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The future of mobile gaming at GDC 2013 and elsewhere
Laszlo Kishonti at MWC 2013 (see the video embedded later, as well as the CLBenchmark data supporting the below statement):
[1:20] Currently Mali T-600 is the first and only GPU which can run this desktop grade software. [1:27]
The Great Equalizer 3: How Fast is Your Smartphone/Tablet in PC GPU Terms [AnandTech, April 4, 2013]
… At the end of the day I’d say it’s safe to assume the current crop of high-end ultra mobile devices [T604 based Nexus 10, Adreno 320 as in Nexus 4, Tegra 3 T33 @1.6GHz as in HTC One X+] can deliver GPU performance similar to that of mid to high-end GPUs from 2006.
The caveat there is that we have to be talking about performance in workloads that don’t have the same memory bandwidth demands as the games from that same era. While compute power has definitely kept up (as has memory capacity), memory bandwidth is no where near as good as it was on even low end to mainstream cards from that time period. For these ultra mobile devices to really shine as gaming devices, it will take a combination of further increasing compute as well as significantly enhancing memory bandwidth. Apple (and now companies like Samsung as well) has been steadily increasing memory bandwidth on its mobile SoCs for the past few generations, but it will need to do more. I suspect the mobile SoC vendors will take a page from the console folks and/or Intel and begin looking at embedded/stacked DRAM options over the coming years to address this problem.
Hisilicon K3V3 to use Mali-T658 GPU, ten times the performance of Mali-400 MP [GSM Insider, March 27, 2013]
At the Mobile World Congress 2013, many people expected Huawei to unveil the Hisilicon K3V3 processor. But the upcoming processor from the Chinese company is yet to unveil to date.
According to sources from China [obviously from this SHUMABAOBEI.NET article of March 26], the Hisilicon K3V3 processor is based on the 28nm technology and it is a quad-core processor. The Hisilicon is able to clock up to 1.8GHz. It has two sets of dual-core processor. The first set is an A15 architecture dual-core and the second set is an A7 architecture dual-core processor.
The most important is the GPU inside the Hisilicon. Sources reported that the Hisilicon K3V3 comes with Mali-T658 GPU. ARM stated that the Mali-T658 has ten times better performance than the Mali-400 MP and four times better than the Mali-T604. The Exynos 4412 in Samsung Galaxy S3 and Samsung Galaxy Note 2 is using the Mali-400 MP GPU.
Look like the Hisilicon K3V3 is focusing on the graphics rather than on the numbers of core. The Hisilicon K3V3 could launch in second quarter of the year.
Related information:
–Mali-T658 GPU Extends Graphics And GPU Compute Leadership For High Performance Devices [press release, Nov 10, 2011] “To address high-end consumer requirements, the Mali-T658 GPU delivers up to ten times the graphics performance of the Mali-400 MP GPU, found in a wide range of today’s mainstream consumer products. It also features four times the GPU Compute performance of the Mali-T604 GPU, enabling a raft of new use-cases outside of traditional graphics processing, including computational photography, image-processing and augmented reality. … The ability of the Mali-T658 GPU to scale up to eight cores provides unprecedented energy-efficiency, flexibility and scalability to match the CPU and GPU performance points through one coherent interface.”
– ARM Mali-T658 GPU Arrives at the Japan Technical Symposium [ARM Multimedia blog, Nov 10, 2011] “It’s all about higher performance – twice as many shader cores and double the arithmetic pipelines per core [as the Mali-T604].”
– ARM’s Mali-T658 GPU in 2013, Up to 10x Faster than Mali-400 [AnandTech, Nov 9, 2011] which contains the following ARM roadmap clearly accelerated by a year or so, especially with the 2nd generation Mali T-600 Series 9 months later. Currently it is not clear why Mali-T658 is missing as a product on the ARM site. One reason might be that it was replaced by the more flexible 2nd generation Mal-T600 Series, especially since the PoP availability for that since January 2013 (see below).
– Hisilicon Licenses Range of ARM Mali Graphics Processors to Drive the Next-Generation of Smart Connected Devices [joint press release, May 21, 2012] “… including the market leading Mali-400 MP GPU and the latest high-performance Mali-T658 GPU.”
– Nufront and ARM Extend Partnership to Provide OEMs with Competitive Solutions for Next-Generation Smartphones, Tablets and Smart-TVs [joint press release, Sept 24, 2012] “Nufront has broadened its portfolio of ARM technology with licenses for the ARM® Cortex™-A15 MPCore™ Processor and ARM Mali™-T658 Graphics Processing Unit (GPU).”
Mali-T600 Series Completing the ARM 64-bit System Story [ARM Multimedia blog, Oct 30, 2012]
Today ARM announced the ARM® Cortex™-A50 processor series, which include ARMs first low-power 64-bit implementations of the ARMv8 architecture. These highly anticipated products bring with them not only an enhanced 32-bit CPU architecture but also open up the wider range of opportunities that 64-bit architectures offer for high performance energy efficient devices.
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The second generation of the Cortex/Mali pairing – the Cortex-A15 and Mali-T604 is appearing now in consumer devices from Google (Samsung Chromebook and Nexus 10 Tablet) based on the Samsung Exynos 5250 which enables, like its predecessors, market leading devices in a wide range of markets
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The combination of the Cortex-A50 and the Mali-T600 series brings to market the highest performance CPU/GPU pairing targeting energy efficient devices. The Mali-T600 series is already able to support 64-bit addressing and offers IEEE 754 compliant 64-bit floating point arithmetic; so really is “64-bit system” ready. This opens up the potential for developers to get started earlier on the GPU elements with real silicon. The Mali-T600 series of products have all been designed with support for the latest ARMv8 architecture for both 32-bit (AArch32) and 64-bit mode(AArch64). This close functional matching will become even more important as GPU Computing opens up more exciting use cases over the coming years, and ARM will continue to focus on delivering leading processor and system IP that silicon vendors can rapidly deploy. Keep watching..
Mali-T604
[ARM microsite, Nov 8, 2012]
This fourth-generation of Mali embedded graphics IP, designed to meet the needs of General Purpose computing on GPU (GPGPU), extends API support to include full profile as well as embedded Khronos™ OpenCL™ and Microsoft® DirectX®.
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Performance
The Mali-T604 GPU delivers up to 5x performance improvement over previous Mali graphics processors and is scalable up to four cores
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Mali Graphics plus GPU Compute
[ARM microsite, Nov 7, 2012]
ARM Mali Graphics with GPU Compute provides premium graphics solutions to high end electronic devices. The graphics performance capability of these products is higher than Graphics only roadmap. ARM Mali Graphics with GPU Compute Midgard Tri-pipe architecture and includes the Mali-T678, Mali-T628 and the Mali-T624.
See also: “The GPU king is doing well, long live Mali-450 MP” [ARM Multimedia blog, June 18, 2012]
ARM Launches Second Generation of MALI-T600 Graphics Processors Driving Improved User Experience for Tablets, Smartphones and Smart-TVs [press release, Aug 6, 2012]
Each of the products features a 50% performance increase* and are the first to include Adaptive Scalable Texture Compression (ASTC), a texture compression technique that originated from ARM. ASTC significantly optimizes GPU performance and increases battery life in devices, enabling an always-on, always-connected experience, and has now been adopted by the Khronos™ Group, an important industry consortium that focuses on open standards.
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ARM continues to invest in GPU compute capabilities by integrating the leadership that ARM has in the CPU space, with ARM Cortex™ processors, and applying it to the Mali GPU architecture. GPU compute enables greater control when balancing tasks between the CPU and GPU, allowing performance of the right task by the most efficient architecture. This enables improved energy-efficiency for current and new math intensive activities, such as:
Computational photography: computational methods of enhancing or extending digital photography
Multi perspective views: the ability to have multiple views from different positions
Real-time photo editing on mobile devices: photo editing at your fingertips on your smartphone, tablet, etc.
GPU compute also extends the range of use cases possible on mass-market mobile devices, allowing features like photo editing and video stabilization to be available in a wider range of consumer products.
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*Each of the second generation Mali-T600 Series GPUs features a 50% performance increase compared to first generation Mali-T600 products (based on industry standard benchmarks), on the same silicon process. This 50% increase has been facilitated by a combination of frequency improvements, such as optimizing the register transfer level (RTL) for increased performance, and micro-architectural improvements so that graphics are executed more efficiently.
The design of each new product addresses different performance points:
ARM Mali-T624/Mali-T628
The Mali-T624 GPU offers scalability from one to four cores, whilst the Mali-T628 from one to eight cores provides up to twice the graphics and GPU compute performance of the Mali-T624, extending the graphics potential for smartphones and smart-TVs. These products provide breathtaking graphical displays for advanced consumer applications, such as 3D graphics, visual computing and real time photo editing for smartphones and smart-TVs.
ARM Mali-T678
The ARM Mali-T678 GPU offers the highest GPU compute performance available in the Mali-T600 Series of products, delivering a four-fold increase when compared with the Mali-T624 GPU through features, such as increased ALU support. This brings a wide range of performance points to address the vibrant tablet market. The Mali-T678 offers energy-efficient high-end visual computing applications, such as computational photography, multi perspective views and augmented reality.
What is ASTC?
ASTC supports a very wide range of pixel formats and bit rates, and enables significantly higher quality than most other formats currently in use. This allows the designer to use texture compression throughout the application, and to choose the optimal format and bit rate for each use case. This highly efficient texture compression standard reduces the already market-leading Mali GPU memory bandwidth and memory footprint even further, while extending mobile battery life.
All products are designed to support the following APIs; OpenGL® ES 1.1, OpenGL ES 2.0, OpenGL ES 3.0, DirectX 11 FL 9_3, DirectX® 11, OpenCL™ 1.1 Full Profile and Google Renderscript compute.
ARM Announces 8-core 2nd Gen Mali-T600 GPUs [AnandTech, Aug 6, 2012]
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Both the T628 and T678 are eight-core parts, the primary difference between the two (and between graphics/GPU compute optimized ARM GPUs in general) is the composition of each shader core. The T628 features two ALUs, a LSU and texture unit per shader, while the T658 doubles up the ALUs per core.
Long term you can expect high end smartphones to integrate cores from the graphics & compute optimized roadmap, while the mainstream and lower end smartphones wll pick from the graphics-only roadmap. All of this sounds good on paper, however there’s still the fact that we’re talking about the second generation of Mali-T600 GPUs before the first generation has even shipped. We will see the first gen Mali-T600 parts before the end of the year, but there’s still a lot of room for improvement in the way mobile GPUs and SoCs are launched…
ARM Announces POP IP Technology for Mali-T600 Series GPUs [press release, Oct 11, 2012]
What: ARM® today introduced the first POP™ IP solution for ARM Mali™-T600 series graphics processor units (GPUs). This latest offering of POP IP — core-hardening acceleration technology that produces the best implementations of ARM processors in the fastest time-to-market — is optimized for the Mali-T628 and Mali-T678 on TSMC 28nm HPM process technology. Mali GPUs go into a variety of end devices, including a wide range of smartphones, from high performance to mass market, as well as tablets and smart TVs. It is critical that designers can optimize their Mali GPU for their selected end applications.
Developed in synergistic collaboration by ARM’s Media Processing and Physical IP divisions, the optimized POP IP technology has been created to produce the most efficient GPU implementations at 28nm. The POP IP enabled Mali-T600 series GPU implementation results in superior performance density/watt, and significant silicon savings. Benefits of this POP IP have been proven to deliver up to 27 percent higher frequency, 24 percent lower area, and 19 percent lower power than implementations which do not use POP IP.
POP IP technology is comprised of three critical elements necessary to achieve an optimized ARM processor or GPU implementation. First, it contains Artisan® physical IP standard cell logic and memory cache instances that are specifically tuned for a given ARM processor and foundry technology. Second, it includes a comprehensive benchmarking report to document the exact conditions and results ARM achieved for the processor implementation across an envelope of configuration and design targets. Finally, it includes the detailed implementation knowledge including floor plans, scripts, design utilities and a POP implementation guide, which enables the end customer to achieve similar results quickly and with lower risk.
Why: “As the industry moves toward 28nm, designers need options that can lower their risk and help them achieve the fastest time-to-market. ARM is pleased to bring the benefits that have been experienced with POP IP usage around Cortex process implementation to Mali GPUs,” said Pete Hutton, general manager, Media Processing Division at ARM. “POP IP for Mali GPUs is not about pre-determined benchmarks, it’s about giving our partners greater flexibility by leveraging ARM’s holistic approach to explore and find the right optimization customized to the specific end-application.”
When: The POP IP for Mali-T628 and T678 on TSMC 28HPM process is available for immediate license to both existing and new licensees. The IP will be available in January 2013.
How does Mali POP help …. from: Mali POP IP Efficient GPU implementations [Dec 5, 2012]
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ARM Mali-T628 & TSMC 28nm HPM can be used in multiple target applications.
– The sheer number of available options can make selection difficult. -
ARM has invested significant time & effort in investigating the ARM Mali-T62x PPA envelope
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ARM have performed all our analysis using real GPU work load which has led to improvements in implementation and analysis
ARM and Synopsys Collaborate to Optimize ARM Mali GPU 20nm Implementation [joint press release, Feb 25, 2013]
Highlights:
- Combination of ARM® Artisan® physical IP, Mali™ GPU IP and Synopsys Galaxy Implementation Platform proven ready for 20nm and smaller
- On-going collaboration aims to optimize and deliver double patterning technology (DPT)-ready methodology for Mali GPU implementation
- First implementation of the Mali-T600 series of products in 20nm technologies, with learning from this implementation accelerating the product family into sub-20nm technologies
ARM (LON: ARM; Nasdaq: ARMH) and Synopsys, Inc. (Nasdaq: SNPS) today announced a collaboration to optimize performance of ARM® Mali™ graphics processing units (GPUs) in 20-nanometer (nm) and smaller process geometries using the Synopsys Galaxy™ Implementation Platform. The companies successfully taped out the first ARM Mali-T658 design using a 20nm process technology, ARM Artisan® physical IP and shader functionality. The resulting RTL-through-sign-off design flow includes double-patterning support throughout. The ongoing collaboration will help designers optimize the implementation of Mali GPUs for their target applications.
“Mali GPUs are found in most Android™ tablets and smart digital TVs currently shipping, and are one of the most popular graphics solutions for smartphones. Users’ demand for advanced graphics continues to increase, which means that optimizing GPUs for selected end devices is essential,” said Pete Hutton, general manager, Media Processing Division, ARM. “Building on a long history of successful collaborations with Synopsys, this implementation will enable designers to optimally implement ARM Mali-T600 family GPUs using Synopsys tools in sub 20nm leading-edge process technologies.”
The Mali-T600 series includes five members (Mali-T604, Mali-T624, Mali-T628, Mali-T658 and Mali-T678), which have all been designed to provide exceptional graphics performance and they feature the first graphics technology to bring GPU compute functionality into mobile devices. This combined functionality brings additional hardware complexity which is further compounded by the new double-patterning requirements introduced by 20nm and below technologies.
Smaller process technologies, such as 20nm and below, require a highly integrated design flow for fast closure while delivering optimal results. The collaboration used the Galaxy Implementation Platform to produce a methodology tuned for the Mali GPU with ARM Artisan physical IP in 20nm. Primary tools used included Synopsys’ Design Compiler® synthesis, Formality® formal verification, DFTMAX™ and TetraMAX® test, IC Compiler™ layout, StarRC™ extraction and PrimeTime® timing analysis and signoff. In addition, IC Validator In-Design capabilities for physical verification were used during the implementation process to speed design closure. The methodology also benefitted from the use of DC Explorer & Dataflow Analyzer to perform early exploration, especially of floorplans and macro placement so critical to GPU performance.
“Twenty-nanometer and smaller process technologies introduce new complexity requiring early and deep technical collaboration among semiconductor ecosystem partners,” said Antun Domic, senior vice president and general manager, Implementation Group, Synopsys. “Through this collaboration with ARM, the Synopsys Galaxy Implementation Platform with In-Design physical verification combines with the ARM Mali IP and Artisan physical IP to provide a proven, DPT-compliant solution that will help accelerate the time to design closure on complex SoCs at 20 nanometers and below.”
ARM Mali SeeMore Demo: Lighting Effects, OpenGL ES 3 & Enlighten Engine – GDC 2013 [ARMflix YouTube channel, March 28, 2013]
More information:
– Mali Developer Tools, Augmented Reality, Lighting, SDKs & More at GDC [ARM Multimedia blog, April 2, 2013]
– Meet the experts in mobile graphics at GDC 2013 [With Imagination Blog, March 20, 2013]
– Imagination delivers latest version of leading tools for game development at GDC 2013 [press release, March 25, 2013]
Kishonti CLBenchmark Mali-T600 GPU Compute (MWC 2013) [ARMflix YouTube channel, March 5, 2013]
Source: CLBenchmark Results Database as of April 6, 2013.
– Intel® Core™ i3-3240 Processor (2 cores, 4 threads, 3M Cache, 3.40 GHz)
– Intel® Celeron® Processor B820 (2 cores, 2 threads, 2M Cache, 1.70 GHz)
– AMD A4-5300 (2 cores, 1M Cache, 3.40 GHz)
– AMD A6-4400M (2 cores, 1M cache, 2.7 GHz)
The interpretation of the above benchmark apps see at the very end of this post
Note that in pure GLbenchmark performances against the latest Apple tablet the T604 is underperforming and even not significantly higher against some other tablets:
- Nexus 10 GPU: Mali T604 (four cores) @500MHz
- iPad Mini GPU: SGX543MP2 (two cores) @250MHz
- iPad (4th generation) GPU: SGX554MP4 (four cores) @300MHz
- iPad (iPad 3) GPU: SGX543MP4 (four cores) @250MHz
- Onda V812 and Onda V972 have an SGX544MP2 (two cores) GPU
This might explain quite well why ARM was heavily pushing ahead with its 2nd generation T600 Series. (See also AllWinner A31 and A31s with PowerVR graphics [my other ‘USD 99 Allwinner’ blog, Jan 3 – March 29, 2013] for complete understanding of Imaginations’s PowerVR competition).
OpenCL benchmark CLBenchmark running on Google Nexus 10 (Android 4.2.1)! [KishontiLtd YouTube channel, Feb 12, 2013]
ARM Mali-T604 GPU running OpenCL at MWC13 [LEAPconf YouTube channel, Feb 27, 2013]
The Future of Mobile Gaming Panel Interview at GDC 2013 [ARMflix YouTube channel, April 3, 2013]
More information: What is the Future of Mobile Gaming? GDC Panel Summary [ARM Multimedia blog, April 3, 2013]
… The panel got off to a fine start with a debate on the importance of AAA gaming in the mobile space. This brought out a range of opinions from AAA being the main path for mobile and the mobile experience, with many believing that consumers are looking for bigger and better experiences from gaming on their mobile devices, and that AAA is key in creating the ‘wow’ factor for the next generation mobile devices.
Consumers will need high-end content like AAA quality games to drive the use of higher performance mobile devices. The alternative opinion was that with innovation being applied to casual gaming, the expectation is that we will move away from the current categories of games with an even larger number of gaming categories – with elements of regional aspects being built into the gaming experience. David from Unity talked about how short the half-life of games were at only 2 years compared to films which are 5-10 years. …
Remark: AAA Game [By Warren Schultz, About.com Guide, May 23, 2012]
A AAA game, or pronounced “triple-A game”, is generally a title developed by a large studio, funded by a massive budget.
These games will have a marketing budget in the multiple-millions of dollars, and are planned to earn out in excess of one million titles sold. Investors/publishers expect a multiple-of-cost return on their investment. In order to recoup general development costs, publishers will generally produce the title for the major platforms (currently Xbox 360, PS3, and PC) to maximize profits, unless it is a console exclusive, in which case the console maker will pay for exclusivity to offset the loss of potential profit to the developer.
Pronunciation: triple-A game
Glue Mobile representative in the beginning of the above video is essentially stating that mobile only gaming sooner or later would disrupt the console industry. So it is worth to take a look at the relevant excerpts from Glu Mobile Corporate Overview, Presentation at Roth Capital Investor Conference [March 18, 2013]:
Interpret’s New GameByte™ Data Shows Only Half of All Gamers Play Retail Console Games [Interpret LLC press release via BusinessWire, April 4, 2013]
Interpret, a leading entertainment, media and technology market research firm, today announced top-level findings from GameByte™, a syndicated study designed to understand cross-platform digital gaming adoption and behavior in ten global markets.
The service, now in its second year, studies consumers (age 6-64) of every form of video gaming, including both traditional retail business models and digital business models. The latest data reveals that 96% of all US gamers have played some form of digital game in the past six months. By contrast, only 53% of US gamers have played a traditional retail console game in the same period.
“The trend carries across all ten countries covered by GameByte,” said Jason Coston, senior analyst at Interpret. “If you’re a gamer, you’re a digital gamer. Retail console games still capture a significant portion of gamers, but several digital business models now command just as much market share: mobile game apps, social network games on PC, and casual games on PC.”
GameByte data also confirms the ubiquity of digital gaming in other countries traditionally focused on consoles, such as the UK and Japan. Ninety-four percent of UK gamers now play digital games, as well as 87% of Japanese gamers.
Interpret will soon roll out in-depth reports covering revenue sizes and gaming attitude and behavior in each territory over the coming months.
What Forced Riccitiello Out at Electronic Arts? [Bloomberg YouTube channel, March 18, 2013]
EA: Demise of console gaming ‘very premature’ [GameSpot, April 1, 2013]
COO Peter Moore says even though mobile is growing, gamers continue to show enthusiasm for core titles.
The demise of traditional console gaming is not a reality the industry faces, according to Electronic Arts chief operating officer Peter Moore. Speaking with Bloomberg TV, Moore said even though the mobile space has grown, gamers still want core titles they can play on a big screen.
“The console business is still a core part of our business; it’s the majority of our business. The demise of console gaming is very premature as far as we’re concerned,” Moore said.
“We still have thousands of people focused on developing current-generation Xbox 360 and PS3 games, as well as people focused now on the next generation when that finally arrives,” he added. “And so, people still want core games. People want to sit back in their living rooms, take advantage of their HD TVs, and and play fully immersive games like [Battlefield 4].“
Also during the interview, Moore said he expects EA’s digital sales–which includes mobile, downloadable content, and subscriptions–to possibly overtake its traditional packaged goods business by 2015.
“In two years we could be looking at the tipping point where digital becomes bigger than the traditional core,” Moore said.
Moore is believed to be a leading candidate to take over as the next EA CEO. He would not comment on this conjecture, but praised John Riccitiello for leaving the company in “tremendous shape.” Moore said one thing the new EA CEO needs to do is execute.
“We did not executive to the level that we needed to in [fiscal year 2013] and [John Riccitiello] took accountability for that. And I think the future CEO will focus on pure execution because all the ingredients are there; we have the world’s best developers, we have a tremendous publishing pipeline, and we’ve made the hard decisions about our platform.
Meet the ARM Mali-T604 [ARMflix YouTube channel, Nov 10, 2010]
ARM TechCon 2012 – Consumer Products Announced based on ARM Mali-T604 [ARMflix YouTube channel, Nov 5, 2012]
The Mali-T604 is available only with Samsung Electronics as per Global Businesses Select ARM Mali GPU Technology [News on the Mali Developer Center of ARM, Feb 25, 2013]
Samsung Electronics
“Samsung Smart TV has been leading market in transforming the viewing experiences of consumers in the living room. Through the adoption of the quad-core ARM Cortex-A15 processor and Mali-T604 GPUs, Samsung Smart TV, including the world’s first quad-core built-in F8000, will enable a new way of enjoying content on TV with innovative user interfaces and faster performance,” said Cheul-Hee Hahm, Master of R&D Team, Visual Display Business, Samsung Electronics, Co., Ltd.
In 2013 there will be a significant increase in the number of mass market smartphones based on Mali-400 and Mali-450 GPUs, and of high-end phones taking advantage of the high performance of the Mali-T600 family.
ARM® Mali™ Timbuktu2 based on Samsung® Exynos™ 5 Dual [ARMflix YouTube channel, Sept 10, 2012]
Note that mobile gaming as one should talk about the new Mali products in a more general context, such as: ARM Mali GPUs turn GPU Compute into reality at MWC [News at Mali Developer Center, Feb 22, 2013]
When:
25th – 28th February 2013, MWC, Barcelona, Spain.
Where:
ARM stand at Mobile World Congress, Hall 6 Stand 6A31.
What:
ARM will showcase a range of Mali™ GPU Compute use cases running on devices, demonstrating the benefits of Renderscript and OpenCL.
ARM Mali GPUs are the first to bring the benefits of GPU Compute to mobile devices. ARM is also the first IP vendor to pass OpenCL 1.1 Full Profile Khronos conformance test. GPU Compute ensures that the right task is placed in the right place at the right time, enabling greater performance efficiencies.
In a world where smartphones and tablets act as our primary compute platform for more than accessing the internet and social media, but also used to create and view videos and experience on-the-go gaming, leading companies are discovering new ways to ensure technology is making the phone last longer and do far more than ever before
You’ll discover how running a task on a GPU is faster, while enabling other tasks to be run at the same time. See firsthand how smart allocation of the tasks is far more efficient and is seamless to the user. GPU compute opens up new use cases whilst existing tasks are done more efficiently.
Mali GPUs are the first graphics technology to support Google Renderscript Compute, enabling real devices to bring new exciting features to consumers.
ARM is the first to offer Full Profile OpenCL™ support for mobile devices. ARM will show how OpenCL can be used in applications including high accuracy facial detection and multi-face detection – improving photography on mobile devices as well as creating significant performance improvements.
ARM continues to build a thriving and strong ecosystem around Mali GPU Compute, with strategic collaborations from leaders and experts across the whole industry. This is opening new markets for ARM partners and adding value to Mali GPU Compute users.
Computational Photography
A key initial area to benefit from GPU compute – you will also be able to see the performance improvement possible when real-time image filters are applied to a camera feed and the performance improvements possible by moving the task from the CPU to the GPU. This demonstration shows the accelerations in image processing content made possible by Renderscript. ARM is committed to delivering more performance within a mobile power budget through innovative technologies which ensure a compute task is completed on the most energy efficient processing element. GPU Compute and big.LITTLE™ processing are the most recent examples of new technologies ensuring the right task can be run in the right place in the system.
By supporting GPU Compute ARM Mali GPUs are expanding the potential use cases for tablets and smartphones:
RS Benchmark from Kishonti will run for the first time on a mobile based GPU showing the key features that GPU enables – only possible with Mali-T604
Gaming
GPU Compute is also improving the gaming experience. You will see how a combination of OpenGL® ES 3.0 and OpenCL APIs offer a wider range of effects not seen before on mobile devices. OpenCL opens new levels of physics simulations and OpenGL ES 3.0 showcases effects such as showing the application of high dynamic range, adaptive luminance tone mapping and atmospheric scattering – features only normally seen in PC or console level gaming experiences.
