hardware 2-3 years from now, but instead because Sony and MS have lost a lot of money on the hardware side. Microsoft lost tons of money during the xbox180 era, but that was the entry fee to get into the console arena. Sony loses money on every ps3 console sold and game sales havent been good enough to bring it back in the black yet. Microsoft has also lost tons of money due to fixing everyone's red rings for free. No, there wont be any new consoles from MS or Sony anytime soon. They would be rolling over and taking losses on their investment.

No shit Sherlock.