Why:
ARM Mali GPUs are the first GPUs focused on the mobile space showing GPU Compute is a reality. GPU compute will enable:
New use cases previously not possible to perform on a mobile device enhancing the user experience
Make previous tasks more efficient – in conjunction with ARM big.LITTLE technology, GPU Compute is critical to running tasks using the most efficient part of the SoC
Synthesis Super-Resolution Scaler Demo on Exynos 5 Dual Powered Tablet at MWC 2013 [SamsungExynos YouTube channel, March 19, 2013]
Note that Samsung selected a PowerVR SGX544MP GPU core from for its Samsung Exynos 5410 Octa processor (or simply Exynos 5 Octa) as indicated by The PowerVR SGX544, a modern GPU for today’s leading platforms [With Imagination blog, March 13, 2013]. For other information see Samsung Announces the Availability of Exynos 5 Octa for New Generation of Mobile Devices [Samsung Semiconductor press release, March 15, 2013]. This first big.LITTLE processor, also first by being manufactured using Samsung’s latest 28-nanometer (nm) HKMG (High-k Metal Gate) low power process and power-saving design, was released with the latest high-end and high-volume smartphones from Samsung, the Galaxy S 4 (“Samsung Altius” which also used in other half of the models a quadcore Qualcomm Snapdragon 600 APQ8064T SoC, manufactured by TSMC). See also: Samsung Introduces the GALAXY S 4 – A Life Companion for a richer, simpler and fuller life [March 14, 2013].
Samsung Exynos 5 Dual [Samsung microsite, Feb 28, 2012]
World First ARM Cortex A-15 based 1.7 GHz Dual-Core Mobile Application Processor
Exynos 5 Dual is the world’s first A-15 Dual Core mobile CPU, presented by Samsung Semiconductor. Using 32nm HKMG (High-K Metal Gate) process technology, the 1.7GHz dual core Exynos 5 Dual brings unmatched performance to your leading-edge mobile devices while maintaining low power consumption
Multitask with a Power, Energy Efficient SoC
Exynos 5 Dual, using 32nm HKMG*, is designed to meet your graphic-intensive, multi-task and power efficient requirements. It performs nearly two times faster than the existing Cortex A9-based dual core processor, with an amazing 30% lower power consumption than our previous Exynos process developed on a 45nm process. Exynos 5 Dual is well qualified to lead the high-end mobile application processor market.
*HKMG process – : High K Metal Gate Process
See more: Process Technology – 32/28nm | Samsung Semiconductor [Feb 16, 2012]
Enjoy New level of 3D gaming and reading experience
World`s highest class mobile 3D graphic processor makes games and images come alive! You will feel like you’re actually part of the game. Featuring stereoscopic 3D, Exynos 5 Dual could take you right to the middle of the cheering audience of your favorite football game. Enjoy reading? The Exynos 5 Dual supports WQXGA provides high resolution for clear readability. It’s nearly like reading an actual newspaper.
Get your Mobile devices well connected to WQXGA display!
With Exynos 5 Dual, enjoy web-surfing, e-mailing, photos and videos at the best possible resolution, WQXGA, currently available for mobile devices. Exynos 5 Dual is equipped with embedded Display Port (eDP) interface, compliant with panel self refresh (PSR) technology. The PSR function instructs the application processor not to send image data to the LCD panel when the set is displaying still image, reducing power consumption. Exynos 5 Dual provides 12.8 GB/s memory bandwidth with 2-port 800MHz LPDDR3 for heavy traffic operations. Plus, various scopes of booting interfaces, (SATA, UART, USB3.0, eMMC4.5) guarantees our end users crisp and sharp multimedia transmission.
Play 3D Stereoscopic video smoothly on your Full HD siplay without ever Encoding
Exynos 5 Dual`s powerful 8 megapixel resolution image signal processor fully supports best-in-class cameras with high resolution video recording and playback. The 1080p 60 fps multi format codec enables the highest quality FHD videos. Additionally, your device will be able to play almost any type of video format with integrated MFC (Multi Format Codec)
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Samsung Announces Industry First ARM Cortex-A15 Processor Samples for Tablet Computers [Samsung Semiconductor press release, Nov 30, 2011] “The Exynos 5250 [>>> Exynos 5 Dual] is currently sampling to customers and is scheduled for mass-production in the second quarter of 2012.”
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Samsung Opens New Opportunities for Mobile App Development with the Arndale Community Development Board [Samsung Semiconductor press release, Oct 26, 2012] “Arndale enables next generation of mobile applications development with the Exynos 5 Dual SoC, the world’s first production solution based on the ARM Cortex-A15 MPCore processor”
[Exynos 5 Dual] Arndale Board Video is NOW available! [Samsungsemi1 YouTube, Feb 7, 2013]
Enjoy the Ultimate WQXGA [2560×1600] Solution with Exynos 5 Dual [Samsung whitepaper, July 9, 2012]
…
World’s Best 3D Performance
Currently, the 3D graphics engine in mobile operating systems is used for 3D rendering and for all basic graphic work on the screen. Because the 3D graphic engine operates UI overlay, homescreen, 3D games, and more, 3D performance has become a very important feature for measuring Mobile AP’s overall performance. The 3D performance in the Exynos series has always been beyond compare; however, Exynos 5 Dual will raise the bar for mobile AP’s 3D performance even higher.
Screen resolution is directly related to 3D performance. WQXGA resolution is four times better than WXGA, meaning that mobile APs must deliver 3D performance at least two times better than the previous generation. To meet the standard of WQXGA resolution, mobile AP requires a new 3D engine and architecture.
Samsung System LSI worked closely with ARM to achieve the quad core Mali-T604, the most advanced mobile 3D engine to date. With Mali-T604, Exynos 5 Dual delivers two times better GPU performance than Exynos 4. Since Exynos 4 has more than enough 3D performance to satisfy WXGA [1280×800] resolution, Exynos 5 Dual is the only mobile AP that can handle WQXGA content with 60fps updates.
In addition, the 3D feature of Exynos 5 Dual fully supports GPGPU, including openCL v1.1 full profile.
GPGPU is a solution that distributes the CPU’s computation workload to the GPU. In GPGPU support, the floating point performance and precision of GPUs are the key factors. While CPUs can handle 64-bit floating point (double-precision), most mobile GPUs can only handle 32-bit floating point (singleprecision). Exynos 5 Dual is the first mobile AP that can run double precision floating point and full precision with outstanding 72GFlops floating point performance. With this functionality, a developer can handle more precise and heavy computation works by simultaneously using Exynos 5 Dual’s cortex-A15 dual cores and quad Mali-T604 cores performance.
…
Arndale Board Exynos 5250 ARM Cortex-A15 Mali-T604 Development Board [Charbax YouTube channel, Nov 1, 2012]
-
Samsung’s Exynos 5 Dual Application Processor Drives Industry’s Highest Resolution on Google’s Nexus 10 Tablet [Samsung Semiconductor press release, Nov 13, 2012]
-
Samsung Exynos 5 Dual Powers the New Google Chromebook [Samsung Semiconductor press release, Nov 21, 2012]
Samsung Exynos 5 Dual processor [Samsungsemi1 YouTube, Nov 2, 2012]
Samsung Exynos 5 Dual Processor (ARM® Cortex™-A15 based Dual core processor) at ARM techcon [Samsungsemi1 YouTube, Nov 1, 2012]
Exynos 5 Dual [Application Processor Product Catalogue | Samsung Semiconductor, April 26, 2012]
Features
Dualcore/LPDDR2/LPDDR3/DDR3Dualchannelmemory/
WQXGA60fps3Dgraphicsupport/32nmHKMGprocess/
1080p60fpsmultiformatcodec/8Mpix30fpsEmbeddedISPPackage
SCP:1088FCFBGA/POP:1036FCFBGA
General Description
An application processor, or SoC (System on a Chip), is a microprocessor with a specialized architecture for deployment in embedded systems, such as digital still/video cameras, digital/smart TVs and set-top boxes, and automotive systems, among others. An SoC operates at frequencies from several hundred MHz to a few GHz, and is architected to deliver significant computing performances at low power consumption levels in limited board spaces. High-end SoCs often contain multiple cores, enabling them to deliver exceptional performances in applications such as digital imaging and multimedia devices.
Current-generation SoCs are capable of running full-fledged versions of modern operating systems, providing the user a rich, interactive interface on devices such as smartphones and tablet computers. Almost all the latest SoCs have the ability to decode a majority of multimedia codecs, and contain hardware engines to deliver enhanced multimedia experiences to the user. They also contain dedicated MMUs (memory management units) to manage the memory for applications being run on the device. Recent SoCs also have a multitude of peripheral connectivity solutions on the chip, offering the designer extensive control in providing connectivity options on the device. SoCs are application specific, and contain features targeted towards the intended deployment segment. Thus, an SoC designed for a mobile handset would include front-end GSM RF functionalities on-chip, which would be absent in an SoC designed for deployment in a digital still camera. An increasing number of SoCs, however, are now offering a wide range of features, making the processor suitable for deployment on any application. Samsung is a worldwide leader in providing the most advanced, efficient, and customizable SoC solutions for deployment on a wide range of platforms, such as digital imaging, multimedia, and mobile communication and computing. Samsung’s line of SoCs offers the highest performance, thermal stability, reliability, and I/O density in the smallest form factors at the lowest power consumption levels. Worldwide, Samsung is the preferred provider for SoC solutions for a majority of developers and OEMs for deployment on the broadest computing and communication devices and platforms.
Detail Features
- CortexA15 dual core subsystem with 64-/128-bit SIMD NEON
- 32KB (Instruction)/32KB (Data) L1 Cache and 1MB L2 Cache
- 128-bit Multi-layered bus architecture
- Internal ROM and RAM for secure booting, security, and general purposes
- Memory Subsystem
– 2-ports 32-bit 800MHz LPDDR3/DDR3 Interfaces
– 2-ports 32-bit 533MHz LPDDR2 Interfaces- 8-bit ITU 601 Camera Interface
- Multi-format Video Hardware Codec: 1080p 60fps (capable of decoding and encoding MPEG-4/H.263/H.264 and decoding only MPEG-2/VC1/VP8)
- 3D and 2D graphics hardware, supporting OpenGL ES 1.1/2.0/Halti, OpenVG 1.1 and OpenCL 1.1 full profile
- Image Signal Processor : supporting BayerRGB up to 14bit input with 14.6MP 15fps, 8MP 30fps through MIPI CSI2 & YUV 8bit interfaces and special functionalities such as 3-dimensional noise reduction (3DNR), video digital image stabilization (VDIS) and optical distortion compensation (ODC)
- JPEG Hardware Codec
- LCD single display, supporting max WQXGA, 24bpp RGB, YUV formats through MIPI DSI or eDP
- Simultaneously display of WQXGA single LCD display and 1080p HDMI
- HDMI 1.4 interfaces with on-chip PHY
- 2-ports (4-lanes) MIPI CSI2 interfaces
- 1-port (4-lanes) eDisplayPort (eDP)
- 1-channel USB 3.0 Device or Host, supporting SS (5Gbps) with on-chip PHY
- 1-channel USB 2.0 Host or Device, supporting LS/FS/HS (1.5Mbps/12Mbps/480Mbps) with on-chip PHY
- 2-channel USB HSIC, supporting 480Mbps with on-chip PHY
- 1-channel HS-MMC 4.5
- 1-channel SDIO 3.0
- 2-channel SD 2.0 or HS-MMC4.41
- 4-channel high-speed UART (up to 3Mbps data rate for Bluetooth 2.1 EDR and IrDA 1.0 SIR)
- 3-channel SPI
- 1-channel AC-97, 2-channel PCM, and 3-channel 24-bit I2S audio interface, supporting 5.1 channel audio
- 1-channel S/PDIF interface support for digital audio
- 4-channel I2C interface support (up to 400kbps) for PMIC, HDMI, and general-purpose multi-master
- 4-channel HS-I2C (up to 3.1 Mbps)
- Samsung Reconfiguration Processor supports low power audio play
- MIPI-HSI v1.1, supporting 200Mbps full-duplex
- C2C, supporting through path between DRAM and MODEM
- Security subsystem supporting hardware crypto accelerators, ARM TrustZone and TZASC
- 32-channel DMA Controller
- Configurable GPIOs
- Real time clock, PLLs, timer with PWM, multi-core timer, and watchdog timer
CLBenchmark – High-performance compute benchmark for OpenCL 1.1 environment [CLBenchmark.com, Oct 16, 2012]
Desktop 1.1
The first professional OpenCL benchmark for desktop OSes
CLBenchmark 1.1 Desktop Edition is an easy-to-use tool for comparing the computational performance of different platforms. It offers an unbiased way of testing and comparing the performance of implementations of OpenCL 1.1, a royalty-free standard for heterogeneous parallel programming maintained by Khronos Group. CLBenchmark compares the strengths and weaknesses of different hardware architectures such as CPUs, GPUs and APUs. The test results are listed in a transparent and public OpenCL performance database.
Features:
Physics: SPH Fluid Simulation
Physics simulation has a great history in computer science, as it’s original goal was to help scientists and engineers in their design efforts. With increased computing capacity, physics got into reach of virtual world simulations, for example games. Enabling physics simulation can uplift in-game interactions into a new dimension.
In our SPH Fluid simulation, we’ve created a particle based simulation consisting of 32k particles. The results of the simulation is displayed on a surface calculated by a Marching Cubes implementation. This technique is widely adopted among games, for simulating the movement of fluids, and even smoke, or other gases.
Graphics: Raytrace
Raytracing is an image synthesis technique used in wide variety of applications such as simulation-visualization, design, and special effects in movie making. This technique is also getting more attention as it is going to be available in real-time rendering, especially for games, which will enable developers to implement life-like lighting and shading models in their titles.
Our ray trace test implements the traditional recursive ray trace algorithm and supports reflections and soft shadows and also uses global illumination rays to replace the ambient term. The renderer uses kd-tree acceleration structure with the kd-restart traversal technique. The scene consists of 600k triangles and is rendered at 2048×1024 resolution.
The problem domain is divided into a grid of tiles (or frustums) that are processed separately – this saves memory. In addition, multiple devices can process different tiles at the same time, so this test can stress even multi-GPU systems. Most of the calculations are happening in the ray traversal kernel, which tries to find the nearest triangle that intersects the ray.
Optical flow: Feature Matching
With this application we calculate the motion of the depicted object on a series of input images. For each image we calculate a vectorfield, which associates a motion vector to every pixel. These motion vectors are represented in colorspace. The color map used for this can be seen in the bottom left corner of the calculated vector field image.
In computer vision, we can consider anything as a feature which has a high vertical and horizontal gradient and thus easily recognizable. A good feature can be robustly detected over a sequence of images. By matching these features over these image sequences, we can track the movement of objects.
We implemented the Moravec interest operator for our application, because it is easily parallelizable and can be easily and effectively implemented for the OpenCL platform. We developed a block-based matching strategy for tracking features. We applied the results of feature matching in a sample application in which we aim to calculate the velocity for each pixel. For this, we use a patch-based approach, calculating the sum of square differences for the neighborhood of the features.
The algorithm works on pairs of images. The first step is feature detection and matching. Each pair of features defines a motion vector. This rare field of motion vector are then revised heuristically, to remove false matchings. The dense vector field is constructed from this revised field.
Feature detection and the dense vector field calculation heavily utilize the image IO of the device. The device should also handle an increased number of kernel launches during this application.
Image Filter
From UI visualizations to graphics content creation and photography, image filters are extensively applied. As the most frequently used image filters are suites of convolution filters, we have included the most important types in CLBenchmark. In order to thoroughly examine the capabilities of the underlying hardware architectures, we have developed multiple implementations for a single filter.
Gauss Filter A Gauss filter is widely used for “smoothing” effects and, as it is a low-pass filter in frequency domain, it is also useful as a pre-pass of image resizing (down-sampling).
Sobel Filter A Sobel filter has edge detecting property so it takes part in anti-aliasing filters and a variety of object recognition algorithms.
Median Filter Despite the Median filter is not a convolution filter, it is widely accepted in the area of noise reduction, particularly applicable against salt and pepper noise.
Programming Principles
As a priority, we are trying to provide relevant real-world applications for benchmarking purposes. However, even a well selected set of use cases cannot match every possible workload, so we have added synthetic tests also. These are included in the Programming Principles group, containing multiple implementations of general problems which real-world parallel problems could be composited into.
Scanning Inclusive prefix sum calculation. It’s the base operation of dynamic data generation and various sorting algorithms like radix sort. Multiple implementations included, such as Parallel (logarithmic) Scan on Local memory chunks and a mostly sequential case.
Bucketing Making 5 homogeneous, compacted streams of a single heterogeneous array. Only Parallel Scan based version made.
Reduction Many-to-one kind of operators like “sum of an array” are used in reductions. We’ve found addition ideal, as the operator’s computation cost is the lowest possible, and we can focus on the algorithm itself. A more specific sum also included, implemented to measure atomic addition on both global and local memory addresses.
Bitonic Merge Sort Sorting algorithms are used in a wide variety of applications for example data structures, databases, computer graphics. Bitonic merge sort is parallel sorting algorithm, first ordering sub sequences in local memory, then merging the result in global memory.
Tree-search Parallel search for multiple elements on an unbalanced tree using depth first strategy. It’s ideal to stress the device’s resistance to branch-divergency.
Availability
Community Edition:
CLBenchmark 1.1 Desktop Edition is available for community use and can be downloaded free of charge. This edition requires network connection and collects information about your OpenCL devices. This method let us supply you with proper, device specific OpenCL binaries and enables CLBenchmark to fully utilize your device and helps to achieve its peak performance.
For more information about downloading CLBenchmark 1.1. Desktop Communitiy Edition, please click here.
Corporate Edition:
CLBenchmark 1.1 Desktop Edition is also accessible for licensing, which is aimed at industry-leading technology companies for testing and optimizing their OpenCL implementations and thus bringing stable and efficient solutions to the market. Click here for more details or send us a message at sales@clbenchmark.com! Windows, OS X and generic Linux.
Media Edition:
For journalists, CLBenchmark 1.1 Desktop Edition is available in a special Media Edition. For more information, email us at pr@kishontiinformatics.com!
New and successful “post feature phone” business of Nokia with a new set of risks and uncertainties
Nokia successfully got over the “post feature phone” situation described a year ago as:
… many mid-range to high-end feature phones increasingly offer access to the Internet and applications and provide more smartphone-like features and design, blurring the distinction between smartphones and feature phones. We are subject to intense competition over the entire spectrum we address through our Mobile Phones business unit. Recently, smartphones of other manufacturers, particularly Android-based smartphones, are reaching lower price points, which is increasingly reducing the addressable market and lowering the price points for feature phones. …
… For higher-end feature phones in particular, the platform is a differentiating element with the addition of new functionalities and possibilities for customization and an improved user experience. If we are unable to produce competitive low-end and high-end feature phones and preserve our market share and profitability of our feature phones business, our business, results of operation and financial condition could be materially and adversely affected.
Now it has new types of affordable devices for which it needs only to add:
- Continuation with their affordability
- “… very rapid and low-cost production … increasingly at lower price points …”
- Ability “to produce competitive devices at various price points”
This significant achievement is well reflected in the changes of the title of the risk descriptions:
pp.18-19 of the Nokia SEC filing for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2011 (FY11)
pp. 15-17 of the Nokia SEC filing for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2012 (FY12)
We may not be able to produce attractive and competitive feature phones, including devices with more smartphone-like features, in a timely and cost efficient manner with differentiated hardware, software, localized services and applications.
We may not be able to produce attractive and competitive devices in our Mobile Phones business unit, including feature phones and devices with features such as full touch that can be categorized as smartphones, in a timely and cost efficient manner with differentiated hardware, software, localized services and applications.
Consequently there is a new set of risks and uncertainties associated with that new “post feature phone” space as follows (highlighted full text comparisons of FY11 vs. FY12 you can see in a PDF format downloadable from here):
The market we address with the more affordable devices from our Mobile Phones business unit may further reduce in size if the higher-end price points become dominated by more affordable smartphones, such as Android-based smartphones, and the higher-end devices from our Mobile Phones business unit are not sufficiently competitive compared to those.
The features of higher-end devices from our Mobile Phones business unit may not be sufficiently competitive compared to more affordable smartphones, such as Android-based smartphones.
Our estimates of the growth potential in the markets we address through our Mobile Phones business unit may not be accurate and as such result in misplaced investments of resources.
…
Speed of shifts in market development and demand, for example, related to 2G, 3G and 4G mobile communication technology transitions and requirements, may be faster than we have anticipated, making our Mobile Phones portfolio less competitive if we are unable to timely develop and produce devices addressing such shifts.
We are using our internally developed platforms for our devices from the Mobile Phones business unit, which may hinder our ability or increase our costs in integrating hardware and sourcing components and other parts due to limitations in the platform and vendors tooling their supply and configurations for devices that operate on other platforms.
If the platforms that we use for our devices from the Mobile Phones business unit are not sufficiently competitive or otherwise optimal for our devices, developing the platform or switching to another platform may be time-consuming and costly, and there are no guarantees that our competitive position would benefit from such actions or that the development costs would result in a positive return on our investments. If the attractiveness of the platforms we use in the Mobile Phones business unit deteriorates, corrective actions will consume time and resources from us and may not lead to desired results, and may expose our Mobile Phones business unit to a significant deterioration in competiveness.
[vs. just a too general statement for all that used a year ago:
We may need to make significant investments to further develop platforms for devices from our Mobile Phones business unit. There can be no assurances regarding consumer acceptance of such platform developments or that the development costs would result in a positive return on our investments.]
…
There are shifts in the desired features and products in the market that are appealing to customers and consumers and such shifts may not be in our favor from a net sales or profitability perspective; for instance, QWERTY devices have been a traditional strength for us, but the overall market demand for QWERTY devices has declined and is expected to continue to decline.
[vs. nothing said about that a year ago]
Nokia’s expanded, new risks and uncertainties for its Windows Phone strategy for 2013
According to the Nokia SEC filing for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2012 (FY12) vs. that of the Nokia SEC filing for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2011 (FY11):
As per the “Risks and Uncertainties” sections in both, there are the following expanded texts in the FY12 section vs. that of in the FY11 section (highlighted full text comparisons you can see in a PDF format downloadable from here):
[We may not be able to make Nokia products with Windows Phone a competitive choice for consumers unless the Windows Phone ecosystem becomes a competitive and profitable global ecosystem that achieves sufficient scale, value and attractiveness to relevant market participants.]
We believe that successful smartphone platforms require a successful ecosystem around them. … Today, industry participants are creating competing ecosystems of mutually beneficial partnerships to combine hardware, software, services and an application environment to create high-quality differentiated smartphones. Certain smartphone platforms and their related ecosystems have gained significant momentum and market share, specifically Google’s Android platform and Apple’s iOS platform, and are continuing apace, with Android-based smartphones continuing to gain significant market share during 2012 and also reaching lower price points.
… Although Microsoft will continue to license Windows Phone to other mobile manufacturers, we believe we can differentiate Nokia smartphones from those of our competitors that also use the Windows Phone platform as well as other platforms. The first Nokia smartphones powered by Windows Phone were launched in October 2011 under the Lumia name. We launched additional Windows Phone 7 devices and the first Windows Phone 8 Lumia devices during 2012. See Item 4B. “Business Overview—Devices & Services—Smart Devices” for a more information.
…
Microsoft has recently launched the Windows 8 operating system used to power personal computers and tablets, and the related Windows Phone 8 operating system is used in the latest Nokia smartphones. The success of Nokia’s Windows Phone 8 smartphones will be negatively affected if the Windows 8 platform does not achieve or retain broad or timely market acceptance or is not preferred by ecosystem participants, mobile operators and consumers.
…
Other competitive major smartphone ecosystems, primarily Google’s Android and Apple’s iOS, have advantages that may be difficult for the Windows Phone ecosystem to overcome, such as first-mover advantage, momentum, a larger share of the smartphone market, engagement by developers, mobile operators and consumers and brand preference, and their advantages may become greater over time.
…
[acknowledging that] We may not be able to develop sufficient quantities of high-quality differentiated Nokia products with Windows Phone in order to achieve the scale needed for a competitive global ecosystem in a timely manner, or at all. [vs. just “execute with speed” a year ago]
…
Our competitors may use various technical and commercial means to make the Windows Phone ecosystem unattractive compared to other ecosystems, including for instance hindering application development, not providing tools to allow applications to be developed to industry standard or not allowing certain applications to work or work efficiently on the Windows Phone platform.
[vs. just “Other competitive major smartphone ecosystems have advantages that may be difficult for us to overcome, such as first-mover advantage, momentum, engagement by developers, mobile operators and consumers and brand preference, and their advantages may become even greater before we complete our transition to the Windows Phone platform.” a year ago]…
The Windows Phone ecosystem is relatively small, and thus it may not be compelling for hardware and software suppliers and developers, which may for instance lead to our reliance on a limited number of suppliers, later availability of the latest innovations and increased cost of components and software.
Mobile devices are increasingly used with other technical appliances, for instance speakers and car audio systems or have accessories and gadgets that can be used in conjunction with the mobile device. As the Windows Phone ecosystem is relatively small, it may not be compelling for third parties to design such technical appliances, accessories or gadgets to a similar extent as with other ecosystems.
[As the recognition of the already observable effect of the “Other competitive major smartphone ecosystems, primarily Google’s Android and Apple’s iOS, have advantages that may be difficult for the Windows Phone ecosystem to overcome, such as …” vs. just a possible risk associated with “may not be able to attract developers and other participants to the Windows Phone ecosystem” a year ago]
…
The frequency of Windows Phone operating system updates may be too slow and the platform may be too closed to address changing market and customer requirements in a timely manner, which may erode customer support and consumer attractiveness of the platform.
Emergence of new alternative ecosystems and platforms could make the Windows Phone ecosystem less attractive to customers and consumers.
As well as per:
[Our success in the smartphone market depends on our ability to introduce and bring to market quantities of attractive, competitively priced Nokia products with Windows Phone that are positively differentiated from our competitors’ products, both outside and within the Windows Phone ecosystem, and receive broad market acceptance.]
[despite of all the risks and uncertainties already given there is no change in the sense that]
Our strategy is to compete in the smartphone market with Nokia products with Windows Phone.…
[but there are new warnings that]
The Microsoft Windows Phone platform … may limit our ability to … bring certain hardware capabilities at the higher price points.… we may not be able to introduce functionalities such as advanced imaging and sensor technology …
[as well as more intensive warnings by saying that there is]
… lack of proper training of sales personnel, insufficient marketing support and experience
[vs. using just the “inadequate” attribute a year ago]
… still relatively unfamiliar Windows Phone platform in an otherwise highly competitive market.
[vs. “new and” used a year ago]
[Regarding “Microsoft may not be able to provide the software innovations and features we rely on for the Windows Phone operating system in a timely manner, if at all” it is now added that]
Additionally, we are dependent on Microsoft for timely error corrections for customer and country variants as well as generic software releases.Other manufacturers also produce competing mobile products which are based on the Windows Phone operating system. We may face increased competition from other manufacturers, including Microsoft, who already produce or may produce competing Windows Phone based products. Increased competition within the Windows Phone ecosystem could result for instance in lower sales of our devices or lower potential for a profitable business model.
We are aiming to expand our Windows Phone-based products to lower price points. The availability of Windows Phone-based products that we or our competitors offer at lower price points may have a negative effect on the sales of our higher priced Windows Phone-based products.
With all that it is the case that
[Our partnership with Microsoft is subject to risks and uncertainties.]
In addition to the factors outlined above in connection with the Windows Phone ecosystem and sales of Nokia products with Windows Phone …
[i.e. as the result of the above added risks there is an enhanced warning that]
A further change in smartphone strategy either by Microsoft or Nokia could be costly and further adversely affect our market share, competitiveness and profitability.
[vs. without that “either by Microsoft or Nokia” stated a year ago, meaning that on either side there is an increased risk in that regard vs. that of a year ago]
[as well as adding now that]
Microsoft could provide better support to another device manufacturer which produces devices that run on the Windows Phone platform…
We license from Microsoft the Windows Phone operating system as our primary smartphone platform. Microsoft may act independently of us with respect to decisions and communications on that operating system which may have a negative effect on us. Moreover, if Microsoft reduces investment in that operating system or discontinues it, our smartphone strategy would be directly negatively affected by such acts.
Microsoft may make strategic decisions or changes that may be detrimental to us. For example, in addition to the Surface tablet, Microsoft may broaden its strategy to sell other mobile devices under its own brand, including smartphones. This could lead Microsoft to focus more on their own devices and less on mobile devices of other manufacturers that operate on the Windows Phone platform, including Nokia.
We may not be able to sufficiently influence Microsoft in bringing the features or functionalities for the Windows Phone platform that we deem most important, or Microsoft may otherwise focus on other areas of its business leading to reduced resources devoted to the Windows Phone platform or failures to implement features or functionalities. This may be heightened if our position in the partnership deteriorates, for instance through other companies using leverage to influence Microsoft, or if Microsoft chooses to develop its own mobile devices, including smartphones, or if Microsoft otherwise develops interests that are contrary to ours.
…
5G WiFi with Wi-Fi CERTIFIED™ ac Miracast™ from Broadcom for streaming content to UHD (4K) TVs as well
If one has $17K to spend on LG’s 84LM960V UHD (4K) TV already equipped with Broadcom’s BCM43526 chip for 5G WiFi/IEEE 802.11ac transceiver functions, as well as some more for a ’2013 vintage’, Wi-Fi CERTIFIED™ ac and Wi-Fi CERTIFIED Miracast™ capable, Android 4.2 smartphone having, for example, Broadcom’s BCM4335 chip for 5G WiFi™ 802.11ac among others (like the new HTC One to be available in March, or LG’s own ‘next generation’ device), then one can already have LG Ultra HD Streaming [TheVerge YouTube channel, Feb 25, 2013]:
A general UHD (4K) capability will come with smartphones having the Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 SoC, as an example, when you will be able to play UHD (4K) video content on the smartphone and watch it in UHD (4K) on the UHD TV.
[Recognition] Credible Praise for LG Ultra HD TV by the Experts [WHY LG TV BLOG, Feb 28, 2013]
…
Best of Innovations 2013 – Video Display Category at CES 2013
“The 84LM9600 is the world’s largest Ultra Definition (UD) 3D TV delivering immersive entertainment in stunning ultra-definition with a combination of CINEMA 3D technology and Smart TV features.”
8/10 Rating by Digital Trends
“Bottom line: Higher pixel density makes images on the screen look more like reality than TV. Scenes of the bright blue Mediterranean looked so convincing; it was hard not to want to jump right in. The stars in night skies looked much more like stars – tiny pinpoints of light – than a smattering of blurry white spots.”
A Stellar Review from HDTV Solutions
“The picture quality of the LG Ultra HD TV is definitely a major step up from the output of a high-end 1080p HDTV. The difference can be startling when playing 4K content. But even when comparing playback of Blu-rays, the LG’s upscaling to 4K is noticeably better.”
Rated Excellent by AVForums
“Once you throw in LG’s reference Smart TV platform, two remotes, Game Play, built-in WiFi, well designed menus and exceptional calibration controls, you start to see a TV that can almost justify its hefty price tag. The huge nature of the screen isn’t reflected in the other dimensions, with the surrounding bezel measuring 3cm at the top, 2.5cm at the sides and 4cm along the bottom. The entire chassis is only 4cm deep, which is remarkable when you consider the screen size and how much technology is crammed inside.”
…
LG 84LM960V Ultra HD TV [LGBlogUK YouTube channel, Jan 3, 2013]
LG TO DEMONSTRATE WORLD’S FIRST WIRELESS ULTRA HD TRANSMISSION TECHNOLOGY AT MWC 2013 [LG Electronics press release, Feb 25, 2013]
LG Electronics (LG) will showcase its industry-leading Wireless Ultra High Definition (Ultra HD) Transmission technology for the first time at Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2013 in Barcelona. This exciting next generation mobile feature enables users to view games and other smartphone content on Ultra HD TVs in real time, via wireless data transfer.
“Thanks to our innovative Wireless Ultra HD Transmission technology, users can now enjoy their favorite mobile content on today’s most advanced Ultra HD TVs,” said Dr. Jong-seok Park, President and CEO of the LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company. “With the development of this cutting-edge technology, LG again confirms its industry leadership in the area of display and mobile convergence for a truly enjoyable viewing experience.”
Wireless Ultra HD Transmission technology makes the delivery of smartphone multimedia content to TVs faster and smoother than previous mobile video compression and transfer systems. With minimal lag and data loss, LG’s next generation mobile feature performs this feat using ubiquitous WiFi connections. During transmission, multimedia content is automatically adjusted to match the receiving TV’s screen resolution, resulting in flawless visuals.
What’s more, LG’s Wireless Ultra HD Transmission system consumes less than half the power of other similar transmission technologies. It achieves this by reducing the burden on the smartphone’s CPU and other hardware resources.
[CES 2013] LG Ultra HD TV [ElectoTube YouTube channel by LG, Jan 9, 2013]
Broadcom Powers First LG 5G WiFi Digital Televisions [Broadcom press release, Jan 7, 2013]
Heads to CES with Growing 5G WiFi Ecosystem; Enables LG Consumers to Stream HD Video Wirelessly from Mobile Devices to the TV
News Highlights:
-LG Electronics to offer the industry’s first digital televisions powered by Broadcom’s 5G WiFi
-New 5G WiFi digital televisions with Wi-Fi CERTIFIED Miracast™ enable consumers to escape the small screen and reliably stream HD-quality video onto larger displays
-5G WiFi delivers dramatic capacity, range and power benefits2013 CES International —Broadcom Corporation (NASDAQ: BRCM), a global innovation leader in semiconductor solutions for wired and wireless communications, today announced LG Electronics has chosen Broadcom’s 5G WiFi technology, based on the IEEE 802.11ac standard, for use in select 2013 LG digital TV models. By adopting Broadcom’s BCM43526, LG Electronics is the first to enable consumers to seamlessly stream and share high-resolution content between mobile devices and smart TVs. Learn how Broadcom® innovation is enabling the Connected Life at home, at work, and on-the-go at Broadcom@CES.
“LG is leading the market with next-generation digital TV innovations that dramatically enhance the consumer’s viewing experience,” said Sangyeob Lee, LG Electronics Senior Director, TV Product Planning. “By adding 5G WiFi to our flagship Smart TV platforms, our customers will experience the fastest, most reliable wireless connectivity yet. Partnering with Broadcom allows us to raise the bar and be the first company to introduce the next generation of WiFi in our Smart TV platforms.”
“Last year at CES 2012, Broadcom introduced the industry’s first 5G WiFi chips and committed to enabling the adoption of the technology across all wireless product segments,” said Dino Bekis, Broadcom Senior Director, Product Marketing, Wireless Connectivity Combo. “Today marks yet another important milestone — the industry’s first 5G WiFi Smart TV. We’re thrilled to partner with LG to further expand the ecosystem of 5G WiFi products available to consumers and continue to drive rapid adoption of the technology.”
The increased reliance on wireless networks, the explosion of video consumption and the growing number of wireless devices are all putting stress on legacy 802.11a/b/g/n networks. As a result, consumers are prone to experience deteriorated performance such as choppy videos and slower load times, especially when streaming content from the cloud, smartphone or tablet to a digital TV. 5G WiFi dramatically improves home wireless range, providing higher-capacity video streaming, the ability to connect multiple devices to the network at the same time and broader coverage with fewer dead spots. It also reduces power consumption by up to 83 percent[1] in mobile devices, so consumers can go longer without having to plug in.
The average U.S. household has nearly 4.8 devices connected to the network[2]. Yet, sharing content between these devices can be complicated — and sometimes impossible. Wi-Fi CERTIFIED Miracast addresses this issue by allowing users to easily stream content wirelessly between devices. By incorporating the BCM43526 and Wi-Fi CERTIFIED Miracast into its newest digital TV products, LG Electronics is ensuring consumers enjoy fast, reliable connectivity between multiple devices in multiple places throughout the home.
Availability
LG Electronics’ new line of 5G WiFi digital televisions will be available in 2013 in various markets.
LG 4K 84-inch Ultra HD 3D LED HDTV: Abt Electronics [AbtElectronics YouTube channel, Jan 28, 2013]
Broadcom 5G WiFi Powers New HTC One Smartphone [Broadcom press release, Feb 25, 2013]
Expands Ecosystem of 5G WiFi Products Available
- HTC chooses Broadcom 5G WiFi technology in its newly launched HTC One smartphone
- 5G WiFi delivers faster, more reliable wireless connectivity with significantly less battery drain
Broadcom Corporation (NASDAQ: BRCM), a global innovation leader in semiconductor solutions for wired and wireless communications, today announced HTC has chosen Broadcom® 5G WiFi technology in its new flagship HTC One device. By adopting the BCM4335, HTC is delivering the speed, reliability and power benefits of 5G WiFi in its newest smartphone. Visit Broadcom @ Mobile World Congress for more news.
“With the launch of the HTC One, we’re reinventing the mobile experience and setting a new standard for smartphones,” said Kouji Kodera, Chief Product Officer, HTC. “Our customers today are consuming more and more video on their mobile devices and expect a seamless streaming experience. Broadcom’s 5G WiFi delivers higher bandwidth and broader range so our customers experience the fastest, most reliable wireless connectivity yet — while also preserving battery power.”
The explosion of video consumption and the growing number of wireless devices being used are putting stress on legacy 802.11a/b/g/n networks. As a result, consumers are prone to experience deteriorated performance such as choppy videos and slower load times, especially when streaming content to a smartphone. 5G WiFi, which is based on the IEEE 802.11ac standard, improves the range of a wireless connection, providing higher-capacity video streaming, the ability to connect multiple devices to the network at the same time and broader coverage with fewer dead spots. Broadcom’s 5G WiFi also reduces power consumption by up to 83 percent[1] in mobile devices, so consumers can go longer without having to plug in.
“Broadcom continues to lead the transition to the next generation of Wi-Fi across all product segments,” said Michael Hurlston, Senior Vice President and General Manager, Wireless Connectivity Combos. “We’ve hit a major inflection point with 5G WiFi in mobile phones. Now consumers will be able to unlock the real benefits of the technology, especially when used with the many other 802.11ac products on the market today.”
Availability
The new HTC One powered by Broadcom 5G WiFi will be available globally through more than 185 mobile operators and major retailers in more than 80 regions and countries beginning in March. For more information on the HTC One, please visit the HTC Newsroom or Product Page.[1] 5GHz 802.11ac running at 80MHz bandwidth as compared to 2.4GHz 802.11n running at 20MHz
From HTC One Specs [HTC microsite, Feb 19, 2013]
…
CONNECTIVITY
- 3.5 mm stereo audio jack
- NFC capable3
- Compliant with Bluetooth 4.0
- Bluetooth 4.0 with aptX™ enabled
- Wi-Fi®: IEEE 802.11 a/ac/b/g/n
- DLNA® for wirelessly streaming media from the phone to a compatible TV or computer
- Support consumer infrared remote control
- micro-USB 2.0 (5-pin) port with mobile high-definition video link (MHL) for USB or HDMI connection (Special cable required for HDMI connection.)
…
Broadcom CEO Talks 4K TV, 5G WiFi [TheStreetTV YouTube channel, Jan 9, 2013]
Broadcom CEO Discusses Q4 2012 Results – Earnings Call Transcript [Seeking Alpha, Jan 29, 2013]
Scott A. McGregor – Chief Executive Officer, President and Director
… We have been shipping our 5G WiFi combo to lead customers and expect the [first 5G WiFi] smartphones to launch in the coming weeks. …
… I think the 5G WiFi will continue to grow significantly. That’s a new technology that has penetrated access points in 2012, and will roll out in the mobile handsets over the course of this year. That is likely to be the largest magnitude of the set. …
Miracast™ Makes a Splash with Partners at Mobile World Congress [Broadcom Connected blog, Feb 25, 2013]
The geek love for Wi-Fi Certified Miracast™, an innovative Wi-Fi standard that relies on a technology dubbed “wireless display mirroring,” seemed to be inevitable when we first started talking about it. The technology, which allows consumers to easily and seamlessly share media from one device to another over Wi-Fi, was designed for today’s multimedia lifestyles.
The Miracast technology standard is built on the premise that users have a ton of content on their smartphones and laptops – photos, videos and games, to name a few – that they’d like to engage with over a large screen. But for users to seamlessly transfer that content, the technology standard must reside in both the device and the display.
That’s where Broadcom comes into the game. Broadcom and its partners are looking to spur on Miracast adoption with software and hardware that aims to speed up the integration of Miracast into electronics, getting the technology to consumers faster.
At Mobile World Congress today, Broadcom is highlighting recent Miracast partnerships with top tech players and retailers — including Google (in Android 4.2), Intel, Roku, NVIDIA, Best Buy Stores and more.
Adoption is expected to pick up steam this year as Miracast shows up in PCs, smart TVs and gaming platforms worldwide, including products like the Nexus 4, some of LG Electronics’ TVs and Optimus G smartphones, Samsung’s Galaxy S III smartphone and others. Some 1.5 billion Miracast devices are expected to ship in 2016, according to ABI Research.
Wi-Fi CERTIFIED Miracast™ is appearing in a range of televisions, tablets, handsets and more. Miracast makes it easy to display applications or video content from one Wi-Fi device on another, even when the devices are different brands. http://www.wi-fi.org/miracast
[Note the second demo at [1:07-2:08] which is by using an LG Optimus smartphone for wireless streaming.]
Broadcom’s contribution to the Miracast ecosystem is in the form of a robust, complete software stack that allows smartphone, display, smart TV and set-top box makers to roll out the technology in their newest products.
Broadcom is also offering an off-the-shelf wireless dongle design that allows display makers to add Miracast to
any device with an HDMI port — similar to the early products that helped bring Wi-Fi and Bluetooth to personal computers before the now-standard technologies were embedded. Best Buy is already selling Miracast-enabled video receivers in its online under its Rocketfish brand, featuring Broadcom’s technology.
Best Buy’s Rocketfish Miracast Video Receiver, Broadcom tech inside.
The standard has been promoted by the Wi-Fi Alliance and Broadcom since last year. In September, the Wi-Fi Alliance handpicked Broadcom’s technology for its Miracast test bed. And Miracast-enabled devices were all over the show floor at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas last month, with somebig-name CE players throwing their weight behind the standard to continue to drive adoption momentum.
Come by and see Miracast in action at:
Hall 3 (Hybrid Hall) Booth #3C14 Fira de Barcelona Gran ViaNot heading to Barcelona? Get the latest MWC newsfrom Broadcom and our partners by liking us on Facebook, following us on Twitter and reading the blog.
Broadcom Drives Wireless Media Sharing Across Consumer Electronics Ecosystem [Broadcom press release, Feb 25, 2013]
Best Buy, NVIDIA and others adopt Broadcom Miracast™ solution
Broadcom is among first vendors to deliver end-to-end Wi-Fi CERTIFIED Miracast solutions
Broadcom Miracast solution gains traction in PC, smart TV and gaming platforms
Growth opportunity with more than 1.5 billion Miracast devices expected to ship in 20161
Broadcom Corporation (NASDAQ: BRCM), a global innovation leader in semiconductor solutions for wired and wireless communications, today announced broad adoption of its Miracast solutions by industry leaders across a range of consumer electronics products. Visit Broadcom @ Mobile World Congress for more news.
Broadcom offers the most complete Miracast software solution, enabling ultra low-latency gaming, 3D and 4K display formats and advanced content protection for reduced time-to-market across a broad and diverse set of platforms. Miracast, a Wi-Fi Alliance standard, transmits video over a robust wireless connection to allow consumers to stream movies, play games and access thousands of applications on a larger screen without delay or interruption.
As a testament to its proven solutions, Broadcom Miracast-compatible devices are among the first to interoperate with wireless display on Nexus 4 as part of Android 4.2, Jelly Bean. Industry leaders, including LG Electronics and Nintendo, have selected Broadcom for its connectivity expertise and now have the ability to add Miracast capabilities to improve the experience of their users. Through strategic partnerships and product innovation, Broadcom is playing a pivotal role in delivering Miracast solutions to support a broad spectrum of consumer electronics products for immediate deployment.
In addition to its Miracast software solution, Broadcom offers a portfolio of wireless HDMI dongle designs that includes its dual-band MIMO Wi-Fi device and high-performance media processor. This high-performance, USB-powered solution leverages 5GHz MIMO technology in a compact design that adds Miracast capabilities to existing consumer devices, simplifies upgrades and lowers total cost for OEMs.
“Intel is excited to collaborate with Broadcom on their Wi-Fi CERTIFIED Miracast HDMI dongle solutions. This collaboration enables consumers who have a PC, phone or a tablet featuring Intel® Wireless Display to enjoy their personal and online content on an even broader set of consumer devices,” saidKerry Forell, Intel WiDi Product Manager.
Broadcom is extending its leadership as the first vendor to offer a wireless HDMI dongle design based on the IEEE 802.11ac Wi-Fi standard, further reducing latency and enabling simultaneous high-definition video streaming across multiple devices.
A range of Broadcom Miracast solutions are currently in production with major technology manufacturers and retailers.
Best Buy’s Rocketfish Miracast dongle is currently available at retail locations
Miracast support for NVIDIA Tegra 4-powered devices will be available in Q2 2013
For ongoing news, visit Broadcom’s Newsroom, read the B-Connected Blog, or visit Facebook or Twitter. And to stay connected, subscribe to Broadcom’s RSS Feed.
Patrick McGinnis, Vice President, Best Buy Exclusive Brands
“Best Buy is dedicated to delivering technology products that provide more choice, value and improved experiences for our customers. As a leader in Wi-Fi innovation, Broadcom is an ideal partner for Best Buy as we introduce our Rocketfish dongle with Miracast technology for a new viewing and entertainment solution.”
Matt Wuebbling, Director, Tegra Product Marketing, NVIDIA
“Pairing NVIDIA Tegra processors with Broadcom’s leading wireless solutions will allow consumers to share photos, stream HD movies and play amazing games on the big screen seamlessly. We’ve worked closely with Broadcom to bring this groundbreaking wireless display technology to market.”
Edgar Figueroa, CEO, Wi-Fi Alliance
“We congratulate Broadcom on its Wi-Fi CERTIFIED Miracast reference design as well as inclusion of its software in our test bed. Broadcom’s participation in the development of this program has been instrumental in the achievement of an industry-wide certification for this program.”
Dino Bekis, Broadcom Senior Director, Wireless Connectivity Combo Group
“As a leader across all segments of the Wi-Fi market, Broadcom is uniquely positioned to drive mass adoption of Miracast technology. The integration ofBroadcom’s solution into a broad-based foundation of devices from major consumer electronics vendors and retailers will allow consumers to simply and effortlessly share content across the continuously expanding environment of connected devices.”
1 IHS iSuppli Research, Wi-Fi Alliance Wi-Fi CERTIFIED Miracast™ Press Release, September 12, 2012
LG DWD-300 Miracast™ Certified Wireless HDMI® Adapter [trainofthoughtmkt YouTube channel, Feb 1, 2013]
LG DWD-300 Wireless HDMI Adapter – LG Optimus G™ accessories from AT&T [AT&T, Jan 18, 2013]
LG DWD-300 Wireless HDMI Adapter – LG Optimus G™
Retail price $99.00
Overview
The LG DWD-300 is a lightweight Miracast™ Certified wireless HDMI adapter that uses Wi-Fi technology. Use the DWD-300 as a wireless AV accessory for devices that support the Wi-Fi protocol.
You can view your phone’s content on a larger screen via a convenient Wi-Fi connection. Simply attach, connect, and enjoy! Scroll through an album, share a presentation, or play a video for the whole family. Use Dual Screen Dual Play (if supported by your phone) to check your email, send a text, or use other apps on your phone while playing a video on the larger screen.
LG CES 2013 Press Event First Look – OLED TV, Google TV, 4K TV, and More! [TechSmartt YouTube channel, Jan 7, 2013]
Broadcom Unveils World’s First UltraHD TV Home Gateway Chip [Broadcom press release, Jan 8, 2013]
Opens 2013 Consumer Electronics Show With Game Changer for Big Screen and Internet Video Delivery in the Home
News Highlights:
– Enables UltraHD (4Kx2K resolution) TV into the home for dramatically improved picture quality on big screens
– Supports HEVC video coding standard; reduces video bandwidth usage by 50 percent
– Simultaneously delivers four transcoded HD video streams over IP for content on any screen
– Delivers unprecedented 21000 DMIPs of application performance while protecting high-value content with web domain security featuresBroadcom Corporation (NASDAQ: BRCM), a global innovation leader in semiconductor solutions for wired and wireless communications, today announced the world’s first Ultra High Definition Television (UltraHD TV) video decoder solution on the market. Learn how Broadcom® innovation is enabling the Connected Life at home, at work, and on-the-go at Broadcom@CES.
The BCM7445 is the first step to delivering UltraHD TV into the home with the performance and picture quality needed for the evolution in multi-screen connected home entertainment. Broadcom’s 28 nanometer (nm) ARM-based BCM7445 UltraHD video decoder solution, serving as the primary gateway to the home, delivers more transcoding, CPU processing performance and home networking throughput to support a greater range of applications such as video-on-demand (VoD), gaming, social media and web store applications.
UltraHD TV technology, formerly known as 4K, marks a major innovation in HD resolution. UltraHD TV screens display four times the resolution of today’s 1080p60 displays. The delivery of UltraHD TV requires a more efficient compression codec made possible by the use of the new High Efficiency Video Coding (HEVC) standard. HEVC speeds Internet video downloads giving operators and users the ability to download content such as movies in half the time and with higher quality video at 50 percent of the bit rate previously required.
“The clarity and brilliance of UltraHD television is a significant step forward in viewing enjoyment and is the next true evolution in TV innovation,” said Dan Marotta, Broadcom’s Executive Vice President and General Manager, Broadband Communications Group.”By integrating HEVC, Quad 1080p transcoding, quad-core CPU, gigabit networking speeds and web domain security, Broadcom is enabling a dramatic improvement in the TV viewing experience while making UltraHD video delivery economics work for service providers.”
“HEVC, which will be known as MPEG-H or H.265, will be required to broadcast UltraHD content, notably major sporting events and Hollywood content,” said Michael Inouye, Senior Analyst of TV and Video, ABI Research. “Next generation user experience, including 80 inch and larger displays, will be improved by the adoption of UltraHD and HEVC. The efficiency of HEVC will also enable additional services including faster IP downloads and the provisioning of VoD services over wireless networks.”
Key Features:
Based on 28 nm process technology, the BCM7445 features the new Brahma15 21,000 DMIP CPU, four 1080p30 real-time transcoders and HEVC compression that delivers resolution up to 4096x2160p60.
The BCM7445 also features web domain security, an industry leading hardware security oversight to separate Internet services from premium broadcast content. This protects critical core network functions from malware threats, paving the way for operators to securely converge and deliver pay-TV programming and open Internet applications to subscribers for a web-based TV experience.
Brahma15 Application Processing
The Brahma15 is a 21,000 DMIP Quad-core ARMv7-A instruction set compatible multiprocessor. 32KB instruction and 32KB data caches per processor are backed by a shared 2MB L2 cache and feed the multi-issue, out-of-order superscalar 15-stage plus write back pipeline of the Brahma15. A 32KB read-ahead cache between the L2 cache and the memory controllers provides 8KB of read latency reduction per processor. The Brahama15 supports the ARM Trust Zone® security architecture, software virtualization and hardware virtualization by core for complete security isolation. Each core individually supports single cycle ARM NEON 128- bit vectors for software based media processing applications. The entire architecture supports Broadcom’s Nexus and Trellis software interfaces ensuring a seamless continuation of the home gateway and client experience.
Availability
Samples of the BCM7445 UltraHD TV video decoder for the home are now available, with volume production expected in mid-2014. The BCM7445 will be demonstrated at Broadcom’s booth at 2013 CES International.
Getting 4K with Broadcom’s HEVC Encoding – CES 2013 [TEKHD YouTube channel, Jan 11, 2013]
Miracast™ Technology Brings Wireless Streaming to the Living Room [Broadcom Connected blog, Jan 3, 2013]
Moving high-definition content from a small-screen device such as a smartphone or a tablet to a bigger screen, such as a TV or desktop computer, can be a challenge. But thanks to a technology standard that’s on the verge of going mainstream, those headaches are about to become a thing of the past.
Meet Miracast™, a technology that CNET Australia has called “a near-perfect wireless streaming solution.” At next week’s International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, expect to hear about a growing number of devices that are outfitted with Miracast, which is actually a Wi-Fi standard that relies on technology dubbed “wireless display mirroring.”
The idea is for consumers to stream content between Wi-Fi connected devices seamlessly, without an intermediate box such as a router or gateway. Think of Miracast as a seal of approval for electronics devices so that problems with compatibility and interoperability become a thing of the past.
The standard has been promoted by the Wi-Fi Alliance and Broadcom for some time. In September, the Wi-Fi Alliance handpicked Broadcom’s technology for its Miracast test bed.
And some big name CE players have already signaled their support for Miracast, including handset and TV makers Samsung and LG. Embedded companies also have hopped on board, including Intel, Ralink, Marvell, Texas Instruments, Realtek and MediaTek.
CES 2013 is likely to be Miracast’s true coming-out party with the industry, with hundreds of Miracast-enabled products on the show floor. Miracast is one of the top trends forecast by Broadcom at our December “Geek Peek.”
At the show today, Broadcom is announcing partnerships with top tech players and retailers —including Google (debuted in Android 4.2), Roku, NVidia, Best Buy and more—to promote Miracast’s adoption.
Broadcom’s contribution to the Miracast ecosystem is in the form of a robust, complete software stack that allows smartphone, display, smart TV and set-top box makers to roll out technology in their newest products. To further accelerate the adoption, Broadcom is also offering an off-the-shelf wireless dongle design that allows display makers to add Miracast to any device with an HDMI port—similar to the early products that helped bring Wi-Fi and Bluetooth to personal computers before the technologies were embedded
Miracast is in its earliest stages of adoption. But, already, it’s prepared to meet the needs of next-generation home entertainment, including support for leading-edge 3D and Ultra HD display formats that allow seamless movie streaming, game play and access to thousands of apps—all over Wi-Fi.
Just in Time for CES: Broadcom and Intel Team Up to Drive Wireless Display Adoption [Broadcom Connected blog, Jan 3, 2013]
The volume of video being consumed over the Internet is growing at an exponential rate, representing about half of all global Internet traffic today and expected to reach 93 percent by 2015. At the same time, the number of devices consumers are using to watch video is also on the rise. Researchers estimate that approximately 4.8 devices are in an average U.S. household with a home network — nearly double from just four years ago.
The challenge for consumers is how to share their content between devices. That’s where technologies such as Intel® Wireless Display (Intel® WiDi) come into play.
Broadcom today became the first Wi-Fi silicon vendor with a license for Intel WiDi technology in PCs. As part of this agreement, Broadcom will integrate Intel WiDi software onto its WLAN chips to help drive adoption of the technology in Ultrabook™ systems. The multistream 2×2 Wi-Fi data rates in Broadcom’s chip coupled with Intel WiDi software will deliver a seamless, high-quality experience to users.
Wi-Fi Display, Wi-Fi CERTIFIED Miracast™ and Intel WiDi are based on the same underlying technologies that allow you to do one very useful thing: easily stream content between two devices wirelessly. Those streams will become more commonplace this year as new standards for Wi-Fi-enabled devices eliminate interoperability and compatibility issues. Intel WiDi and industry standard Miracast are compatible technologies that improve the consumer experience for sharing video content between devices.
Intel and its ecosystem partners have shipped more than 30 million Intel WiDi-capable notebooks. This agreement will help drive the proliferation of the technology across a much broader offering of notebook PCs. Learn more about Intel WiDi, or visit the Intel booth (Central Hall, Booth No. 7252) at the International Consumer Electronics Show, which is this week at the Las Vegas Convention Center.
Broadcom Flames WiFi Display demo – Computex 2012 [FirstZoom YouTube channel, June 9, 2012]
5G W iFi Smartphone Technology [Broadcom whitepaper, July 2012]
Mobile-to-Digital TV use cases are gaining traction as consumers begin using interactive gaming, streaming video, and remote control devices in a home. A key benefit is the ability to shift video from a small mobile screen to a larger one using peer-to-peer technologies like Wi-Fi Display and to support the increased throughput required for future video formats such as 2K4K (2048 × 4096 pixels) and 4K4K (4096 × 4096 pixels). With multiple high-resolution video devices connected to a digital TV, this presents a challenge for sustained WLAN throughput and range.
…
5G WiFi provides a number of performance advantages compared to previous generations of Wi-Fi:
- More than six times higher throughput than 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi devices
- Significantly lower power consumption for a given data range
- Improved range and elimination of fading by using antenna beamforming
- Higher throughput at the same distance from an access point
- Reduced interference from other wireless devices (uses 5 GHz frequency band)
5G WiFi is not just a technology breakthrough — it enables new use cases and improves existing ones. In the previous generation of smartphones, high bandwidth applications such as HD video streaming are extremely limited due to low data rates. 5G WiFi breaks that barrier and allows media streaming from a handset to a digital television at data rates comparable to that supported by wired Ethernet connections. At the same time, 5G WiFi enables high-speed data and media synchronization, turning an hour-long backup process into a matter of minutes.
5G WiFi also solves some of the longest-standing problems with Wi-Fi in smartphones. By reducing signal fading and lost connections, it significantly improves the Wi-Fi user experience. By reducing overall power consumption for large data transfers, it also extends battery life.
In summary, 5G WiFi redefines the concept of a smartphone. Whereas today’s smartphone Wi-Fi users are limited to basic applications such as web browsing and e-mail, tomorrow’s 5G WiFi users will have a fullfeatured media center in their hands.
Broadcom 5G WiFi solutions – Computex 2012 [FirstZoom YouTube channel, June 7, 2012]
Broadcom and 5G WiFi [Broadcom technology site, July 25, 2012]
Broadcom Delivers 5G WiFi
Broadcom’s mission as a global innovator is simple – Connect everything. As a leader in semiconductor solutions, Broadcom boasts that 99.98 percent of all Internet traffic crosses a Broadcom chip, across vast lineup of products. Broadcom is investing in the advancement of 5G WiFi, a platform for IEEE 802.11ac, the standard behind the next generation of Wi-Fi. Broadcom recognizes that each previous generation has come in at the right time to address an inflection point in consumer needs. 5G WiFi is no different. It is here as a panacea for the video challenge and represents the continued commitment by Broadcom and the industry to meet wireless needs in both homes and workplaces.
Bringing 5G WiFi to Market
Broadcom introduced its family of 5G WiFi chips for access points and PCs at the Consumer Electronics Show in January 2012. Soon after, the world’s first 5G WiFi routers were unveiled by companies such as Netgear, Belkin and Buffalo Technologies, with others, such as ASUS and D-Link, soon following. At the Computex show in June 2012, ASUS announced the world’s first 5G WiFi laptop & motherboard, bringing the power of the next generation of Wi-Fi to the world of computing.
In July 2012, Broadcom introduced the BCM4335, the industry’s first 5G WiFi combo chip for smartphones, tablets, ultrabooks and other mobile devices. The new device extends Broadcom’s wireless connectivity leadership and establishes it as the first chip vendor to sample solutions based on the 802.11ac standard for every major Wi-Fi product segment. Smartphones and tablets powered by the new BCM4335, which are expected to hit shelves in Q1 2013, will allow consumers to reap the full benefits of 5G WiFi on both ends of the wireless connection.
Broadcom Corporation_Unleashing the Power of the 5G WiFi Ecosystem [SUMMITFORUM2012 YouTube channel, June 18, 2012]
Tenda leads China’s Gigabit Wireless Age [Tenda press release, Nov 20, 2012]
Tenda ® (Shenzhen Tenda Technology Co., Ltd), a global networking company that delivers innovative products to consumers and businesses, today announced the world’s fastest next-generation gigabit WiFi 802.11ac product series at the press conference jointly held with Broadcom®, the world’s leading chipmaker. Tenda, the first in China to launch the high-speed 802.11ac products, demonstrated its courageous commitment to leading innovation at the conference in the presence of over 130 guests from major news, media, government authorities and channels, etc.
President and CEO of Tenda, Mr Dengping Quan, highlighted Tenda’s dedicated commitment to innovation and pioneers of the spirit of innovation. He said at the conference, the demand for high-performance routers operating in the less crowded 5 GHz band is growing significantly in China. By working with Broadcom, Tenda has consistently delivered an innovation pipeline of leading edge technologies designed to address the needs of today’s consumers in China. To improve and facilitate innovation processes, we spent huge sums of money to import IPD (Integrated Product Development), the most advanced product development process, from IBM and Agile IT systems from Oracle.
Consistently investing in innovation and highly valuing the core technology, Tenda contributed a lot— the first to launch wireless terminal products, the first to introduce wireless 11n products in China, the first to launch portable wireless router and easy-to-install router, the first to…
Marketing and Product Director Mr. Hongwei Wang from Tenda introduced the 11ac technology advantage: a remarkably higher transmission rate– up to 433Mbps for a single antenna, and up to 1300Mbps for 3 combined antennas; in the near future, multiple antennas operating in 160MHz will deliver speeds up to 3.47Gbps or even higher. Plus, the advantages of Tenda’s new products based on 11ac standards consist of faster throughput, higher capacity, stronger anti-jamming capability, fashion design and easy usage. Operating on 5G band, these Tenda new 5G WiFi products are designed to better meet the need of smart home entertainment center as well small and medium-sized enterprises, ideal for interference-free video streaming, including transmission from a router to TV device and between different devices.
In 2007, Tenda pioneered to promote 11n products as replacement of the legacy 11g products. Now, Tenda has developed new 5G WiFi products that deliver the speed and reliability required for today’s evolving consumer needs. He gave details of Tenda new products at the conference and announced plans to upgrade the existing series routers to smart and easy to install routers (intelligently detect Internet connection type, intelligently diagnose network faults, intelligently connect to secondary uplink router), as well as to create the world’s most easy-to-install router. It also announced that Tenda will be the first to provide a free telephone service in the industry.
Mr. Micheal Hurlson, Broadcom SVP and GM, Wireless Connectivity Combo described the cooperation with Tenda a win-win relationship and would deepen the strategic partnership. He said, Broadcom will keep its industry leadership and clearly focus on developing 5G WiFi chips. Chinese market is very important to Broadcom and Tenda is found unbelievable in terms of bringing new technology to market. Mr Dengping Quan expressed that, Broadcom is an innovation leader in wireless field. Tenda will keep on close cooperation with Broadcom to bring the latest technologies into Chinese market.
Broadcom’s 5G WiFi dramatically improves the wireless range in the home, allowing consumers to watch HD-quality video from more devices, in more places, simultaneously. The increased speed enables consumers to download web content from a mobile device faster and quickly synch large files, such as videos. Since 5G WiFi transfers the same volume of data at a much faster rate, devices enter low-power mode faster, which can result in significant power consumption advantages. Michael Hurlston, Broadcom SVP and GM, Wireless Connectivity Combo said, “China is rapidly emerging as a top consumer of IPTV services. As Chinese consumers turn to mobile devices to watch video over Wi-Fi, the need for an interference-free, clean wireless experience has become increasingly apparent. Tenda’s new 5G WiFi routers deliver the speed and reliability required for today’s evolving consumer needs.” He also predicted that by the year of 2014, 5G Wi-Fi technology will not only become standard on mobile terminals such as mobile phones tablet but also be widely incorporated into home appliances and medical equipment. Currently Broadcom’s 5G Wi-Fi chips has been applied in the field of routers, PC, tablet, phone, and more terminal devices equipped with 5G Wi-Fi technology are expected to be brought into ordinary people’s life by the end of the first quarter of next year.
He also said that the broadcom technical advantages allow 5G Wi-Fi seamless roaming, remote control, situational awareness platform for applications such as home digital entertainment center. In order to allow better play 5G Wi-Fi charm, Broadcom also integrates other technologies such as NFC, Bluetooth, allowing better content sharing and multi-screen interaction.
Mr Dengping Quan, President and CEO of Tenda, Mr Michael Hurlston, Broadcom SVP and GM, Wireless Connectivity Combo, Roundtable forum, Ms. Jackie Baon, Senior PL Manager of Mobile and Wireless, Dr. Jinqiao Chen, Secretary-General, Committee of Economic Experts of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, deputy chief engineer of Telecommunication Research Institute, Mr. Xiaoyong Liu, deputy chief engineer of the State Radio Monitoring Center Testing Center, Mr. Li Chen, director of category management, Amazon (China), Mr. Ning Lu, Purchasing Director, Gome, and Mr Zixiang Zhang, President of Henan JHD Network Technology Co., Ltd. Etc joined a splendid discussion at the roundtable forum.
Below presents an overview of Tenda’s new 5G WiFi retail products including the W1800R, W80E and W900U.
…
Tenda 5G WIFI [TendaSupport YouTube channel, Feb 18, 2013]
Phablet competition in India: $258 Micromax-MediaTek-2013 against $360 Samsung-Broadcom-2012
Allwinner in mainland China moved first to quad-core Cortex-A7 with the A31 SoC introduced with the launch of the first two tablet products, Onda V972 and V812, on December 5, 2012 (and delivered from December 24, 2012 on in mainland China). That prompted a direction only reaction that Qualcomm quad-core Cortex-A7 SoCs with Adreno 305 and 1080p coming for the high-volume global market and China [Dec 9, 2012]), with sampling just planned for Q2’13 and only now publishing a completely redesigned 2013 roadmap according to Qualcomm moving ahead of Allwinner et al. in CPU and GPU while trying to catch up with Allwinner in Ultra HD [Jan 12 – Feb 20, 2013]. The #2 SoC vendor MediaTek from Taiwan had already plans to move to Cortex-A7 so was able to react much more quickly with MediaTek MT6589 quad-core Cortex-A7 SoC with HSPA+ and TD-SCDMA is available for Android smartphones and tablets of Q1 delivery [Dec 12, 2012]. Such a delivery first happened with Micromax A116 in India (from February 14, 2013 on) which targeted the delivery of Samsung Galaxy Grand (from January 21, 2013 on) based on a very much ‘2012 vintage’ SoC from Broadcom still using a dual core Cortex-A9 driven CPU.
So here we have an interesting possibility of comparing a ‘2013 vintage’ (quad-core Cortex-A7 at 28nm etc.) phablet solution with a ‘2012 vintage’ (dual core Cortex-A9 at 40nm LP etc.) one. In addition from a vendor (MediaTek) trying to agressively conquer the global market after the Greater China one by going against the global #1 heavyweight Samsung. Such an analysis would, no doubt, reveal quite interesting facts not only about the current state of the market but about the future market as well.
First here is an overall comparison video from India:
Micromax Canvas HD A116 VS Samsung Galaxy Grand – Gaming, Benchmarks, Camera, Performance, Display [intellectdigest YouTube channel, Feb 16, 2013]
Next there is a detailed specification comparison is in the table somewhat below.
Before that, however, note that to do such a comparison one needs to invest more than one day of time which shows quite well that in the consumer computing space customers will hardly be able to recognize the really deciding differentiators(in the same way as this happens with consumer products in general). I am particularly dismayed by the fact that even from such a table one will hardly recognize the most important differentiator that from power consumption point of view the Galaxy Grand is ways better that the Micromax A116 (440 hours of standby time vs. 174 hours, and 10 hours 10 minutes of talk time vs. 5 hours).
Then the display quality difference discussed first in the above video is far less than one would conclude from the below table (TFT LCD at 800×480 resolution on Grand and IPS at 1280×720 on Micromax A116) as evidenced by the excerpted video image included below (taken az [1:15] with A116 on the left and Grand on the right, for both the brightness set to maximum for the comparison). One of the reasons for that is the mDNIe (mobile Digital Natural Image engine) technology from Samsung going back to 2003 with TVs. In fact MediaTek just now came up with a kind of similar technology of its own (see in the end of Section 1) called MiraVision. Immediately after that (in the whole Section 2) I included all available material about both the mDNIe and its “parent from TVs”, DNIe in order to make possible to understand the maturity of Samsung solution vs. the MediaTek one. And there are definitely other “tricks” (additional layers etc.) which are also essential for making the Grand screen a true masterpice of display engineering.
Click on the image below or this link in order to go to a clickable version of the table!
Click on the image above or this link in order to go to a clickable version of the table!
Finally, in addition to the already mentioned first two sections of the detailed analysis there is a Section 3 in the end devoted to the Broadcom SoC technology used in the Samsung Galaxy Grand
More information for this introductory part:
– Micromax Canvas HD A116 [Micromax microsite, Feb 13, 2013]
– MediaTek High Performance Quad Core Solution Empowers Micromax A116 Canvas HD [MediaTek press release, Jan 22, 2013]
– Micromax Canvas HD demo Video [micromaxtube YouTube channel, Feb 19, 2013]
– Micromax launches Canvas HD to strengthen phablet leadership [Micromax press release, Jan 21, 2013]
… it is the ideal phone for the young generation who is always on the lookout for better, faster and savvier smart phones on the go!
Commenting on the launch and association with MediaTek, Mr. Deepak Mehrotra, Chief Executive Officer, Micromax said, “At Micromax, we constantly strive to innovate and develop great technological experiences for our consumers. Today’s launch marks our association with MediaTek to bring forth our first quad core phone in this segment, offering consumers a great user experience with latest features and added functionality.” He further added, “We are excited with the success of Canvas 2, which has clearly established Micromax as number one player in the new 5” phablet category in India. We are looking forward to similar success with the new phone being unveiled today.”
…
Speaking at the occasion, Dr. Finbarr Moynihan, General Manager – Business Development at MediaTek, said, “In less than 2 years of launching our first smartphone chipset, MediaTek’s shipments in this category have grown more than ten times, with 110 million units in 2012. As the world’s first commercialized quad-core Cortex-A7 SoC, the MT6589 is an innovative solution that accelerates product development, simplifies differentiation, and offers the best possible experience that mid to high-end smart device owners desire. Micromax shares our core philosophy of pushing the bar on innovation and bringing it within the reach of the masses. We are delighted that India’s leading youth mobile brand has chosen MediaTek to power its top-end mobile smartphones.”
…
About Micromax [the 12th largest handset manufacturer in the world]:
Micromax started as an IT software company in the year 2000 working on embedded platforms. In 2008, it entered mobile handset business and by 2010 it became one of the largest Indian domestic mobile handsets company by offering unique affordable innovations. … The brand’s product portfolio embraces more than 60 models today, ranging from feature rich, dual – SIM phones, 3G Android smartphones, tablets, LED televisions and data cards. The company has many firsts to its credit when it comes to the mobile handset market including the 30-day battery backup, dual SIM phones, QWERTY keypads, dual reception mode handsets, universal remote control mobile phones etc. Micromax has presence in more than 500 districts through 100,000 retail outlets in India. The company has global business presence spread across Hong Kong, Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri-Lanka, Maldives, UAE, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman, Afghanistan and Brazil.
– Samsung Galaxy Grand (i9082) full review hands on video [mobiscrub YouTube channel, Feb 4, 2013]
[2:06] The display of the Grand is a 5 inch Super Clear LCD with a resolution of 480 x 800 pixels. When compared to the Super AMOLED screen in the Galaxy Note II or the S III, the screen does look less saturated, however, color rendition is great & looks very natural. Wide viewing angles & good outdoor visibility lets you watch movies & read content easily. [2:42]
The Galaxy Grand camera is an 8 MP sensor with autofocus & LED Flash. The camera also features BIS (Backside Illumination Sensor) which basically takes great shots even in low light condition. The shutter speed of the Galaxy Grand camera is quite nice as well but not as fast as the Note II or the S III.
Much of the smart features in the Galaxy Grand resemble to those found in the S III & Note II such as: Multi window, Smart Rotation, Smart Stay, Smart Alert, Direct call & pop up play. Obviously there is no S Pen included with the Galaxy Grand, that differentiates from the smartphone beast, the Note II.
– Samsung GALAXY Grand [Samsung Mobile Press announcement, Dec 18, 2012]
– Samsung Unveiled GALAXY Grand [Samsung Tomorrow Global, Dec 18, 2012]
– Galaxy Grand GT-i9082 [Samsung India microsite, Jan 22, 2013]
– Samsung Galaxy Grand Redefines Smartphone Experience for All [Samsung India press release, Jan 22, 2013]
Even though it supports a massive 5.0″ screen with WVGA TFT display powered with mDNIe [mobile Digital Natural Image engine]technology, the device is incredibly slim and comes with an ergonomic design which makes is comfortable to hold. The vivid display provides an expansive viewing experience rendering messaging, multimedia and Web content in brilliant color and clarity.
Samsung GT-i9082 Galaxy Grand [Duos]
– Micromax Canvas HD A116 Detailed In Depth Video Review And Comparison With Galaxy Grand [Intellect Digest, Feb 17, 2013]
– List of Top 5 Phablets under Rs 20k – Feb 2013 [My PhoneFactor.in, Feb 20, 2013]
– Micromax A116 Canvas HD performance review vs. other quad-core phones [Thinkdigit, Feb 15, 2013]
Section 1 MT6589
Quad-Core Cortex-A7 1GHz+CPU Smartphone Platform [MediaTek product page, Dec 27, 2012]
Overview
The world’s first commercialized quad-core SoC available for mid to high end smartphone and tablets market
The Coolest quad core solution- MT6589 is the world’s first commercialized quad-core SoC (AP+BB) available for mid to high end smartphone and tablets market, the MT6589 integrates a power-efficient Cortex™-A7 CPU subsystem from ARM, PowerVR™ Series5XT GPU from Imagination Technologies, and MediaTek’s advanced multi-mode UMTS Rel. 8/HSPA+/TD-SCDMA modem. The MT6589 is delivered in advanced 28nm process technology, creating a universal platform that delivers powerful performance at a very competitive price.
Features
Innovative, Advanced Dual-SIM solution
Dual-SIM and Dual-Active functionality frees users to seamlessly make and receive calls on two SIM cards at the same time.
High-end Multimedia Capabilities
13MP camera with integrated ISP, 1080p playback and recording at 30fps, and enhanced image processing for DTV-grade image quality
Full HD (1920×1080) [1080p] LCD support for razor sharp visuals
Best-in-class MediaTek Technology
Integrated leading 4-in-1 connectivity combo, providing 802.11n Wi-Fi, BT4.0, GPS and FM radio
MT6589 – The Coolest Quad-Core SoC Platform – Thermal Benchmark [mediateklab YouTube channel, Dec 28, 2012]
See also:
– MediaTek Strengthens Global Position with World’s First Quad-Core Cortex-A7 System on a Chip – MT6589 [MediaTek press release, Dec 11, 2012]
MediaTek Inc., a leading fabless semiconductor company for wireless communications and digital multimedia solutions, announced the launch of the MT6589, the world’s first commercialized quad-core System on a Chip (SoC), available for mid to high-end Android smartphones and tablets worldwide. The new quad-core SoC integrates MediaTek’s advanced multi-mode UMTS Rel. 8/HSPA+/TD-SCDMA modem, a power-efficient quad-core Cortex™-A7 CPU subsystem from ARM, PowerVR™ Series5XT GPU from Imagination Technologies, and is delivered in 28nm process technology. As a leader in Dual-SIM technology, the MT6589 is also the world’s first HSPA+ smartphone platform supporting Dual-SIM, Dual-Active functionality to address increasing multi-SIM demand around the world. The integration of these compelling features makes the MT6589 a universal platform that delivers premium multimedia capabilities with extremely low power consumption for an outstanding user experience. It also enables handset makers to reduce time to market, simplify product development and manage product differentiation in a more cost effective way, for any market worldwide.
…
The MT6589 also supports Miracast™ technology for multi-screen content sharing and pre-integrates MediaTek’s leading 4-in-1 connectivity combo, which supports 802.11n Wi-Fi, BT4.0, GPS and FM.
…
The MediaTek MT6589 is currently being incorporated into smart devices by MediaTek’s leading global customers, and the first models based on this new chipset are expected to ship commercially in Q1 2013.
– Lenovo S3000 uses MediaTek quad-core ARM Cortex-A7 [Charbax YouTube channel, Feb 26, 2013]
– MediaTek Powers Lenovo’s Premium Multimedia IdeaTab S6000 Tablet [MediaTek press release, Feb 25, 2013]
This year, at Mobile World Congress, MediaTek’s quad core SoC will be powering three new Android tablets launched by Lenovo, led by the Lenovo IdeaTab S6000. Built on the Android 4.2 Jelly Bean operating system, the S6000 is a sleek (8.6mm) and light (560g), 10” tablet which leverages quad-core processing to deliver performance, connectivity, and clarity.
…
Jeffrey Ju, GM of Smartphone Business Unit of MediaTek. “Our aim is to democratize the smartphone market by enabling the smart ecosystem to make high performance products at affordable prices for the mainstream market. This in turn will be the catalyst for the smart age as customers will demand greater device integration to share and view their entertainment and information seamlessly across multiple screens – requiring a sophisticated smart ecosystem that only MediaTek’s SoC total solutions can drive.”
– How MediaTek helps lower mobile device power consumption? [mediateklab YouTube channel, Feb 24, 2013]
– MiraVision makes Full-HD support for mobile devices a reality to everyone [MediaTek press release, Feb 25, 2013]
MediaTek Inc., a leading fabless semiconductor company for wireless communications and digital multimedia solutions announced today the availability of “MiraVision,” the world’s most comprehensive suite of display picture quality technology, for its smartphone and tablet platforms.
The joint hardware and software suite of display picture quality technology – MiraVision – aims to strengthen Mediatek’s leading position in the smart age, where consumers can expect the same, high quality of the visual experience across various display resolutions. Leveraging MediaTek’s leading display picture quality technology developed in digital TV (DTV), MiraVision is designed to deliver seamless full high-definition display picture quality on mobile devices. It empowers handset and tablets makers to provide the best visual quality on the mobile platform with reduced time to market, simplified product development and differentiation for consumers everywhere.
MiraVision is equipped with specific features that enable users to enjoy DTV-grade display picture quality on their mobile devices. With MiraVision, contents will be displayed more vivid and saturated with more details, providing a far richer and more colorful viewing experience previously only available on a high-end DTV. Furthermore, specifically tailored for mobile devices, the all-important power efficiency has been addressed and boosted through the Ambient-Light Adaptive Luma (AAL) technology, which intelligently adjusts the panel backlight in response to the ambient light intensity and the displayed contents to simultaneously optimize battery life and viewing experience. The combination of enhanced sharpness, richer color and adaptive Luma technology means true seamless quality across multiple devices is closer than ever before.
“The future is more than just TVs or smartphones alone,” commented Jeffrey Ju, GM of Smartphone Business Unit of MediaTek, “our focus is on innovative solutions that enhance the chip, driving speed to market at premium performance up for our customers while ensuring the seamless cross-screen experience across the array of devices through which users are consuming entertainment and information. We are proud to be the one who can truly integrate technologies of DTV and mobile phones/tablets in the smart age, making the premium cross-screen experience real to everyone in every market.”
This background technology from MediaTek is also available to the MT6589 as evidenced by [2:00 – 3:00] time fragment of this recorded video (at [0:56] it is explicitly said: “Miravision engine which has been included in the new MT6589 quad-core SoC”):
MiraVision: world’s leading digital TV-grade picture-quality engine for mobile devices [mediateklab YouTube channel, Feb 24, 2013]
Section 2
Samsung mDNIe [mobile Digital Natural Image engine]
Into the New Wave – the Samsung Wave S8500 [samsungwave YouTube channel, Feb 14, 2010]
Mobile Digital Natural Image Engine – mDNIe [Read a tech, June 12, 2010]
Samsung Wave display features Samsung’s mDNIe – mobile Digital Natural Image engine technology, borrowed from Samsung’s latest LCD TV and LED TV products, says the company. The mDNIe technology is said to offer better viewing angles and “super fast response.” The Wave’s display is also touted for its tempered glass and anti-smudge surface.
From http://tvtonight.televisionshop.info/samsung-hl-s5087w-50-inch-1080p-dlp-hdtv-on-sale/
The Samsung Digital Natural Image engine (DNIe) Video Enhancer refines all analog NTSC and wideband video inputs for an overall improvement in picture quality. DNIe improves contrast, white level, picture detail and incorporates digital noise reduction to improve lower quality video inputs. The 3-line digital comb filter constantly analyzes the three dimensions of picture height, picture width, and picture changes-over-time to dramatically reduce edge image artifacts while improving transition detail. Samsung’s Cinema Smooth 3:2 pull-down film mode corrects for the artificial frames created when films are converted to DVDs. The result is a clearer image without the subtle motion artifacts caused by 24-to-30 frames per second video conversion.
Samsung’s DNIe™
Samsung’s DNIe™ technology offers digital perfection in naturally presented, crystal-clear images that uncover even the most minute detail.
Motion Optimizer: The visual data are automatically broken down into signal and noise and adjusted through a combined spatial/temporal process to eliminate noise and blurring without the slightest damage to the original signal. This guarantees the viewer a picture of astounding sharpness, whether the scene is still or moving.
Contrast Enhancer: DNIe has done away with the unwanted side-effects that conventional contrast enhancement can produce, such as noise boost-up and flicker by developing an algorithm that recognizes over 1 million criteria for applying contrast. Its detail contrast enhancement technology can automatically analyze up to 70,000 local images within a frame, treating the viewer to a picture rich in contrast even in the tiniest details.
Color optimizer: For each scene the color optimizer calculates the saturation of red, green, and blue in the input signal and adjusts it to the shades that the human eye accepts as natural. Even a conventional process like white tone enhancement produces more striking results when when used with DNIe. The end result is a palette of vivid hues and pure white tones to satisfy the most discerning viewers eye.
Detail enhancer: Many viewers complain of the unnatural effect that conventional uniform detail enhancement produces by relying on artificial amplification of the input signal. In contrast, DNIe automatically analyzes the portion to be amplified, detecting and re-processing any noise or defect to bring the viewer a startlingly sharp and lifelike image.
Samsung DNIe ‘Pixel’ [sangafilms YouTube channel, Dec 5, 2007]
“Nature created DNA, but SAMSUNG developed DNIe.” Samsung Electronics Unveils New “Natural Image” Technology for Digital TV [Samsung press release, April 2003]
– Digital TVs with new DNIe technology are being put on the world market. DNIe technology can be applied to all digital TV types—LCD, PDP, projection or CRT.
– The cleanest and most natural images are produced under all viewing conditions.
– Samsung, which leads the world market in color TVs, TFT-LCDs, and color monitors, aims to do the same with digital TVs.Samsung Electronics has developed the Digital Natural Image engine (DNIe) that greatly improves the clarity and detail of images reproduced by color TVs. The company expects its technology breakthrough to elevate the Samsung brand the top of the rapidly growing world digital TV market.
On April 29, Samsung Electronics held a briefing on the new DNIe technology and digital TV business strategy. On display were PDP, LCD, projection and cathode ray tube (CRT) models supported by DNIe, which offers far greater image detail than conventional digital TVs. Samsung Electronics began its research project to improve picture quality back in 1996 and implemented it in stages. The first prototype digital TV with DNIe was ready last December. The technology can be used with all types of digital TVs to re-create natural colors that truly please. Last year, Samsung sold more color TVs than any other manufacturer, and now the company is ready to do the same in the digital TV market.
DNIe technology optimizes the moving picture image and color, while the contrast ratio and fine details are amplified. These four processes automatically and precisely capture broadcast signals in all formats, from analog to high definition. This high clarity, high detail image technology provides the best possible picture quality under all conditions.
Last December, Samsung Electronics completed development of the four processes. The next four months were applying the new technology to CRT TVs (29”-32”), DLP projection TVs (43” to 61”), CRT projection TVs (43” to 52”) PDP TVs (42” to 63”) and LCD TVs (32” to 40”) and commercializing the new products.
Significance of New DNIe Technology
Samsung Electronics’ high clarity, high detail image technology is the product of a determined effort to improve picture quality. This approach is far more than a simple picture improvement based on analog signal reception. Rather, the new technology produces complete image quality; any signal input comes out cleaner and more natural.
DNIe can completely eliminate blurring from movement or image prolongation. A deep contrast can also be achieved. What is more, the finest detail appears sharp, while the vivid natural color is most pleasing to the eye.
The Samsung Electronics briefing clearly demonstrated the superiority of the company’s latest technology over conventional technology. The company has received 85 foreign and domestic patents related to DNIe, including a basic technology patent for contrast reproduction.
DNIe Technology in a Nutshell
Samsung’s unique DNIe technology encompasses four functions that analyze all signal input, from analog to high definition, in stages. The volume of noise in the signal is detected and the signal level is classified according into analog, SD or HD and then optimized accordingly.
Motion Optimizer: Processes Noise More Completely than Ever Before
This noise processing technology integrates temporal and spatial concepts to ensure clear images even when the motion is very fast.
Contrast Enhancer: For a Deeper Contrast
This technology employs a contrast ratio of one million or more and a new algorithm that can reproduce the optimal contrast to provide a deep and rich image quality.
Detail Enhancer: Complete Images, True to the Finest Detail
A vastly improved technology for automatically analyzing the picture signal reproduces images in amazing detail, resulting in more lifelike video.
Color Optimizer: Vivid, Natural Colors
The video signals being generated are analyzed and the quantities of reds, greens and blues are calculated to provide the colors most natural to the human eye.
Samsung DNIe [tnbtsingapore YouTube channel, Aug 12, 2010]
FAQs: What is DNIe [Samsung, Oct 10, 2012]
Samsung’s Digital Natural Image engine (DNIe TM) is a set of four advanced image processing technologies that makes digital TVs, including various types of displays such as LCD, PDP, projection, and CRT, produce the clearest, most detailed, and yet most natural-looking images ever.
The four technologies used by DNIe are:
Motion Optimiser: eliminates noise, even in moving pictures
Contrast Enhancer: increases the contrast
Detail Enhancer: sharpens pictures and makes details visible
Color Optimiser: provides natural and vibrant colours
The secret of DNIe TM begins with an Intelligent Analyser that analyses any kind of input signal to optimise the picture quality. By analysing the frequency characteristics of the input signal, the Analyser automatically detects the amount of noise in the signal, identifies the source level as analogue, SD, or HD, and even determines whether it has been scaled.
Through this analysis of the input signal at the first stage of the DNIe TM process, the Intelligent Analyser ensures that the optimal adjustments is made throughout the remaining four stages to the production of the final output.
DNIe technology is not only suitable for all usual input signals for television reception today, such as analogue, cable, satellite and digital, it also works with the input signals of DVD, camcorders and game computers.
DNIeTM R&D History
Progress in picture quality enhancement has been achieved through sustained research and investment at Samsung, beginning in 1996 with an independent project. In 1997, Samsung’s project developed a noise reduction function for the image enhancement of CRT TVs.
In 2000, Samsung embarked on a new picture quality enhancement project and confirmed its potential for production. By 2001, the fruits of these research efforts had laid the technological foundations for the birth of Samsung’s full-fledged image enhancement algorithm.
In March 2002, the basic version of Samsung’s unique DNIe technology was ready. At last it was possible to obtain optimal picture quality with signals ranging from RF all the way up to HD. The development of DNIe was completed by 2002, and early 2003 this radical new technology caught the eye of the world in a successful demo at a show in Las Vegas.
For more information on (DNIe) Digital Natural Image engine click Here
DNIe – Digital Natural Image engine [Birds-Eye.Net, Apr 3, 2011]
DNIe, or Digital Natural Image engine, is a “natural image” technology introduced by Samsung in 2003. Originally developed as part of a concerted effort by Samsung to improve television picture quality on non-high-definition-televisions, the DNIe chip is now used in Samsung’s plasma and high definition televisions (HDTV). DNIe makes input signals sharper, clearer and more lifelike. Its advanced image processors help to create true-to-life colors and high contrast, while pretty much eliminating digital artifacts.
DNIe offers better detail than conventional televisions by using four proprietary processes that optimize and enhance image quality and sound: a Motion Optimizer that is a noise processing technology used to eliminate blurring and noise in fast moving images and thus producing a more natural-looking motion; a Contrast Enhancer that offers rich details and image quality through brightness and contrast levels that are enhanced for deeper, richer blacks with greater detail, and more natural whites; a Detail Enhancer that automatically analyzes the picture signal elements in order to produce sharper detail, clearer image separation and more natural edge transition; and a Color Optimizer that analyzes the video signals being generated so that the quantities of reds, greens, and blues are calculated to provide colors with a more lifelike realism, where whites are more accurate, and skin tones are given a more natural hue. DNIe also offers Samsung’s patented “My Color Control” technology that the user to control specific colors without affecting the whole screen, providing six color-control selections: white, red, pink, yellow, green and blue, so the user can adjust a color to their liking.
Other Related Definitions for DNIe
“The secret of DNIe TM begins with an Intelligent Analyzer that analyzes any kind of input signal to optimize the picture quality. By analyzing the frequency characteristics of the input signal, the Analyzer automatically detects the amount of noise in the signal, identifies the source level as analogue, SD, or HD, and even determines whether it has been scaled.” [Samsung]
“The SAMSUNG DNIe vision is an image enhancement algorithm with remarkable engines that work in tandem and individually to improve the visual quality. This technology from SAMSUNG that spells the end of conventional television.” [Samsung]
“SAMSUNG’s DNIe Pro (Digital Natural Image engine) ensures the clearest, most natural images imaginable. Colour and motion are optimised and the contrast and detail are enhanced to ensure unprecedented image quality.” [Samsung]
“Samsung’s proprietary technology, DNIe – Digital Natural Image engine – is the secret to stunning HDTV picture quality. DNIe optimizes six different elements of image quality such as color balance, sharpness, and motion to reproduce the most life-like and vibrant picture throughout Samsung’s broad portfolio.” [Samsung]
“DNIe generally improves most HD and DVD content with a few exceptions, but it’s a mixed bag with NTSC sources. Many HD and DVD images are made sharper with DNIe, contrast is improved, and color accuracy is enhanced in many scenes.” [Extremetech.com]
“DNIe is Samsung’s image “enhancement” engine…On the surface these claims sound great, but on closer examination most of these features are either impossible (6 times density enhancer) or undesirable (dynamic contrast ratio). For every image DNIe makes better there are two images that it makes worse. There is no way these sets can hold a calibration with DNIe enabled. If accuracy is desired DNIe should be turned off and left off. On the HLP DNIe can be easily disabled in the user menu. It should be noted that there are a few models of Samsung DLPs (notably the HLR series) that have DNIe permanently enabled. Before purchasing a Samsung display I would make sure that DNIe can be toggled from the user menus.” [Gadgetbench.com]
“DNIe is a video enhancer that makes the picture more colorful and lifelike. You can tell too. In the DNIe product demo, the screen is split – one side shows natural footage, the other shows DNIe enhanced footage. The difference is remarkable. The natural footage is boring and robbed of color while the DNIe footage is bright and crisp. The user controls when DNIe is used, which is good because not everyone will want enhanced video all the time – like an editor previewing footage to see what color correction is required.” [Matthew Torres]
Links Related to DNIe
Nature created DNA, but SAMSUNG developed DNIe – Samsung Electronics Unveils New “Natural Image” Technology for Digital TV
What is DNIe? – Digital Natural Image engine
Technical Resources for DNIe
Feel the DNIe – Video demo of DNIe and Technical Information
Blogs about DNIe
Samsung Village – Official Samsung blog for news and inside stories
Books about DNIe
Digital Video and HD, Second Edition: Algorithms and Interfaces (The Morgan Kaufmann Series in Computer Graphics) – by by Charles A. Poynton
Global Marketing Management – by Kiefer Lee and Steve Carter
Other DNIe Related Books
Section 3
Smartphone HSPA+ Platform (from 2013 Products of Broadcom [Feb 8, 2013]):
- BCM28145: 720p 4G HSPA+ Smartphone Processor
-
BCM28155: 1080p 4G HSPA+ Smartphone Processor
Broadcom CEO Discusses Q4 2012 Results – Earnings Call Transcript [Seeking Alpha, Jan 29, 2013]
Scott A. McGregor – Chief Executive Officer, President and Director
Samsung launched the Galaxy Grand, Grand Duos, and Galaxy S2 Plus, leveraging our complete Android platform, which includes our 3G cellular SOC and wireless connectivity.
We also have more than 40 designs in process in China on our turnkey reference platforms. Our technology mix is trending to HSPA+ dual core application processors and additional connectivity, features which command a meaningful ASP premium.
The Galaxy Grand, for example, includes Broadcom’s dual core SOC NFC controller, connectivity combo with built-in WiFi, Bluetooth and FM, RF transceiver, power management, and GPS.
From Broadcom Corp. – Analyst/Investor Day, December 6, 2012 (slides from here)
Robert Americo Rango, Executive Vice President and General Manager of Broadcom’s Mobile and Wireless Group:
Broadcom’s focus is on 3G and 4G. The reason we’re focused on 3G is because we see the 3G market continuing to grow. We see it being very important for emerging markets. And we see the 3G market taking over the feature phone market going forward. So for emerging markets, our focus is on 3G. And then the 4G market, of course, for developing regions like the U.S. Big investment in 4G, a lot of progress to report, and I’ll get into this in my presentation. So focused on both because these — this is where the growth is, and this is where the action is in the market.
So 2 years ago, we had one 3G smartphone SoC. That was the 21553. And you can see that’s the 7.2-megabit modem, single-core device. It could address screen sizes, say, from 3 to 3.5 inches. And this was the device that last year I talked about that powered the Samsung GALAXY Y, which was one of the most popular smartphones in India. Now, over the last year, we added 2 chips that we announced earlier this year, the 21654 and the 28145. We switched from 65-nanometer to 40-nanometer, and we went from single core to dual core. So — and you can see that it helped us address a bigger part of the market. We were able to move up to the 4- to 5-inch phone screen size.
Now today, with the announcement of the 21664 and extension of the 28145 to the 28155, we now have a full family of solutions on 3G. We can cover anything from 3 inch, all the way up to 7 to 10-inch, which would be a tablet. More interesting actually is the 5 to 7-inch category, because the phablet is growing at a 93% compounded average growth rate. And phablets turn out to be one of the biggest growth areas for phones in Asia, okay? So Broadcom has the ability now to address this entire market. And again, why is that important? Because once a customer invests in one of these chips and picks up the Broadcom software suite for one, it can quickly be applied to an entire family of products.
Now, again, 3G market is very competitive. We all know that 3G is probably the most competitive segment out there. The reason that we can win is because we have a family of devices here that offer different feature points, different cost points and allow us to make money at these various cost points, okay? So a full range of 3G for all of the segments is now complete.
Now, let me highlight one other point. So 82% of the volume is in this 5-inch and below, but I did mention the phablet being an important segment.
Now, let me highlight our multimedia capability. I just wanted to compare the 28155 on the right to the HTC One X on the left. So HTC One X is a phone you can buy today. HTC One X is the phone that has been touted to have a lot of multimedia capability, world-class imaging, world-class image signal processing. This is the post-processing that goes on, on the pictures to make the pictures look good. A console gaming capability, good browsing experience, a 720 HD screen, Miracast capability that I just described to you, this ability to beam videos from your phone to a TV as well as Wi-Fi Direct. All these are the multimedia capabilities touted by the HTC One X.
Now last year, I talked about the economics of the chips that we were announcing. For those of you who were here, I talked about how Broadcom’s ability to integrate with — change the economics of the smartphone business. And here’s a perfect example of how it changed it, okay? So HTC One X, tear it apart, what do you see inside? Three different chips. A thin modem chip, a quad-core application processor, discrete application processor, and a discrete ISP chip.
Tear apart one of our 28155 phones, what do you see inside? One chip, integrated modem, application processor, graphics and ISP. Okay. So I told you I would exemplify the power of the 28155, and I wanted to talk today about Samsung’s — Samsung is going to be announcing a series of phones based on Broadcom’s 28155 dual core HSPA+. I’m holding the first one in my hand. This is the GALAXY S II Plus, okay? And again if you look go back and look at the GALAXY S II, you’ll see a similar architecture, GALAXY S II Plus, based on 28155, is based on the Broadcom chip, the integrated chip. So those economics that I was talking to you about, they come to play right here with the Samsung GALAXY S II Plus. And in fact, there’s a series of phones that Samsung will be putting out based on the 28155 over the next couple of quarters.
So and then beyond that, what have we done in 2012? We’re working on customer diversity. And in order to achieve customer diversity in today’s 3G market, you need what’s called a turnkey device, a turnkey design. And you might ask what’s the difference between a turnkey and a reference design? Well, a turnkey is something that can quickly be put into production by a customer. So I’m holding up Broadcom’s 28155 turnkey design. And you can see it’s very thin, it’s very light, it’s the kind of phone that you’d want to carry with you. We have a design file that we can offer a customer. And it can reduce their investment from 6 to 9 months of time, down to 30 to 60 days. Where it used to take 200 to 300 engineers to put a design in production, now it’s something like 20 to 30 engineers because we’ve done the turnkey design. And this design is so complete, we have second-sourced the major components, the panel, the sensor, the memory, and we picked suppliers that are favorite suppliers for companies in China who are really building, taking advantage of these turnkeys. So what we’re doing is we’re enabling our handset companies to focus on what they do best, brand and distribution, and we focus on what we do best, which is engineering execution, okay? And we now have turnkeys for 21654, which is our single-core device, 40-nanometer single core; 21664, which is the part we just announced yesterday, which is our low-cost dual-core device, HSPA+ capable; and our 28155, which is what I’m holding up right now, which is our high-end dual core HSPA+ device. Okay.
So a lot of activity has been spawned by this — by these turnkeys and, again, this is a capability we’ve put in place in 2012. So it’s hard to measure the progress yet, but I tried to do that with this chart. And you can see, even in the short time that we’ve had the turnkey capability in place, the number of designs have gone up significantly, almost threefold. So significant number of designs that are currently going on, 15 from last year to 44. So you can see the power of the turnkey design because it enables companies — handset companies, to quickly adopt our platforms.
So talk some more about our expanding cellular SoC share. If you focus on that first row now, those are the phones that I’d like to highlight. Of course, I just mentioned the Samsung GALAXY S II, and I mentioned that there’ll be a series of phones based on Broadcom’s 28155 dual core HSPA+ coming from Samsung. The other phones you see here, GALAXY Chat, GALAXY Music, GALAXY Pocket Plus, are the beginning of a series of phones that are coming out on our single core HSPA+ device. And I’d also like to point to some of these interesting carrier-branded phones, okay? Kind of a blessing our 3G technology in the world’s biggest carriers: T-Mobile, with Concord, this is our first 3G phone in the U.S. market; Vodafone, with the Smart II and Orange. All phones based on Broadcom 3G SoCs, okay? And then all the phones in the bottom row, all in production still, all rolling along with our first 3G SoC, that’s the 21553 that I talked to you about last year. Samsung GALAXY Y is still selling like gangbusters along with a number of these Samsung smartphones in the developing countries, okay? So a lot of progress on 3G. And you can see a number of Chinese vendors on the chart, TCL, ZTE, G’FIVE, Sprocomm. Those are all customers and certainly, there’s other customers in China now working on our turnkey designs.
So exemplifying that growth we have in the 3G space, this chart shows that from Q3 2011, Q3 2012, we grew our 3G business 500%. Pretty big growth. More important to me though, is the market share that we command. You can see that Strategy Analytics has now recognized that Broadcom has 15% of the 3G/4G Android smartphone SoC ecosystem, okay? 15%. And we haven’t started shipping our 4G LTE solution yet, okay? So again, significant market share gains over the last 24 months in the most important ecosystem for us, which is Android, 15% market share.
… roughly 15 different customers that make up that 44. And if you talk about when products hit the market, I mean, I think, they’re starting — they’re going to start hitting the market in — over the next 3 months. …
… you’re asking, should I worry about the vertical integration at Samsung? And I think anything Samsung does on vertical integration only applies to one segment of their business. I mean, if you look at Samsung’s business, it’s very broad. Everything from entry-level smartphones, midrange 3G smartphones, 4G smartphones, they have a very broad portfolio. In order for them to make money in all these areas, they need chips that are optimized for each one of those segments. And I think I exemplified that with the 28155 for the GALAXY S II Plus. So I think the risk of vertical integration is kind of overblown because you just need to apply the best solution to the particular class of product you’re building. …
… we see Wi-Fi changing very rapidly and it will change even in the China market. So we don’t see the need to go integrate it. We believe the idea of having a connectivity island and a SoC island with app processor graphics and cellular modem, is the right partitioning for the next couple of years. …
My question is, I guess, is do you think your timing — it seems like now, you’ll really going to hit the market, 2014 is when you get any significant revenues. Is that — are you going to really miss out on the profit pools while you’re fighting it out at the — with MediaTek at the midrange and low-end, meanwhile your good buddies in Southern California capture all this profit and then use that to attack you elsewhere?
… if you look at the 3G space, it’s a lot more than just China. Right? I mean, I just showed you all the different phones from Samsung that are still coming out on 3G. So I do not believe that there’s not money to be made in 3G. Okay? Having said that, a big investment in 4G, absolutely recognize the importance. We’re moving very fast we have a big R&D investment in 4G. We think we’re going to get there in time to hit the sweet spot of the 4G market. And 4G will last for many years to come.
Can you talk a little bit about your position on the RF side of the equation? You’re building full turnkey solutions now, there’s a lot of complexity on the RF side of the handset and whether you have the applicable tool kit to do more integration on that side.
That’s an easy question because we have one of the world’s most capable RF teams in Broadcom. Broadcom pioneered CMOS RF, implementing RF in CMOS. And you can — as witnessed by our patent portfolio, which is second to none. We have a very capable team. The team has built RF chips for all of our devices. And I mentioned earlier that we sell more wireless chips with integrated RF than any company on the planet. So I’m very confident in the capabilities. They are doing the RF for all of our complete platforms that I showed you. So whether it’s 21553, 21654, 21664, 28155, those are complemented with Broadcom RF internal, 100% Broadcom IP. And again over the course of time, we can integrate all these IP into a single chip. That’s the reason these big OEMs, these big handset OEMs want to work with Broadcom because they know eventually all these connectivity pieces will integrate into a single connectivity island, and same thing with the baseband island.
As it relates to the wins that you had earlier this year with the single-core platform like let’s say for example going into Samsung, I think the rough dollar content is about $10 to $12. Because you’re not only supplying the baseband, you’re supplying the power management, RF, integrated connectivity. And I think you’ve told us before that as the team moves to the dual-core platform, very similar to the GALAXY S II plus announcement today, that it’s roughly about a $7 to $9 increase in dollar content. So first question is, is that still the case?
I think you’re asking is can our dual core — our 28155, for example, which is our high-end dual core, okay. As I mentioned, this is part that has integrated ISP. That’s the same ISP engine that Nokia used for their 41-megapixel camera that’s on board our 28155 device. We also have very high-end graphics on that device. The graphics on Broadcom 28155 rivals lot of the 4G SOCs that are out there. In fact, it surpasses a number of them, okay. So when you compare the price of that to the single core, absolutely the price delta would be in the range that you mentioned, okay, the ASP uplift.
And then the second question is, as a team rolls out the turnkey solution, my sense is that there is still a lot of customization that has to be done on the software and the firmware set for your customers.
… the idea behind the turnkey is not to have a lot of customization. The way that a company — a handset company could take advantage of our turnkey is to perhaps change the color, perhaps change the idea a little bit, but not change it. And that’s really what’s important. So there isn’t a lot of customization needed. We do all of the Android integration, all the tests. And we make sure all of the Android certification tests pass when we deliver that turnkey design. So if somebody wanted to put their own skin on top of it, we could do that, but would really prefer when it comes to the turnkey that they don’t touch anything, that they use this as their experience phone, if you will.
12 months from now, most of the growth of the smartphone market is coming from emerging markets, much lower-end mix, can you help me understand how that impacts the content, the pricing, the competitive landscape, the profitability? Is that China market really going to be it’s a Broadcom turnkey solution or it’s a MediaTek turnkey solution and whoever has that turnkey solution wins it all?
… first of all, every handset company, any smartphone handset company is — are spinning their 3G offerings today. So in order to — for them to take advantage of the growth in 3G, they’re all having to reduce their costs. They are all having to move to more integrated solutions. So I don’t see it as just a China play, okay. So I see it’s a worldwide event. And that certainly in China, I think the turnkey does help significantly because if you look at Tier 2s and Tier 3s in China, they don’t have as much engineering resource. So I do think it’s a big swing, an advantage to have a full turnkey and be able to supply this multi-sourcing capability to those Chinese customers. But again, the 3G turnover is going to happen across the world, not just in China.
SUPPLEMENTAL CONTENT:
Source: Broadcom 2012 Analyst Day Supplemental Content, Dec 6, 2012
BCM28145/28155
Dual Core 720p/1080p HSPA+ Baseband Processors [Broadcom product page, Feb 24, 2012]
The BCM28145/BCM28155 HSPA+ baseband processors are highly integrated high-performance dual-core CPUs implemented in a cost effective 40 nm LP process that squarely targets today’s power-conscious mobile platforms. These devices, combined with their complete reference platform, provide system designers with everything needed to bring next-generation mobile devices to market while also providing an extremely flexible platform for application, video, and multimedia developers.
BCM28145/BCM28155 devices integrate high performance dual-core ARM® Cortex-A9 processors, each with a NEON floating-point SIMD processing engine. A powerful 2D/3D graphics engine, the latest audio codecs, and advanced video and image processing capabilities are all delivered by the integrated Broadcom VideoCore-IV® technology.
Features
Advanced 2G/3G modem with support for 21/5.8 Mbps HSPA+ and Class 33 EDGE
Advanced applications processing subsystem
– Dual ARM cortex-A9 processors with NEON extensions, up to 1.2 GHz per core
– VideoCore-IV multimedia and imaging processor
– Support for 20-Mpixel imaging, 720p (28145) /1080p (28155) video capture and playback, and accelerated 2D/3D graphics
– Full integration of audio subsystemHigh performance memory and peripheral interfaces
– 400 MHz LPDDR2 memory interface (single-28145, dual-28155)
– High-speed e.MMC/SD/SDIO and NAND interfaces
– CPI and MIPI® CSI-2 and MIPI DPI-2, DBI-B and DBI-C DSI serial camera and display interfaces
Source: Broadcom 2012 Analyst Day Supplemental Content, Dec 6, 2012
See also:
– Broadcom Introduces New Platforms Optimized for Android ‘Ice Cream Sandwich’ Smartphones [Broadcom press release, Feb 27, 2012]
Single and Dual Core Processors with VideoCore® Technology Provide Premium Android Experience
…
Broadcom’s new family of 3G platforms will enable handset OEMs to affordably deliver a premium Android 4.0 user experience across multiple smartphone product tiers. The Broadcom® BCM21654G features a 1 GHz ARM Cortex A9 processor, an integrated 7.2/5.8 Mbps HSPA modem and low-power VGA video support. The BCM28145 and BCM28155 include dual ARM Cortex A9 cores up to 1.3 GHz, 21/5.8 Mbps HSPA+ modems and HD 720p and 1080p, video respectively. All three chips were developed in an advanced, low power 40 nanometer process technology and are complemented by radio frequency (RF), power management unit (PMU) and an advanced connectivity suite for a complete system solution.
All three platforms are sampling to customers and expected to be in production in the second half of 2012.
Optimized for Superior Android 4.0 ICS Smartphones:
Broadcom’s industry-leading VideoCore technology offers a ‘third processing core’ to offload the application processor, enriching the Ice Cream Sandwich user experience with the industry’s lowest power HD playback and camcorder capabilities up to 1080p.
Low latency memory and bus architecture boosts overall system performance for a highly responsive user interface.
Highest quality imaging is provided by Broadcom’s latest Image Signal Processor (ISP) that supports cameras up to 42 megapixels, with very low light capabilities and wide dynamic range for the sharpest images.
From Broadcom Corp. – Analyst/Investor Day, December 14, 2011
Robert Americo Rango, Executive Vice President and General Manager of Broadcom’s Mobile and Wireless Group:
… Broadcom has been investing for many years, actually, since 2004 when we did an acquisition, in graphics. In fact, we call it VideoCore, and that, it’s maybe a misnomer, it should be called MediaCore because this dedicated IP block does graphics, it does image signal processing. When your image comes off the camera, you need to post-process it, that’s called image signal processing, okay? And it does video. So you can’t do those functions well with standard application processors. You need to do that with dedicated hardware, dedicated customized hardware, and that’s called VideoCore.
Source: Broadcom 2011 Analyst Day, Dec 14, 2011
Now let’s see how we do versus the industry’s competition. One of the most recognized benchmarks that’s out there is called Taiji. It’s the OpenGL ES 2.0 benchmark most people will recognize as benchmark, as a very important benchmark. And what you see here is Broadcom versus Qualcomm versus TI. In fact, this TI chip, I think, is running the latest version of some of Ice Cream Sandwich phones that are out there. And you can see that Broadcom’s VideoCore is able to render over 50 frames a second while some of the competition can barely get to 30. And in fact, just another data point comparing Broadcom VideoCore 4, all this — again, this is a fair comparison because it’s comparing what’s in production to what’s in production. Our VideoCore 4 is in production in many different Nokia phones, smartphones. And Nokia’s multimedia experience is widely considered to be one of the best. Now comparing VideoCore 4, which again is in production, to one of Imagination’s latest IP cores, we’re 1/2 the power and 2x the performance.
So some of our competitors don’t have this IP. They go often license it from a company like Imagination. It sounds good on paper until you have a problem. And a customer calls you up and says, “Hey, this game, this Modern Warfare 3 won’t run,” and that company has to go call Imagination. Okay, Broadcom doesn’t have to do that. We’re a one-stop shop. All this IP that I’m talking about is owned and within Broadcom so I can walk down the hall, knock on the engineer’s door and say, “What were you thinking when you designed this?” and I usually get an answer very quickly. And I think that’s the respect we have with our customers, okay? We have the IP in-house. Okay, so the industry’s best graphics performance and power consumption. …
Broadcom Announces 1080p Multimedia Processor with Breakthrough Mobile Power-Performance [Broadcom press release, Dec 15, 2009]
New Broadcom® BCM2763 VideoCore® IV Processor Features 1080p Video, 20 Megapixel Photos and 1 Gigapixel Graphics in an Ultra-Low Power 40 Nanometer Design
Broadcom Corporation (Nasdaq: BRCM), a global leader in semiconductors for wired and wireless communications, today announced its next generation multimedia processor that delivers industry leading performance and lower power in the top multimedia categories for mobile devices. Using 40 nanometer (40nm) CMOS process technology, the new Broadcom® BCM2763 VideoCore® IV multimedia processor provides even higher integration, smaller footprint size and lower power consumption than 65nm designs.
With the higher integration and significant power savings from 40nm CMOS process technology, the BCM2763multimedia processor features the most advanced mobile high definition (HD) camcorder and video playback, up to 20 megapixel digital camera and photo image processing, and 1 gigapixel 2D/3D graphics rendering for a world-class gaming experience. HD video, 3D games and high resolution 20 megapixel pictures can be displayed at top quality on full-sized HD televisions and monitors using an on-chip industry standard HDMI interface. Additionally, the BCM2763‘s highly integrated architecture reduces bill-of-materials (BOM) cost to help drive sophisticated multimedia features into more affordable handsets.
Highlights/Key Facts:
The breadth and quality of Internet multimedia content is rapidlyimproving, with sites such as YouTube now supporting full HD 1080p video sharing. Consumers are also increasingly using cell phones as their primary digital camera and camcorder, which is driving demand for higher resolution and more sophisticated image processing which is currently only available on advanced standalone camcorders and cameras. Additionally, newer graphics-oriented user interfaces and mobile games now require enhanced graphics capabilities.
The new Broadcom BCM2763 VideoCore IV multimedia processor enables best-in-class performance in the following areas:
Full HD 1080p camcorder capabilities in a cell phone with significantly improved quality over current generation handsets (which generally have VGA or lower resolution camcorders).
Up to 20 megapixel digital camera with advanced features such as multiple shots per second, image stabilization, face and smile detection and panorama mode.
The ability to render mobile games natively at up to 1080p resolution, which in combination with an on-board HDMI output, allows a console-quality gaming experience on large screen HDTVs.
In addition to providing these capabilities on new handsets, the BCM2763 has improved power savings using a 40nm process without draining the battery or significantly reducing talk time. Additional ultra-low power consumption features include:
20% to 50% power reduction in comparison to the prior generation Videocore III multimedia processor.
4 to 6 hours of 1080p video recording and 8 to 10 hours of mobile playback, with up to 16 hours of full HD playback over HDMI given sufficient handset storage.
Only 490 mW of chip power is required for 1080p camcorder H.264 High Profile encoding and only 160 mW for 1080p playback.
Only 160 mW of power is required for mobile game graphics processing, supporting up to 1 gigapixel per second fill rates and improves graphics performance by a factor of 4x to 6x in comparison to the prior generation Videocore III multimedia processor.
The BCM2763 processor integrates the key functionality and components needed to drive advanced multimedia capabilities in new handsets. As a result of this high integration, the BCM2763 enables a lower overall BOM cost, enabling manufacturers to pass these lower costs on and introduce advanced features to lower tier phones than previously possible.
The BCM2763 integrates the functions of eight chips including GPU and graphics memory, image signal processing (ISP) and ISP memory, video processing and video memory, HDMI and USB 2.0. 128MB of LPDDR2 graphics memory is stacked in a single package.
The 40nm process enables reduced power, improved performance and reduced handset board space.
Benefiting from an existing VideoCore software code base and legacy architecture, manufacturers of phones and other consumer electronics devices can easily add these new VideoCore IV multimedia features to their products, allowing faster time-to-market.
The BCM2763 is currently sampling to early access customers (pricing available upon request). Handsets utilizing this new 40nm VideoCore IV multimedia processor technology are expected to reach the market in 2011.
Supporting Quotes:
Mark Casey, Vice President & General Manager, Broadcom’s Mobile Multimedia line of business.
“VideoCore IV is setting new benchmarks for performance, power consumption and affordability and is poised to drive advanced multimedia capabilities into new tiers of handsets. Supported by our comprehensive line of complementary cellular and connectivity solutions, our multimedia processor technology is the right choice for next generation mobile designs.”
Subscribe to RSS Feed: Broadcom Mobile Platforms Group
About Broadcom
Broadcom Corporation is a major technology innovator and global leader in semiconductors for wired and wireless communications. Broadcom products enable the delivery of voice, video, data and multimedia to and throughout the home, the office and the mobile environment. We provide the industry’s broadest portfolio of state-of-the-art system-on-a-chip and software solutions to manufacturers of computing and networking equipment, digital entertainment and broadband access products, and mobile devices. These solutions support our core mission: Connecting everything®.
Broadcom is one of the world’s largest fabless semiconductor companies, with 2008 revenue of $4.66 billion, and holds over 3,650 U.S. and over 1,450 foreign patents, more than 7,750 additional pending patent applications, and one of the broadest intellectual property portfolios addressing both wired and wireless transmission of voice, video, data and multimedia.
A FORTUNE 500® company, Broadcom is headquartered in Irvine, Calif., and has offices and research facilities in North America, Asia and Europe. Broadcom may be contacted at +1.949.926.5000 or at www.broadcom.com.
Linux client market share gains outside the Android? Instead of gains will it shrink to 5% in the next 3 years?
The Linux Foudation quite proundly referred to ReadWriteMobile: The ‘Year of the Linux Desktop’? That’s So 2012 [Feb 3, 2013]
For those Linux enthusiasts still pining for the mythical “Year of the Linux Desktop,” the wait is over. In fact, it already happened. In 2012 Microsoft’s share of computing devices fell to 20% from a high of 97% as recently as 2000, as a Goldman Sachs report reveals [”Clash of the titans” downloadable from here, dated Dec 7, 2012]. While Apple has taken a big chunk of Microsoft’s Windows lead, it’s actually Google that plays Robin Hood in the operating system market, now claiming 42% of all computing devices with its free “Linux desktop” OS, Android.
Read more at ReadWriteMobile.
from which I will include here the following chart:
for which Goldman Sachs commented as:
The compute landscape has undergone a dramatic transformation over the last decade with consumers responsible for the massive market realignment. While PCs were the primary internet connected device in 2000 (139mn shipped that year), today they represent just 29% of all internet connected devices (1.2bn devices to ship in 2012), while smartphones and tablets comprise 66% of the total. Further, although Microsoft was the leading OS provider for compute devices in 2000 at 97% share, today the consumer compute market (1.07bn devices) is led by Android at 42% share, followed by Apple at 24%, Microsoft at 20% and other vendors at 14%.
Note from Goldman Sachs: Microsoft has gone from 97 percent share of compute market to 20 percent [The Seattke Times Dec 7, 2012]:
I asked Goldman Sachs about what happened in the 2004-2005 time frame — as seen in the above chart — that made Apple’s vendor share jump, Microsoft’s share plummet and the “other” category to go from zero to 29 percent. Goldman Sachs replied that it has to do with more mainstream adoption of non-PC consumer computing devices but declined to elaborate beyond that.
Microsoft was put into the “Challenged” category (along with Google BTW) by Golmann Sachs noting that:
… we estimate that Microsoft would have to sell roughly 5 Windows Phones or roughly two Windows 8 RT tablets to offset the loss of one traditional Windows PC sale, which we estimate has an overall blended selling price of $60 for business and consumer.
but a kind of more positive than negative outlook was predicted for the company by
… we expect the recent launches of Windows Phone 8 and Windows 8 tablets to help the company reclaim some share in coming years.
Apple, at the same time, was into the “Beneficiaries” category (along with Facebook and Samsung BTW) by Goldmann Sachs for the reason of:
… we believe loyalty to the company’s ecosystem is only increasing and this should translate into continued growth going forward. In particular, we see the potential for Apple to capture additional growth as existing iOS users move to multiple device ownership and as the company penetrates emerging regions with new devices such as the iPad miniAAPL and lower priced iPhones. As a result, we believe Apple’s market share in phones has room to rise much further, and that its dominant tablet market share appears to be more resilient than most expect. We expect these factors to continue to drive the stock higher.
This is, however, not going to happen if taking a judgement from the stock market reflections since then with 13.7% drop in Apple’ share price vs. that of Dec 7 (the report publishing date) and a whopping 34.5% drop vs. its last peak on Sept 19, 2012 (at $702.1):
source: Yahoo! Finance
Why Did $AAPL Stock Go Down After Beating Earnings Estimates And $AMZN Stock Go Up After Missing? [Techcrunch, Jan 29, 2013] had the following explanation:
The moves in different directions for Amazon and Apple have been about expectations and guidance. Wall Street has higher expectations for Apple and ‘different’ expectations for Amazon. Wall Street wants Apple’s ‘gross margins’ to grow. They don’t expect Amazon’s ‘profits’ to grow. It sounds silly, but if Apple has reported lower profits and a huge gross margin increase the stock might have shot up. If Amazon had reported record profits today on decreasing margins, Wall Street might have panicked.
…
Wall Street has stopped caring about Apple’s profits today. They were displeased with forward guidance. Growth rates have slowed measurably at Apple which is understandable for a company of its’ size. Wall Street is worried that growth is slowing and competition from Google and Samsung are taking a toll. Apple has given Wall Street so many wonderful surprises so magic has become the norm. Now that Apple is boring, they have run for the hills.
That moode didn’t change even after Apple CEO Tim Cook was trying to assure investors at the Goldman Sachs Internet and Technology Conference on Feb 12, just a week ago. Read the Wrap up: Apple CEO Tim Cook’s Goldman Sachs Conference keynote [AppleInsider, Feb 13, 2013] from which I will quote only the following excerpts as the most notable ones:
Cook went on to say that introducing a “budget device” was not something Apple would be comfortable with, and instead pointed to the strategy seen with the iPhone lineup. In that model, new variants like the iPhone 5 are sold at the highest price while preceding versions like the iPhone 4S and iPhone 4 are sold at discounted rates.
…
According to Cook, the iPad is “the poster child of the post-PC revolution” and has driving the push to tablets since its introduction in 2010.
While Apple’s tablet has been the downfall for a number of PC alternatives, such as netbooks, the device is also said to be hurting the company’s own Mac computer sales. During the last quarter of 2012, Mac sales dropped 22 percent year-to-year on low demand and supply constraints. Apple’s iPad business, however, grew by nearly 50 percent over the same period.
“The cannibalization question raises its head a lot,” Cook said. “The truth is: we don’t really think about it that much. Our basic belief is: if we don’t cannibalize, someone else will. In the case of iPad particularly, I would argue that the Windows PC market is huge and there’s a lot more there to cannibalize than there is of Mac, or of iPad.”
Cook noted that burgeoning markets like China and Brazil will be major players in future growth, and the company is banking on its ability to draw customers in to the Apple ecosystem with “halo products.”
“Through the years, we’ve found a very clear correlation between people getting in and buying their first Apple product and some percentage of them buying other Apple products.”
At the same conference Microsoft, similarly to Apple, declared a ‘no change’ strategy despite of the obvious failure of its Windows 8 and Windows Phone efforts so far. In the No “Plan B” for Microsoft’s mobile ambitions: CFO [Reuters, Feb 13, 2013] report one can read:
“We’re very focused on continuing the success we have with PCs and taking that to tablets and phones,” Microsoft’s Chief Financial Officer Peter Klein said
…
“It’s less ‘Plan B’ than how you execute on the current plan,” said Klein. “We aim to evolve this generation of Windows to make sure we have the right set of experiences at the right price points for all customers.”
…
Gartner estimates that Microsoft sold fewer than 900,000 Surface tablets in the fourth quarter, which is a fraction of the 23 million iPads sold by Apple. Microsoft has not released its own figures but has not disputed Gartner’s.
Windows phones now account for 3 percent of the global smartphone market, Gartner says, which is almost double their share a year ago but way behind Google’s Android with 70 percent and Apple with 21 percent.
To grab more share, Klein said Microsoft was working with hardware makers to make sure Windows software is available on devices ranging from phones to tablets to larger all-in-one PCs.
“It’s probably more nuanced than just you lower prices or raise prices,” said Klein. “It’s less a Plan B and more, how do you tweak your plan, how do you bring these things to market to make sure you have the right offerings at the right price points?”
So the last 3 months went against Goldmann Sachs’ November 2012 predictions. The only question now remains whether those 3 months brought any changes in the non-Apple and non-Microsoft territories which would question other parts of the Goldmann Sachs’ forecast as well?
There were no negative changes just strengthening of the already established dominant position against both Apple and Microsoft:
1. Mainstream tablets 7-inch at US$199, say Taiwan makes [DIGITIMES, Feb 19, 2013]
Google’s Nexus 7 and Amazon’s Kindle Fire HD have reshuffled the global tablet market and consequently 7-inch with a price cap of US$199 has become the mainstream standard for tablets, according to Taiwan-based supply chain makers.
Cumulative sales of the Nexus 7 have reached six million and are expected to reach eight million units before the expected launch of the second-generation model in June 2013, the sources said. The Nexus 7 and Kindle Fire have driven vendors to develop inexpensive 7-inch tablet models instead of 10-inch ones, the sources indicated.
In order to be as reach US$199, 7-inch tablets are equipped with basic required functions such as access to the Internet and watching video, the sources noted. While Google, Amazon, Samsung Electronics and Asustek Computer are competitive at US$199 for 7-inch tablets, white-box or other vendors need to launch 7-inch models at lower prices such as US$149, the sources said. Fox example, China-based graphics card vendor Galaxy Microsystems has cooperated with Nvidia to launch a 7-inch tablet in the China market at CNY999 (US$160).
2. Digitimes Research: 68.6% of touch panels shipped in 4Q12 from the Greater China area [DIGITIMES, Feb 19, 2013] meaning that in supply chain terms there is a growing concentration on suppliers not only from Greater China but especially from mainland China:
Taiwan- and China-based touch panel makers held a 68.6% global market share for touch panels shipped during the fourth quarter of 2012, according to Digitimes Research.
China-based panel makers saw the biggest share in the handset touch panel market during the fourth quarter due to smartphone demand in China, while Taiwan-based panel makers only held a 27.5% share in the market largely due to lower-than-expected sales of the iPhone 5, said Digitimes Research.
In terms of touch panels used in tablets, Taiwan-based panel makers saw a drop in their global market share to 59.9% during the period largely due to the iPad mini using DITO thin-film type touch screens provided from Japan-based touch panel makers. China-based panel makers meanwhile held 18.6% in the market due to demand for white-box tablets in China, added Digitimes Research.
Meanwhile, Digitimes Research found that Taiwan-based TPK provided 70.9% of all touch panels used in notebook applications in 2012.
3. Touch Panel Market Projected for a 34% Growth in 2013 from 2012 [Displaybank, sent in a newsletter form, Feb 19, 2013] published to promote Touch Panel Market Forecast and Cost/Issue/Industry Analysis for 2013 [Jan 30, 2013]
The touch panel market is growing rapidly due to the increasing sale of smartphones and tablet PCs. The touch panel market size in 2012 was 1.3 billion units, a 39.4% growth over 2011. The market is projected to grow 34% in 2013, growing to more than 1.8 billion units.
Touch Panel Market Forecast (Unit: Million)
(Source: Displaybank, “Touch Panel Market Forecast and Cost/Issue/Industry Analysis for 2013”)
Smartphone and tablet PCs, major applications that use touch panels, are expected to continue to grow at a high rate. In addition, most IT devices that use display panels have either switched to or will start using the touch panels soon. Therefore the touch panel market will show a double digit growth annually until 2016, by unit. The market size is expected to reach more than 2.75 billion units by 2016.
With the explosion in the sale of smartphones and tablet PCs during the past few years, our lives have changed dramatically. They are now common place in our lives, and have a huge influence in the IT industry in general. With the introduction of Windows 8 OS in October 2012, upsizing of touch panels has begun. The impact of this event on the immediate growth of the touch panel market and the long-term effect is so immense that it cannot be estimated at the moment.
The financial crisis that started in 2008 left much of the IT industry hobbling worldwide. But only the touch panel market is enjoying a boom. Many new players are pouring into the industry, and those on the sidelines are waiting for the opportune moment to enter. As more players enter the competitive landscape, touch panel prices are falling rapidly. In addition, to gain competitiveness and to differentiate itself in the market has led players to develop and improve structure, technique and process, and seek out new materials.
The introduction of Windows 8 is leading the increase in touch capable Notebook and AIO PCs. It is still too early for the touch interface to completely displace keyboard and mouse, but the touch functionality does add convenience to some operations. We are sure to see an increase in specialized apps that capitalize on such functions. Therefore, touch functions will complement traditional input methods. As the technology is still in early implementation stages, it is used only in select high-end Ultrabooks. But it’s only a matter of time before touch functions make its way to mid-end products.
Forecasting the future of touch panel industry is not only difficult, but also outright confusing in the current landscape due to the rapid expansion; the increase in number of devices that use touch panels; more players in the market; and rapid development of new products and new processes. In serving clients, Displaybank has released “Touch Panel Market Forecast and Cost/Issue/Industry Analysis for 2013” to provide industry outlook by application, product, and capacitive touch structure. The report also includes the supply chain of set makers and touch panel manufacturers; and cost analysis of major capacitive touch panels by size and type. This report will serve as a guide to bring clarity and understanding of rapidly transforming touch panel industry.
4. Cheaper components could allow 7-inch tablets priced below US$150, says TrendForce [DIGITIMES, Dec 14, 2012]
Viewing that Google and Amazon have launched 7-inch tablets at US$199, other vendors can offer 7-inch tablets at below US$150 only by adopting cheaper components, according to Taiwan-based TrendForce.
As panels and touch modules together account for 35-40% of the total material costs of a 7-inch tablet, replacing the commonly used 7-inch FFS panels with 7-inch TN LCD panels accompanied by additional wide-view angle compensation could save over 50% in panel costs, TrendForce indicated. In addition, replacing a G/G (glass/glass) or OGS (one glass solution) touch module with a G/F/F (glass/film/film) one, although inferior in terms of transmittance and touch sensitivity, can cut costs by about 70%. Thus, the adoption of a TN LCD panel and a G/F/F touch module for a 7-inch tablet could reduce material costs by about US$25, TrendForce said.
Given that the type of DRAM affects standby time only as far as user experience is concerned, costs can be reduced through replacing 1GB mobile DRAM priced at about US$10 with 1GB commodity DRAM priced at about US$3.50, TrendForce noted. As for NAND flash, 8GB and 4GB eMMC cost US$6 and US$4, respectively, and therefore the latter should be the preferred choice to save costs.
For CPUs, China-based IC design houses, including Allwinner Technology, Fuzhou Rockchip Electronics, Ingenic Semiconductor, Amlogic and Nufront Software Technology (Beijing), provide 40-55nm-based processors at about US$12 per chip which could be alternatives to chips used in high-end tablets which cost about US$24, TrendForce indicated.
While the sales performance of tablets below US$150 is yet to be seen, such cheap models are expected to put pressure upon China-based white-box vendors, and in turn intensify price competition in the tablet market in 2013, TrendForce commented.
5. Strong demand from non-iPad tablet sector to boost short-term performance of IC vendors [DIGITIMES, Jan 28, 2013]
Demand for IC parts from the tablet industry in China has been stronger than expected in the first quarter of 2013, which could help boost the short-term performance of IC design houses, while offsetting the impact of slow demand from China’s smartphone sector caused by high inventory levels, according to industry sources.
Entry-level tablets meet market demand in terms of pricing and functionality, particularly in China, said the sources, adding that demand for entry-level tablets in China and other emerging markets could top 4-5 million a month in 2013 compared to 2-3 million in the second half of 2012.
MediaTek, while seeing demand for its handset solutions from China decrease in the first quarter of 2013, has also enjoyed emerging IC demand from the tablet sector, with plans to release chipset solutions for the segment in the second quarter of the year, the source revealed.
Since the growth momentum for tablets in 2013 is expected to come from non-iPad vendors in China and other emerging markets, Taiwan-based suppliers of LCD driver, analog and touch-controller ICs as well as those of Wi-Fi, audio and Bluetooth chips will benefit from the trend thanks to cost advantages and strong business ties in these markets, the sources commented.
6. Allwinner A31 SoC is here with products and the A20 SoC, its A10 pin-compatible dual-core is coming in February 2013 [Dec 10, 2012] and The upcoming Chinese tablet and device invasion lead by the Allwinner SoCs [Dec 4, 2012], both from my own separated trend tracking site devoted to the ‘Allwinner phenomenon’ coming from mainland China and having the potential of drastically altering the 2013 device market (not taken into account at all by Goldmann Sachs report):
that already resulted in huge growth of the mainland China Android tablet manufacturing in 2012, as well shown by this chart:
which has already fundamentally affected the worldwide tablet market in 2012:
7. What Allwinner started in 2012 with the single core A10/A13 SoCs and which was further boosted by the quad-core Cortex-A7 A31 SoC on Dec 5, 2012 with the release of Onda V972 and V812 tablets (for US$ 208 and US$144 respectively) is an incredible strategic inflection point for the whole ICT industry, which ALL SoC vendors should compete with. Rockchip shown as the #2 on the mainland China market just followed the suite:
8. Now the most ambitious external challenger Marvell Announces Industry’s Most Advanced Single-chip Quad-core World Phone Processor to Power High-performance, Smartphones and Tablets with Worldwide Automatic Roaming on 3G Networks [press release, Feb 19, 2013] which is going to add to the competition the integrated on the SoC 3.5G modems:
Marvell’s PXA1088 is the industry’s most advanced single-chip solution to feature a quad-core processor with support for 3G field-proven cellular modems including High Speed Packet Access Plus (HSPA+), Time division High Speed Packet Access Plus (TD-HSPA+) and Enhanced Data for GSM Environment (EDGE).
The Marvell PXA1088 solution incorporates the performance of a quad-core ARM Cortex-A7 with Marvell’s mature and proven WCDMA and TD-SCDMA modem technology to provide a low-cost [elsewhere stated by Marvell that this SoC is for the phones space in the “$100 range”] 3G platform for both smartphones and tablets. The advanced application processor technology of the PXA1088 enables a breakthrough end user experience for multimedia and gaming applications with universal connectivity. Marvell’s complete mobile platform solution includes the Avastar® 88W8777 WLAN + Bluetooth 4.0 + FM single-chip SoC and the L2000 GNSS Hybrid Location Processor, and an integrated power management and audio codec IC.
Marvell’s PXA1088 is backward pin-to-pin compatible with its dual-core single-chip Unified 3G Platform, the PXA988/PXA986, enabling device partners to upgrade their next-generation mobile devices to quad-core without additional design cost.
…
Currently, the PXA1088 platform is sampling with leading global customers. Products based on this platform are expected to be commercially available in 2013 [elsewhere stated by Marvell that “We’ll start seeing PXA1088-based phones in the first half of this year”].
9. Yesterday we had two significant advancements described in the Ubuntu and HTC in lockstep [Feb 19, 2013] post here. Especially the Ubuntu related part is remarkable as first time we had a new platform which can span the whole spectrum of devices: from smartphones, to tablets, to desktops, to TVs – actually all from a smartphone capability expanded via docking and other means to a screen, to a TV, a keyboard, and a mouse. This is certainly an extreme case of the new Ubuntu capability which can have implementation in different devices as well. Even in that case, however, the source and binary codes could be the same. This is also cleverly using the already well established Android drivers and Android Board Support Package (BSP) infrastructure of the most cost-efficient ARM SoC vendors. Note that this is furthest from any “license violation” attacks as the original OHA terms and conditions are stating the Apache V2 licencing which:
The Apache license allows manufacturers and mobile operators to innovate using the platform without the requirement to contribute those innovations back to the open source community. Because these innovations and differentiated features can be kept proprietary … Because the Apache license does not have a copyleft clause, industry players can add proprietary functionality to their products based on Android without needing to contribute anything back to the platform. As the entire platform is open, companies can remove functionality if they choose.
10. Finally today came Google Glass: showing how radically the user experience might be changing in the next 2-3 years:
More information: Google Glass – Home [Feb 20, 2013] where it is also possible to grasp its wonderful, non-intrusive seign like this:
Conclusion: There are even more uncalculated by Goldmann and Sachs advancements in the non-Apple and non-Microsoft spaces than in Apple and Microsoft ones. Just in these 3 months! Therefore it would be ridiculous if Goldmann and Sachs’ “consumer compute platform share” forecast as shown in the chart above will be fullfilled!
Ubuntu and HTC in lockstep
Update at 18:05 PM CET: Both Ubuntu’s and HTC’s countdowns have ended, and there was no relationship between the two. Ubuntu, however, managed a clever publicity this way. What Ubuntu is promising now – touch enhanced experience from a single binary through tablets to desktop and TV. It would be even possible to use your Ubuntu smartphone and dock it to a larger touchscreen and Ubuntu presents a tablet interface, add to the tablet a keyboard and mouse and your tablet becomes a desktop PC on which even Microsoft Windows application can be run via one of the thin client solutions, even the presentation may go to your TV screen.
This is what I observed today at 12:05 AM CET on ubuntu.com and htc.com:
What is going on? Here is the explanation from HTC HOSTING SPECIAL EVENT IN NYC & LONDON ON FEB 19, HINTS AT NEW M7FLAGSHIP [UnleashThePhones.com, Jan 30, 2013] with the invitation:
Meanwhile on HTC’s social site yesterday appeared a table with a number of devices covered by cloth, and one of them has a tablet like shape:
(via Instagram). Interesting coincidence with the Ubuntu home page declaring:
Tick, tock, tablet time!
as seen on my lockstep screenshot above.
What is this Ubuntu thing anyway?
Ubuntu comes to the phone, with a beautifully distilled interface and a unique full PC capability when docked [Canonical press release, Jan 2, 2013]
- Leading open PC platform with huge global following announces mobile version for network operators, OEMs and silicon vendors
- Fast, beautiful interface for entry level smartphones
- Unique PC experience on superphones when docked with a monitor, keyboard and mouse
- Ubuntu raises the bar for mobile UI design, for richer and more immersive apps
- A single OS for phone, PC and TV
Canonical today announced a distinctive smartphone interface for its popular operating system, Ubuntu, using all four edges of the screen for a more immersive experience. Ubuntu uniquely gives handset OEMs and mobile operators the ability to converge phone, PC and thin client into a single enterprise superphone.
“We expect Ubuntu to be popular in the enterprise market, enabling customers to provision a single secure device for all PC, thin client and phone functions. Ubuntu is already the most widely used Linux enterprise desktop, with customers in a wide range of sectors focused on security, cost and manageability” said Jane Silber, CEO of Canonical. “We also see an opportunity in basic smartphones that are used for the phone, SMS, web and email, where Ubuntu outperforms thanks to its native core apps and stylish presentation.”
Ubuntu is aimed at two core mobile segments: the high-end superphone, and the entry-level basic smartphone, helping operators grow the use of data amongst consumers who typically use only the phone and messaging but who might embrace the use of web and email on their phone. Ubuntu also appeals to aspirational prosumers who want a fresh experience with faster, richer performance on a lower bill-of-materials device.
The handset interface for Ubuntu introduces distinctive new user experiences to the mobile market, including:
- Edge magic: thumb gestures from all four edges of the screen enable users to find content and switch between apps faster than other phones.
- Deep content immersion – controls appear only when the user wants them.
- A beautiful global search for apps, content and products.
- Voice and text commands in any application for faster access to rich capabilities.
- Both native and web or HTML5 apps.
- Evolving personalised art on the welcome screen.
Ubuntu offers compelling customisation options for partner apps, content and services. Operators and OEMs can easily add their own branded offerings. Canonical’s personal cloud service, Ubuntu One, provides storage and media services, file sharing and a secure transaction service which enables partners to integrate their own service offerings easily.
Canonical makes it easy to build phones with Ubuntu. The company provides engineering services to offload the complexity of maintaining multiple code bases which has proven to be a common issue for smartphone manufacturers, freeing the manufacturer to focus on hardware design and integration. For silicon vendors, Ubuntu is compatible with a typical Android Board Support Package (BSP). This means Ubuntu is ready to run on the most cost-efficient chipset designs.
In bringing Ubuntu to the phone, Canonical is uniquely placed with a single operating system for client, server and cloud, and a unified family of interfaces for the phone, the PC and the TV. “We are defining a new era of convergence in technology, with one unified operating system that underpins cloud computing, data centers, PCs and consumer electronics” says Mark Shuttleworth, founder of Ubuntu and VP Products at Canonical.
Canonical currently serves the leading PC OEMs: ASUS, Dell, HP, and Lenovo all certify the majority of their PCs on Ubuntu and pre-install it in global markets. Over 20 million desktop PCs run the OS today, and Canonical estimates that close to 10% of the world’s new desktops and laptops will ship with Ubuntu in 2014. Ubuntu is also wildly popular as a server platform, the number one server OS on the key major public clouds and the leading host OS for OpenStack, the open source IAAS.
With that Canonical had achieved something even much more: Ubuntu for phones – Industry proposition [celebrateubuntu YouTube channel, Jan 2, 2013]
So this is the Ubuntu thing, most probably today to be expanded into the tablets as well.
Will add that information as released in a couple of hours or so!
Ubuntu unveils tablet experience with multi-tasking [Canonical press release, Feb 19, 2013]
- Unique ‘side stage’ multi-tasking puts phone and tablet apps on a single tablet screen
- Secure enterprise tablets with full disk encryption, multiple secure user accounts and standard management tool that covers Ubuntu server, PC and touch
- Unique convergence across all four form factors: a phone can provide tablet, TV and PC interfaces when docked to the appropriate screen / keyboard / remote
Canonical today presented Ubuntu’s tablet interface – the next step towards one unified family of experiences for personal computing on phones, tablets, PCs and TVs.
“Multi-tasking productivity meets elegance and rigorous security in our tablet experience,” said Mark Shuttleworth, founder of Ubuntu and Canonical. “Our family of interfaces now scales across all screens, so your phone can provide tablet, PC and TV experiences when you dock it. That’s unique to Ubuntu and it’s the future of personal computing.”
“Fashion industry friends say the Ubuntu phone and tablet are the most beautiful interfaces they’ve seen for touch,” said Ivo Weevers, who leads the Canonical design team. “We’re inspired by the twin goals of style and usability, and working with developers who are motivated to create the best possible experience for friends, family and industry.”
The new tablet design doesn’t just raise the bar for elegant presentation, it breaks new ground in design and engineering, featuring:
- Real multitasking: Uniquely, Ubuntu allows a phone app on the screen at the same time as a tablet app. The Ubuntu side stage was invented both to enable efficient multitasking and to improve the usability of phone apps on tablets.
- Secure multi-user: Multiple accounts on one tablet with full encryption for personal data, combined with the trusted Ubuntu security model that is widely used in banks, governments and sensitive environments, making it ideal for work and family use.
- Voice controlled HUD productivity: The Heads-Up Display, unique to Ubuntu, makes it fast and easy to do complex things on touch devices, and transforms touch interfaces for rich applications, bringing all the power of the PC to your tablet.
- Edge magic for cleaner apps: Screen edges are used for navigation between apps, settings and controls. That makes for less clutter, more content, and sleeker hardware. No physical or soft buttons are required. It’s pure touch elegance.
- Content focus: Media is neatly presented on the customisable home screen, which can search hundreds of sources. Perfect for carriers and content owners that want to highlight their own content, while still providing access to a global catalogue.
- Full convergence: The tablet interface is presented by exactly the same OS and code that provides the phone, PC and TV interfaces, enabling true device convergence. Ubuntu is uniquely designed to scale smoothly across all form factors.
The Ubuntu tablet interface supports screen sizes from 6″ to 20″ and resolutions from 100 to 450 PPI. “The tablet fits perfectly between phone and PC in the Ubuntu family,” says Oren Horev, lead designer for the Ubuntu tablet experience. “Not only do we integrate phone apps in a distinctive way, we shift from tablet to PC very smoothly in convergence devices.”
On high end silicon, Ubuntu offers a full PC experience when the tablet is docked to a keyboard, with access to remote Windows applications over standard protocols from Microsoft, Citrix, VMware and Wyse. “An Ubuntu tablet is a secure thin client that can be managed with the same tools as any Ubuntu server or desktop,” said Stephane Verdy, who leads enterprise desktop and thin client products at Canonical. “We are delighted to support partners on touch and mobile thin clients for the enterprise market.”
Even without chipset-specific optimisation, Ubuntu performs beautifully on entry level hardware. “Our four-year engagement with ARM has shaped Ubuntu for mobile” said Rick Spencer, VP Ubuntu Engineering at Canonical. “We benefit from the huge number of contributing developers who run Ubuntu every day, many of whom are moving to touch devices as their primary development environment.”
For silicon vendors, Ubuntu is compatible with any Linux-oriented Board Support Package (BSP). This means Ubuntu is easy to enable on most chipset designs that are currently running Android. Ubuntu and Android are the two platforms enabled by Linaro members.
The Touch Developer Preview of Ubuntu will be published on the 21st February 2013 with installation instructions for the Nexus 7 and Nexus 10 tablet devices as well as smartphones such as the Nexus 4 and Galaxy Nexus. Installable images and source code will be available from developer.ubuntu.com.
The Preview SDK, which currently supports phone app development, will now be updated to support tablet apps as well. Uniquely, on Ubuntu, developers can create a single application that works on the phone, tablet, PC and TV because it is the same system and all services work across all form factors.
Visit us at Mobile World Congress: Booth Number: 81D30, App Planet Hall 8.1. The Canonical team will be available to install Ubuntu on your phones and tablets at Mobile World Congress. Note: Ubuntu Touch Developer Preview is a developer build and not a consumer-ready release.
Ubuntu for tablets – Full video [celebrateubuntu YouTube channel, Feb 19, 2013]
Touch Developer Preview of Ubuntu to be published on 21 February 2013 [Canonical press release, Feb 15, 2013]
- Touch Developer Preview of Ubuntu for Galaxy Nexus and Nexus 4 will be available
- Daily update mechanism to follow progress in Ubuntu
- Canonical will flash phones at MWC for industry, developers and enthusiasts
- Preview SDK and App Design Guides already available for developers building touch apps for Ubuntu
Images and open source code for the Touch Developer Preview of Ubuntu will be published on Thursday 21st February, supporting the Galaxy Nexus and Nexus 4 smartphones.
They are intended for enthusiasts and developers, to familiarise themselves with Ubuntu’™s smartphone experience and develop applications on spare handsets. Tools that manage the flashing of the phone will be available on the same day in the Ubuntu archives, making it easy to keep a device up to date with the latest version of the Touch Developer Preview.
Attendees of Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona, 25th – 28th February can have their phones flashed to Ubuntu by Canonical team members at the Ubuntu stand, booth number 81D30, App Planet Hall 8.1, where Ubuntu will be shown on a range of devices.
The code release is a milestone in the development program for Ubuntu’™s phone experience, and enables developers to port the platform to other devices. “Our platform supports a wide range of screen sizes and resolutions. Developers who have experience bringing up phone environments will find it relatively easy to port Ubuntu to current handsets” said Pat McGowan, who leads the integration effort that produced the images being released. “We look forward to adding support for additional devices for everyday testing and experimentation.”
The install process and supported device list are maintained at wiki.ubuntu.com/TouchInstallProcess and will be updated as new devices are added.
The release also marks the start of a new era for Ubuntu, with true convergence between devices. When complete, the same Ubuntu code will deliver a mobile, tablet, desktop or TV experiences depending on the device it is installed on, or where it is docked. Ubuntu 13.10 (due in October) will include a complete entry-level smartphone experience.
Canonical has published a Preview SDK and App Design Guides to allow developers to create applications for the full range of Ubuntu platforms. The toolkit provides a range of documented templates to enable native applications to be created quickly and easily. The App Design Guides explain how these templates can be used to design and build beautiful and usable apps. Blackberry Touch developers will be familiar with the Qt/QML environment, which supports rich native touch apps. Developers will not need to cross-compile or package applications differently for phone, tablet, PC and TV. One platform serves all four, a single application binary can do the same.
On Ubuntu, native and web or HTML5 applications sit as equal citizens and so those developers already developing HTML5 applications will easily gain support for Ubuntu.
“This release marks the threshold of wider engagement – both with industry and community.” says Mark Shuttleworth, founder of Ubuntu. “For developers, contributors and partners, there is now a coherent experience that warrants attention. The cleanest, most stylish mobile interface around.”
Availability:
Go to wiki.ubuntu.com/TouchInstallProcess to download Touch Developer Preview of Ubuntu from Thursday 21st February.
Go to developer.ubuntu.com to download the SDK to develop applications for Ubuntu.
Go to http://design.ubuntu.com/apps to read the Apps Design Guide giving advice about designing and building beautiful and usable apps for Ubuntu on the phone.
Visit Canonical at Mobile World Congress: Booth Number: 81D30, App Planet Hall 8.1.
Introducing the New HTC One [HTC YouTube channel, Feb 19, 2013]
- HTC One gets official – metal chassis, 1080p display, ‘Ultrapixel’ camera [AndroidCentral.com, Feb 19, 2013]
- HTC One: Your guide to the 2013 Android reboot [AndroidCentral.com, Feb 19, 2013]
- Official HTC One specs [AndroidCentral.com, Feb 19, 2013]
- New HTC One – First Look [HTC YouTube channel, Feb 19, 2013]
- HTC One – The Unveiling [HTC YouTube channel, Feb 20, 2013]
- Introducing The New HTC One®, A New Perspective On Smartphones [HTC press release, Feb 19, 2013]
HTC BlinkFeedTM, HTC ZoeTM and HTC BoomSoundTM Deliver HTC One’s Unprecedented New Smartphone Experience
HTC, a global leader in mobile innovation and design, today announced its new flagship smartphone, the new HTC One. Crafted with a distinct zero-gap aluminium unibody, the new HTC One introduces HTC BlinkFeedTM, HTC ZoeTM and HTC BoomSoundTM, key new HTC Sense® innovations that reinvent the mobile experience and set a new standard for smartphones.
“People today immerse themselves in a constant stream of updates, news and information. Although smartphones are one of the main ways we stay in touch with the people and information we care about, conventional designs have failed to keep pace with how people are actually using them,” said Peter Chou, CEO of HTC Corporation. “A new, exciting approach to the smartphone is needed and with the new HTC One, we have re-imagined the mobile experience from the ground up to reflect this new reality.”
HTC BlinkFeed: A personal live stream right on the home screen
At the centre of the new HTC One experience is HTC BlinkFeed. HTC BlinkFeed is a bold new experience that transforms the home screen into a single live stream of personally relevant information such as social updates, entertainment and lifestyle updates, news and photos with immersive images so that people no longer need to go to separate applications to find out what’s happening. HTC BlinkFeed aggregates the freshest content from the most relevant and interesting sources, giving it to people at a glance, all in one place, without the need to jump between multiple applications and web sites.
To enable this new dynamic approach to the smartphone, HTC will provide both local and global content from more than 1,400 media sources with more than 10,000 articles per day from some of the most innovative media companies, such as the AOL family of media properties, ESPN, MTV, Vice Media, CoolHunting, Reuters and many others. For more information on HTC BlinkFeed’s content partners, visit the HTC Blog.
HTC UltraPixel Camera with HTC Zoe
The breakthrough HTC UltraPixel Camera redefines how people capture, relive and share their most precious moments. HTC Zoe gives people the ability to shoot high-res photos that come to life in three-second snippets. These Zoes, photos and videos are then displayed in a unique way that brings the gallery to life and transforms the traditional photo gallery of still images into a motion gallery of memories. It also automatically creates integrated highlight films from each event comprised of Zoes, photos and videos set to music with professionally designed cuts, transitions and effects. These highlight videos can be remixed or set to different themes, and can be easily shared on social networks, email and other services.
To enable this innovative camera experience, HTC developed a custom camera that includes a best-in-class f/2.0 aperture lens and a breakthrough sensor with UltraPixels that gather 300 percent more light than traditional smartphone camera sensors. This new approach also delivers astounding low-light performance and a variety of other improvements to photos and videos. In addition, the perfect self-portrait or video is just a tap away with an ultra-wide angle front-facing camera which supports 1080p video capture. Multi-axis optical image stabilisation for both the front and rear cameras also helps ensure video footage smoother whether stationary or on the move. HTC UltraPixel camera adds many other features and effects such as enhanced 360′ panorama, time sequencing and object removal.
HTC BoomSound
The new HTC One offers the best audio experience of any mobile phone available today. HTC BoomSound introduces for the first time on a phone, front-facing stereo speakers with a dedicated amplifier and an amazing full HD display that immerses people in music, videos, games and the YouTubeTM clips they love. BeatsTM Audio integration is enabled across the entire experience for rich, authentic sound whether you’re listening to your favorite music, watching a YouTube video or playing a game.
HDR recording uses advanced dual microphones and audio processing to capture clean, rich sound that is worthy of high-definition video footage. Phone calls sound great on HTC One thanks to the addition of HTC Sense VoiceTM, which boosts the call volume and quality in noisy environments so that conversations come through loud and clear.
HTC Sense TV
HTC Sense TV transforms the new HTC One into an interactive program guide and remote control for most TVs, set-top boxes and receivers. Tapping the power of the cloud, Sense TV makes it simple and intuitive to see what’s on and find that favourite show.
Metal Unibody Design
Wrapped in a zero-gap aluminum unibody and sporting a brilliant 4.7”, Full HD (1080p) screen, the new HTC One features the latest Android Jelly Bean operating system and LTE network technology to offer blazingly-fast browsing in a package that combines premium design with breakthrough build quality.
Available in stunning silver and beautiful black, the sleek and crafted aluminum unibody sits comfortably in the hand and showcases HTC’s unique antenna technology, which helps people achieve a crystal clear signal. The display also resists scratches and reduces glare, whilst offering incredible 468ppi resolution and rich, natural colours.
Global Availability
The new HTC One will be available globally through more than 185 mobile operators and major retailers in more than 80 regions and countries beginning in March. For more information and to pre-register for the new HTC One, visit http://www.htc.com.
The first Windows Phone 4Afrika from Huawei for $150 = Huawei Ascend W1 for $240 (in China) and more elsewhere
It is no surprise as two years ago we had a Huawei’s IDEOS U8150 smartphone for US$86 in Kenya: 350,000 units sold in 8 months [this same ‘Experiencing the Cloud’ blog, Aug 17-23, 2011]. In that device we had the Qualcomm MSM7225 SoC (announced in Feb’07 and first delivered in 3G phones in June’07), with a single 528 MHz ARM1136EJ-S core CPU, Adreno 200 GPU, embedded QDSP5 DSP @ 320 MHz and UMTS (HSPA, GSM/GPRS/EDGE), among others.
The difference is immense as in the Windows Phone 4Afrika we have the Qualcomm MSM8230 SoC (announced in Nov’11 and first delivered in the similar Huawei Ascend W1 in Jan’13), with a 1.2 GHz Krait dual core CPU, Adreno 305 GPU, embedded Hexagon QDSP6 DSP @ 500 MHz and UMTS (DC-HSPA+, TD-SCDMA), among others. This is bringing a huge performance difference on the SoC level:
– CPU: 7920 (2 x 3.3 x 1200) vs. 623 (1.18 x 528) DMIPS of raw CPU performance
– GPU: Adreno 305 GPU vs. software rendered 2D support only
Even within the Adreno GPUs the Adreno 305 has quite a high performance, see the below benchmark from Mali-T604 vs 400MP vs SGX 554MP4 vs 543MP4 vs 543MP3 vs 543MP2 vs 540 vs 535 vs Adreno 320 vs 225 vs 220 vs 305 vs 203 vs 205 vs Mali 400 vs Intel XOLO [Techivian, July 26, 2012]:
Note that the North-Amerian (SGH-T999, SGH-I747, SCH-R530, SCH-I535 and SPH-L710) and Japanese (SGH-N064) versions of Samsung Galaxy S III smartphones are using the Qualcomm Adreno 225 GPU (within the MSM8960 SoC of the phone) which has just 8% higher performance (closely corresponding to the above chart) than the Adreno 305 GPU. The SGH-I747 (Galaxy S III AT and T) has 30.4 FPS for the above banchmark, while the SPH-L710 (Galaxy S3 Sprint) 30.2 FPS.
The International (GT-I9300, GT-I9305), South Korean (SHV-E210K/L/S) and Chinese (GT-I9308, SCH-I939) versions meanwhile using the ARM Mali-400 MP4 GPU (within Samsung Exynos 4 Quad –Exynos 4412 – SoC of the phone). The GT-I9300 has 66.4 FPS for the above banchmark, while the GT-I9305 58.6 FPS.
See Model variants and GLbenchmark Results.
– resolution: QHD (960×540 of which only 800×480 is used) vs. HVGA (480×320 of which only 320×240 is used) display support
– mobile Internet: 42 Mbps downlink and 11.5 Mbps uplink and TD-SCDMA
vs. 7.2 Mbps dowlink and 5.76 Mbps uplink
etc.
To sum it up:
-
The MSM8230 SoC first delivered in smartphones in Jan’13 is representing a more than five years of technology advance over the MSM7225 SoC first delivered in phones in June’07.
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Functionally the Android 2.2 on the IDEOS U8150 two years ago vs. the Windows Phone 8 on Windows Phone 4Afrika (= Huawei Ascend W1) now is as big a difference. Windows Phone 8 is even better than the latest Android 4.1 and 4.2.
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The target audience in Africa for $150, and in other countries for $240-300 (see below), is getting a state-of-the-art mid-range device which will not be outdated for the next two years at least.
Ascend W1 [HuaweiMx YouTube channel, Jan 29, 2013]
Huawei Ascend W1 [engadget YouTube channel, Jan 8, 2013]
Huawei launches the first Windows Phone 4Afrika [Huawei Device press release, Feb 5, 2013]
Shenzhen, China, February 5, 2013: Huawei, a leading global information and communications technology (ICT) solutions provider, today launched the first Windows Phone 4Afrika. Exclusively selected to help boost mobile accessibility and adoption within the fast-growing African continent, the Huawei 4Afrika will be available from Huawei, in Egypt, Nigeria, Kenya, Ivory Coast, Angola, Morocco and South Africa towards the later part of the 1st Quarter 2013.
“We are thrilled to be partnering with Microsoft to ensure that more people have access to leading technology, communications and information services,” said Mr Peter Hu, Managing Director of Huawei Device, Eastern & Southern Africa. “By launching the Huawei 4Afrika we will be bringing leading technology within reach for more people in Africa, thereby giving them access to a world of new opportunities. ”
The Huawei 4Afrika is a customized version of the HUAWEI Ascend W1, launched earlier this year at the 2013 Consumer Electronics Show. The smartphone is 10.15 mm thin and features a 4-inch IPS LCD 480 x 800 touchscreen with Zero-Gap Touch technology. With a 1730 mAh Li-Polymer battery and unique power saving technology, the Huawei 4Afrika phone provides up to 420 Hours of standby time and up to 560 minutes of talk time on 3G. The higher efficiency hardware design ensures power-saving up to 20%. It is powered by the high-end Qualcomm Snapdragon ™ S4 MSM8230 dual-core 1.2 GHz processor and Adreno 305 GPU. Additionally, the phone includes a 5 MP Auto-Focus Camera and VGA Front Camera, and comes in an array of bold colors including blue, black and white initially and red to follow in the next couple of months.
Available exclusively for the African market, the Huawei 4Afrika phone features a customized Store in Store with a variety of applications and exclusive content including those built and designed by Africans for Africans. The Windows Phone 8 start screen allows users to customize the Windows OS Live Tiles with topics of personal interest, providing real-time updates unique to their needs. Assisting with all business requests on-the-go, the Huawei 4Afrika phone features Microsoft Office and Skydrive for easy access to files. The Huawei 4Afrika phone marries great technology with a fashionable design, at a price that is right for its customers.
“The Huawei 4Afrika phone is a fantastic addition to our Windows Phone product line, and we’re particularly proud to be introducing it as an exclusive offer for the African Continent today as part of the launch of the Microsoft 4Afrika Initiative,” said Ali Faramawy , corporate vice president for Microsoft Middle East and Africa. “We believe strongly that improved access to affordable and high quality smartphones in Africa can have a strong impact on the continent’s overall economic development and competitiveness, and we are confident the Huawei 4Afrika phone will help deliver on this. ”
Since its entry into the African market in 1999, Huawei has created solutions that enable customers to reduce power consumption, carbon emissions and costs, thus contributing to the development of the society, economy, and the environment across Africa. To date, Huawei has worked with more than 18 African governments build E-Government networks in countries, such as Nigeria, Kenya, Uganda, Senegal, Angola, Guinea, and Djibouti, enabling 250 million Africans in rural areas to enjoy affordable communication services.
As per the 2012 Qualcomm Snapdragon classification presented below the MSM8230 is a dual Krait UMTS (DC-HSPA+, TD-SCDMA) SoC:
Microsoft and Huawei of China to Unite to Sell Low-Cost Windows Smartphones in Africa [The New York Times, Feb 4, 2013]
BERLIN — Microsoft, taking aim at the world’s fastest-growing smartphone market, said on Monday that it would team up with Huawei of China to sell a low-cost Windows smartphone in Africa.
The phone, called the Huawei 4Afrika Windows Phone, will cost $150 and initially be sold in seven countries. Microsoft’s Windows Phone software is fourth among smartphone operating systems, with just 2 percent of the worldwide market in September, according to Canalys, a research firm in Reading, England.
…
Fernando de Sousa, the general manager for Microsoft Africa, said that in the next few months, Microsoft and Nokia planned to introduce two new Windows phones for the African market.
…
Microsoft plans to introduce the Huawei 4Afrika phone on Tuesday at events in Lagos, Cairo, Nairobi, Johannesburg and Abidjan, Ivory Coast. It will also be sold in Morocco and Angola.
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Prioritising Africa – Introducing Microsoft 4Afrika [TechNet Blogs > Microsoft on the Issues Africa, Feb 4, 2013]
Posted by Ali Faramawy
Corporate Vice President, Microsoft Middle East & AfricaThere is an African proverb that reads, “The best time to plant a tree is 20 years ago. The second best time is now.” We couldn’t agree more. Microsoft has been operating in Africa for 20 years, and today we have offices in 14 countries. As we look forward to our next 20 years, we wanted to explore new ways to link the growth of our business with initiatives that spur economic development for the continent. The world has recognized the promise of Africa, and Microsoft wants to invest in that promise.
This is why today, we are introducing the Microsoft 4Afrika Initiative, which is designed to help improve Africa’s global competitiveness. Our goal is to empower African youth, entrepreneurs, developers, and business and civic leaders to turn great ideas into a reality that can help their community, their country, the continent, and beyond.
By 2016, the Microsoft 4Afrika Initiative intends to:
– help place tens of millions of smart devices in the hands of African youth,
– bring 1 million African small and medium enterprises (SMEs) online, and
– help 200 000 Africans develop skills for entrepreneurship and employability. This will include up-skilling 100,000 members of the existing workforce, as well as training 100,000 recent graduates, 75 percent of whom we intend to help place in jobs.
A smart, affordable device
In Africa today, smartphones account for only about 10 percent of total phones in the market. As a first step toward driving the adoption of smart devices, Microsoft and Huawei today introduced the Huawei 4Afrika phone, a full-functionality Windows Phone 8 preloaded with select applications designed for Africa, by Africans. The Huawei 4Afrika phone, which is the first in what will be a series of “4Afrika” smart devices, will be targeted toward university students, developers and first-time smart phone users to ensure they have affordable access to best-in-class technology, so they can access the information and tools they need to be active global citizens. (See related blog.)
…
HUAWEI ASCEND W1 В РОССИИ: СРОКИ ПОЯВЛЕНИЯ И СТОИМОСТЬ [Hi-Tech Mail.Ru, Jan 24, 2013]
Как стало известно Hi-Tech Mail.Ru, первый Windows Phone 8 смартфон Huawei — модель Ascend W1 — появится в России в феврале. Стоимость аппарата — 8 990 рублей.
As hi-tech mail.ru, the first Windows Phone 8 Smartphone Huawei Ascend model W1-will appear in Russia in February.
Unit cost is RUB 8990 [$300].
As the standard value added tax rate in Russia is 18% the net price will be $254.
Huawei Ascend W1 from Conrad Electronics (Germany) as of Feb 5, 2013:
€ 199,95* [$270]
lieferbar ab 20.03.2013 available from 20.03.2013
* Alle Preisangaben sind inkl. MwSt. und zzgl. Versandkosten. Wir berechnen eine Versandkostenpauschale in Höhe von € 5,95 (inkl. MwSt.) Bei Nachnahme beträgt die Versandkostenpauschale 8,95 € (inkl. MwSt.). Ab einem Bestellwert von € 300.- trägt Conrad Electronic die Versandkostenpauschale für Sie.
Bei sperrigen Artikeln (sind im einzelnen entsprechend ausgewiesen) berechnen wir den am Produkt ausgewiesenen Sperrgutzuschlag. Dieser Betrag enthält das für Sie verauslagte Transportentgeld und die Verpackungskosten.
* All prices are incl. VAT and excl. shipping costs. We charge a delivery fee in the amount of € 5.95 (incl. VAT) For cash on delivery, the shipping fee is €8.95 (incl. VAT). From an order value of € 300.-, Conrad Electronic bears the shipping costs for you.
For bulky items (are similarly designated in particular) we calculate the bulky contract assigned to the product. This amount includes the transport fee incurred for you and the packaging costs.
As the standard value added tax rate in Germany is 19% the net price will be $227.
Huawei Ascend W1 on Taobao (China) as of Feb 5, 2013:
¥ 1499.00 [$240.5]
As the standard value added tax rate in China is 17% the net price will be $206.
Huawei Showcases its First Windows Phone 8 Smartphone [Huawei Device press release, Jan 8, 2013]
Las Vegas, USA, January 8, 2012: Huawei, a leading global information and communications technology (ICT) solutions provider, unveiled its first Windows Phone 8 smartphone, HUAWEI Ascend W1, at the 2013 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) today. The Ascend W1 is 10.15 mm thin and features a 4-inch IPS LCD 480 x 800 touchscreen with OGS Technology, powered by the high-end Qualcomm Snapdragon ™ S4 MSM8230 dual-core 1.2 GHz processor and Adreno 305 GPU. With a 1950 mAh battery, the Ascend W1 has 470 hours of standby time, the longest among all smartphones in its class. It features a visually iconic design inspired by a tropical island and comes in an array of bold colors including blue, red, black and white. The Ascend W1 is a smart and stylish alternative for consumers looking for great technology at a price that is right.
The HUAWEI Ascend W1 has a low reflective IPS LCD display with full lamination technology, which provides brilliant visibility under any lighting condition. The Windows Phone 8 Start screen lets you customize and pin Live Tiles with topics of personal interest, providing real-time updates that are uniquely yours. Additionally, a dynamic lock screen allows you to select the photos or updates most important to you and have them ready at a glance, even when the phone is locked.
“Inspired and powered by people, the Ascend W1 is a combination of Huawei’s user-centric design philosophy and Windows Phone 8 software, bringing consumers a truly compelling alternative.” Said Richard Yu, CEO, Huawei Consumer Business Group. “The addition of the Ascend W1 to our smartphone portfolio gives consumers access to an even wider range of Huawei smartphones. At a price that makes sense to consumers, Ascend W1 underscores our commitment to put smartphones within reach of every consumer, no matter who you are or what you want from your phone. “
“We are excited to be working with Huawei to further expand our device portfolio to new locations and price points, allowing more people to experience Windows Phone 8 while enjoying the Ascend W1’s unique features,” said Terry Myerson, Corporate Vice President of the Windows Phone Division.
The HUAWEI Ascend W1 will be available in China and Russia from January 2013, with Western Europe, Middle East, USA and other selected countries to follow.
More information: Ascend W1 [Huawei Device microsite]
Nokia: end of the decline?
Nokia exceeds previous Q4 2012 outlook for Devices & Services and Nokia Siemens Networks [Nokia press release, Jan 10, 2012]
Nokia provides preliminary financial information for Q4 2012 and preliminary outlook for Q1 2013
Nokia Corporation
Stock exchange release
January 10, 2013 at 15:00 (CET+1)Espoo, Finland – Nokia today provided preliminary information on certain aspects of its fourth quarter 2012 financial performance and also provided preliminary information on its outlook for the first quarter 2013.
Nokia now estimates that Devices & Services has exceeded expectations and achieved underlying profitability in the fourth quarter 2012.
– Mobile Phones business unit and Lumia portfolio delivered better than expected results; and
– Operating expenses were lower than expected.
– Devices & Services non-IFRS operating margin for the fourth quarter 2012 now expected to be between break even and positive 2 percent.Seasonality and competitive environment are expected to have a negative impact on the first quarter 2013 underlying profitability for Devices & Services, compared to the fourth quarter 2012.
Nokia also estimates that Nokia Siemens Networks has exceeded expectations for the fourth quarter 2012, delivering record underlying profits and a third consecutive quarter of underlying profitability.
– Strong performance in higher margin product categories and geographic regions; and
– Better than expected cost management.
– Nokia Siemens Networks non-IFRS operating margin for the fourth quarter 2012 now expected to be between 13 and 15 percent.Seasonality is expected to have a negative impact on the first quarter 2013 underlying profitability for Nokia Siemens Networks, compared to the fourth quarter 2012.
Commenting on the preliminary Q4 financial information, Stephen Elop, Nokia CEO, said:
“We are pleased that Q4 2012 was a solid quarter where we exceeded expectations and delivered underlying profitability in Devices & Services and record underlying profitability in Nokia Siemens Networks. We focused on our priorities and as a result we sold a total of 14 million Asha smartphones and Lumia smartphones while managing our costs efficiently, and Nokia Siemens Networks delivered yet another very good quarter.”Preliminary financial information for the fourth quarter 2012:
Nokia currently estimates that Devices & Services net sales in the fourth quarter 2012 were approximately EUR 3.9 billion, with total device volumes of 86.3 million units.
– Mobile Phones net sales of approximately EUR 2.5 billion, with total volumes of 79.6 million units of which 9.3 million units were Asha full touch smartphones.
– Smart Devices net sales of approximately EUR 1.2 billion, with total volumes of 6.6 million units of which 4.4 million units were Nokia Lumia smartphones.
– Total smartphone volumes of 15.9 million units composed of 9.3 million Asha full touch smartphones, 4.4 million Lumia smartphones and 2.2 million Symbian smartphones.
– Devices & Services Other net sales of approximately EUR 0.2 billion, including a positive impact from non-recurring IPR income of approximately EUR 50 million.Nokia currently estimates that Devices & Services non-IFRS operating margin for the fourth quarter 2012 was between break even and positive 2 percent, which compares to the previous outlook of approximately negative 6 percent, plus or minus four percentage points. Devices & Services non-IFRS operating margin includes a positive impact from non-recurring IPR income of approximately EUR 50 million.
During the fourth quarter 2012, multiple factors positively affected Nokia’s Devices & Services businesses to a greater extent than previously expected. Preliminary information indicates that the main factors include:
– Within the Devices & Services business, better than expected financial performance in the Mobile Phones business unit and Lumia smartphones. In addition, Devices & Services recognized non-recurring IPR income of approximately EUR 50 million; and
– Lower than expected Devices & Services’ operating expenses, partially due to greater than expected cost reductions under the restructuring program.Nokia currently estimates that Location & Commerce net sales in the fourth quarter 2012 were approximately EUR 0.3 billion and the non-IFRS operating margin was between 13 and 15 percent.
Nokia and Nokia Siemens Networks currently estimates that Nokia Siemens Networks net sales in the fourth quarter 2012 were approximately EUR 4.0 billion and the non-IFRS operating margin was between 13 and 15 percent, which compares to the previous outlook of approximately positive 8 percent, plus or minus four percentage points. Nokia Siemens Networks non-IFRS operating margin includes a positive impact from non-recurring IPR income of approximately EUR 30 million.
During the fourth quarter 2012, multiple factors positively affected Nokia Siemens Networks’ businesses to a greater extent than previously expected. Preliminary information indicates that the main factors include:
– More favorable product and regional mix in Nokia Siemens Networks. In addition, Nokia Siemens Networks recognized non-recurring IPR income of approximately EUR 30 million; and
– Better than expected improvement under Nokia Siemens Networks’ restructuring program to reduce operating expenses and production overheads.Preliminary outlook for the first quarter 2013:
Nokia expects its non-IFRS Devices & Services operating margin in the first quarter 2013 to be approximately negative 2 percent, plus or minus four percentage points. This outlook is based on Nokia’s expectations regarding a number of factors, including:
– competitive industry dynamics continuing to negatively affect the Smart Devices and Mobile Phones business units;
– the first quarter being a seasonally weak quarter;
– consumer demand, particularly for our Lumia and Asha smartphones;
– continued ramp up for our new Lumia smartphones;
– expected cost reductions under Devices & Services’ restructuring program; and
– the macroeconomic environment.Nokia expects Location & Commerce non-IFRS operating margin in the first quarter 2013 to be negative due to lower recognized revenue from internal sales, which carry higher gross margin, and to a lesser extent by a negative mix shift within external sales.
Nokia and Nokia Siemens Networks expect Nokia Siemens Networks non-IFRS operating margin in the first quarter 2013 to be approximately positive 3 percent, plus or minus four percentage points. This outlook is based on Nokia Siemens Networks’ expectations regarding a number of factors, including:
– competitive industry dynamics;
– the first quarter being a seasonally weak quarter;
– product and regional mix;
– expected continued improvement under Nokia Siemens Networks’ restructuring program; and
– the macroeconomic environment.Nokia will provide more details when it reports fourth quarter and full year 2012 results on January 24, 2013.
Nokia will be hosting a conference call today at 13:30 UK time (8:30 EST).
Exynos 5 Octa, flexible display enhanced with Microsoft vision et al. from Samsung Components: the only valid future selling at CES 2013
[5:30 – 5:39] of the video embedded in ‘Details’ section below:
Samsung Components [the proper name is Device Solutions Division, Samsung Electronics]: a $16B operation just for Q3 2012 alone.
WTF are 8 cores for? How the mobile battery will cope with that? And the fundamental (technical only) answers to both questions (objections) are:
[24:00 – 24:50] of the video embedded in ‘Details’ section below:
demo and illustration of the big.LITTLE
Warren East, CEO, ARM:
[24:57] It is providing roughly twice the performance of today’s leading edge smartphones at half the power consumption when running common workloads [25:07]
Add here just the following illustration in order to avoid the (unfortunately) quite typical misunderstanding of having 8 core in Exynos 5 Octa, when in fact there are 4 cores used for different workloads:
WTF is a flexible display for?
[48:53 – 54:00] of the video embedded in ‘Details’ section below:
How Microsoft is using Samsung components to enhance their solutions, Eric Rudder, chief technical strategy officer, Microsoft:
[51:37] We actually have a prototype of Windows Phone and how would look on one of those screens [51:41]
…
[51:41] And Microsoft’s vision is that sensors like Kinect combined with flexible, transparent and projected displays will bring us to a point when any object can be a Surface and can be a computer. I’d like to close with a short video from Microsoft Research which extends interactivity to every surface in your living room. Last year you’ve may seen some videos with precomputed projections. What we’re demoing today is both real-time and fully interactive. And while you may find it hard to believe the footage shown here is exactly what’ve appeared in the lab without any special effects being added. Some companies talk about reality distortion field we’ve actually built one. [52:32]
[52:35 – 53:20] IllumiRoom Projects Images Beyond Your TV for an Immersive Gaming Experience [MicrosoftResearch YouTube channel, Jan 8, 2013]
[53:24] This is just a glimpse of what our future may hold in store for us. We’re excited that this technology can be used in many different ways: to enhance a TV or movie experience, or increase the reality of a flight simulator, or make educational scenarios more exciting. We look forward to our continued partnership with Samsung to deliver the next generation of devices and services. [53:49]
Details
<CES 2013 “warm-up” clips, worth to skip> [3:10]
<Gary Shapiro intro, might be skipped> [6:00]
Samsung Exynos 5 Octa & Flexible Display at CES 2013 Keynote [SamsungTomorrow YouTube channel, Jan 9, 2012]
Samsung Highlights Innovations in Mobile Experiences Driven by Components, in CES Keynote [Samsung press release, January 9, 2013]
Samsung’s President Introduces Broader Partnerships, New Products and the Possibilities They Enable
LAS VEGAS–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., a world leader in advanced semiconductor solutions, today redefined the story of consumer electronics from its perspective beneath the surface of mobile devices at the 2013 International CES keynote address.
“When you want multiple applications to perform at their best, you want the best application processor currently available—the Exynos 5 Octa.”
Dr. Stephen Woo, president of System LSI Business, Device Solutions Division, Samsung Electronics, shared the company’s vision of “Mobilizing Possibility,” highlighting the role of components as the engine behind innovation across the mobile landscape. The keynote event illustrated possibilities that Samsung envisions offering through its component solutions, and introduced new products that will herald such expectations.
“We believe the right component DNA drives the discovery of what’s possible,” said Woo. “Components are building blocks—the foundations on which devices are built. We at Samsung’s component solutions are creating new, game-changing components across all aspects of devices.”
Guests from partnering companies, such as Warren East, chief executive officer, ARM; Eric Rudder, chief technical strategy officer, Microsoft; Trevor Schick, senior vice president, enterprise group supply chain procurement, HP; and Glenn Roland, vice president and head of new platforms and OEM, EA; also took part in the event, echoing Samsung’s mission to offer breakthrough products and create shared value (CSV) for both manufacturers and end-users.
Woo opened by presenting Samsung’s goal for Mobilizing Possibility that takes big ideas off the drawing board and brings them to life for end-users, especially in the areas of processing performance, energy-efficient memory solutions and display technology. He emphasized that the limitless possibilities presented by consumer electronics will be based on component innovations by the company.
Processing Power
The first of Samsung’s new products announced at the keynote was the Exynos 5 Octa, the world’s first mobile application processor to implement the ARM® big.LITTLE™ processing technology based on the Cortex™-A15 CPU. Following the Exynos 5 Dual, which is already on board of market-leading products such as the Google Chromebook and Nexus 10, the successor is the newest addition to the Exynos family of application processors.
“The new Exynos 5 Octa introduces a whole new concept in processing architecture…designed for high-end smartphones and tablets,” said Woo. “When you want multiple applications to perform at their best, you want the best application processor currently available—the Exynos 5 Octa.”
To expand on the big.LITTLE concept, Warren East, chief executive officer, ARM, joined Woo on stage and introduced the new technology that has just become available in silicon through the Exynos 5 Octa. Housing a total of eight cores to draw from—four powerful Cortex-A15™ processors to handle processing-intense tasks along with four additional Cortex-A7™ cores for lighter workloads—the application processor offers maximum performance and up to 70 percent higher energy efficiency compared to the previous quad-core Exynos.
Glenn Roland, vice president and head of new platforms and OEM, EA [Electronic Arts], helped Woo demonstrate the processing power of the Exynos 5 Octa by showing off one of EA’s latest 3D racing games, Need for Speed™ Most Wanted. Atop the reference device, the application processor delivered an elevated real-life gaming experience within the mobile platform, rendering stunning graphics performance and real-time response speed.
Green Memory Capabilities
As advanced processing power on mobile devices accelerates easier data creation by the masses, the mobile experience will increasingly become more dependent upon datacenters largely responsible for the proliferating data traffic. Growing in size and capacity, IT systems face challenges both in performance and power savings to secure sustainability moving forward. Memory devices, the main products for servers that make up these datacenters, can deliver substantial gains by adopting cutting-edge technology available from Samsung.
Woo pointed out that managing the power consumption in these datacenters have become crucial and that Samsung’s green memory solutions with solid state drives (SSD) and advanced DRAM (dynamic random access memory) are addressing this key issue with their powerful, yet energy-efficient processing capabilities. Compared to traditional datacenters that incorporate hard disk drives (HDD), server and storage solutions equipped with green memory pull the data processing speeds up six-fold while operating with 26 percent less electricity.
Display Technology
As components on the surface that interact directly with users, display solutions bring the technology advancements to life and make them tangible through the device interface. Woo presented the future possibilities of Samsung’s displays along with Brian Berkeley, senior vice president of Samsung Display. While crystal-clear picture qualities become a reality, the two Samsung speakers were pleased to share that the innovations do not sacrifice energy efficiency.
Woo and Berkeley described the 10.1-inch liquid crystal display (LCD) panel that is currently adopted by the Nexus 10. With a 2560×1600 resolution and 300 pixels per inch (ppi), the panel renders stunning picture qualities while consuming only 75 percent of the energy used in previous display solutions.
Using Samsung’s energy-efficient green LCD technology, the company is currently developing a 10.1-inch model that would lower power consumption even further by 25 percent, while offering equal resolution qualities as its predecessor.
Prototypes and real-life scenarios for Samsung’s line of flexible organic light emitting diode (OLED) displays were also showcased, promising various mobile application opportunities for consumer electronics manufacturers. Dubbed “YOUM,” the flexible display line-up uses extremely thin plastic instead of glass, making it bendable and virtually “unbreakable.” Berkeley featured a smartphone prototype equipped with a curved edge that showed contiguous content along the side of the device.
“Our team was able to make a high-resolution display on extremely thin plastic instead of glass, so it won’t break even if it’s dropped,” said Berkeley. “This new form factor will really begin to change how people interact with their devices, opening up new lifestyle possibilities … [and] allow our partners to create a whole new ecosystem of devices.”
One of Samsung’s partners that bring the company’s state-of-the-art components together is Microsoft, adding more layers of value to the final product with its software solutions, devices and services. Eric Rudder, chief technical strategy officer, Microsoft, took the complete ATIV family of devices as an example through which Samsung’s component solutions and Windows 8 together present new potential in user interfaces. Rudder reported that Microsoft Research has been continuing its work on next-generation display technologies, enabling new modes of human-computer interaction.
Possibility for All
Creating a better world with its resources is one of Samsung’s core values. Samsung’s flagship corporate social responsibility initiative, Samsung Hope for Children, was launched in this spirit, through which the company provides its products, expertise and financial support to tackle the needs of children around the world for education and healthcare. Woo emphasized that Samsung’s innovation in components share the same thread as a driver that truly mobilizes possibility without boundaries or barriers.
“When [Samsung’s] technologies harmonize, amazing things happen. Advances in components are giving rise to a whole new era of possibility,” said Woo. “At Samsung, we are passionate about Mobilizing Possibility. Not just for the privileged few, but possibility for all.”
For more information about Samsung’s 2013 International CES keynote, visit www.samsung.com/2013ceskeynote or www.samsungces.com.
About Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.
Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. is a global leader in consumer electronics and the core components that go into them. Through relentless innovation and discovery, we are transforming the worlds of televisions, smartphones, personal computers, printers, cameras, home appliances, medical devices, semiconductors and LED solutions. We employ 227,000 people across 75 countries with annual sales exceeding US$143 billion. Our goal is opening new possibilities for people everywhere. To discover more, please visit www.samsung.com.
ARM TechCon 2012 – Warren East, CEO ARM Keynote [ARMflix, Nov 2, 2012]
More essential details:
– Cortex-A7 OR Low-Power Leadership for A Smarter Future – The Legend of ARM Cortex-A7 [USD 99 Allwinner, Jan 7, 2013]
– Fast 3d party IP OR the external Intellectual Property which makes Allwinner’s unprecedented pace of further next-gen SoC introductions possible despite of the company size of only 500 employees [USD 99 Allwinner, Dec 28, 2012]
– Samsung Exynos 5250 [Dec 6, 2011]
– for Samsung semiconductor foundry operation: see inside the Qualcomm’s critical reliance on supply constrained 28nm foundry capacity [this same ‘Experiencing the ‘Cloud’ blog, July 27 – Nov 13, 2012]
– Intel targeting ARM based microservers: the Calxeda case [this same ‘Experiencing the ‘Cloud’ blog, Dec 14, 2012]
– Intel’s biggest flop: at least 3-month delay in delivering the power management solution for its first tablet SoC [this same ‘Experiencing the ‘Cloud’ blog, Dec 20, 2012]
Windows RT must work with more chips to take off, ARM CEO says [CNET, Jan 9, 2012]
LAS VEGAS — Microsoft’s newest operating system that runs on cell phone chips is off to a slow start, but it’s only a matter of time before it gains more traction, the chief executive of chip technology designer ARM Holdings said.
Warren East, speaking today in an interview with CNET at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, said that for that to happen, Microsoft needs to make its software, dubbed Windows RT, work with more ARM-based processors. He said it eventually will do so, but it’s unclear when that will be.
Currently, Windows RT runs only on Qualcomm and Nvidia chips (it also used to work with Texas Instruments’ processors, but that company decided to move away from providing chips for mobile devices). And only four PC makers ultimately built Windows RT products.
“If Microsoft wants to benefit from the ARM business model and the ARM world, then they’ll have to support multiple players,” East said. “Otherwise, there’s no real advantage for them in working with ARM.”
…
East today noted that when Microsoft first started talking with ARM about making a tablet/PC operating system that works with its processors, Microsoft wanted to work with only one ARM-based chip partner.
“We said, ‘no, no, you need to work with a few, because we have found over the years it helps to work with a few, or otherwise you end up getting too channeled into the requirements of one customer,” he said.
…
Microsoft Research at CES: IllumiRoom [Next at Microsoft blog, Jan 9, 2013]
Earlier this morning at CES, Eric Rudder, Microsoft’s Chief Technology Strategy Officer, joined the Samsung keynote to share Microsoft’s vision for extending computing interactions to any surface in your home. This wasn’t a product launch but I’m excited by the potential shown in the research that we shared.
Imagine a space like your kitchen or a classroom achieving that same level of interactivity as your phone – this will happen through a combination of embedded devices and sensors such as Kinect for Windows. Our research demo only covers educational and entertainment scenarios but the possibilities are endless.
It’s rare for a company to pull back the curtain and share research in such raw form at the world’s largest technology tradeshow. However, we think it’s vitally important to get the next generation of students excited about Computer Science – and what better way than to show off research that makes gaming more fun!
While magicians never share their secrets, researchers have to publish, so, a bit of explanation about the demo is in order. You may have seen interesting 3D-mapped projections over the past few years – Microsoft partners like Nokia and Samsung have both used pre-rendered footage in recent marketing efforts. What’s new in this work is that our researchers used Kinect for Windows to map the room in real-time in order to make projected illusions fully interactive. Most importantly, the effects shown in the video were captured live as they appeared in the living room environment and are not the result of special effects added in post processing.
For more on the science behind this demo, check out the MSR IllumiRoom project site from Hrvoje Benko, Andrew Wilson, Eyal Ofek, and Brett Jones – they’ll have more to come at CHI 2013 in April.
IllumiRoom: Peripheral Projected Illusions for Interactive Experiences [Microsoft Research, Jan 9, 2013 ]
IllumiRoom is a proof-of-concept system from Microsoft Research. It augments the area surrounding a television screen with projected visualizations to enhance the traditional living room entertainment experience.
IllumiRoom uses a Kinect for Windows camera and a projector to blur the lines between on-screen content and the environment we live in allowing us to combine our virtual and physical worlds. For example, our system can change the appearance of the room, induce apparent motion, extend the field of view, and enable entirely new game experiences.
Our system uses the appearance and the geometry of the room (captured by Kinect) to adapt the projected visuals in real-time without any need to custom pre-process the graphics. What you see in the videos below has been captured live and is not the result of any special effects added in post production.
Stay tuned for more information and a paper explaining all the details coming up at ACM CHI 2013.
