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Apple to go to an Intel foundry?
Apple chip roadmap hints A5 iPhone 5, A6 iPad 3 [June 3, 2011]:
Gwennap anticipates Apple may have to think different in future. That’s because Apple should match industry trends in order to create a quad-core A6 processor next year.
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Processor manufacturing is currently conducted by Samsung. But, with Apple and Samsung’s mobile division involved in an increasingly bitter courtroom dispute, it seems unlikely this relationship will continue forever. This must be why Apple is working with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing to bring that firm online as processor maker.
There’s another option too, and highly-placed executives at that firm seem willing to dance with Apple. Apple “helps shape” Intel’s road map, according to Intel SVP Tom Kilroy. And Intel CEO, Paul Otellini has observed that money from mobile processor design is “mostly going to the foundry guys”.
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The notion that Intel may begin manufacturing ARM-based processors seems highly counter-intuitive…but the foundry market is set to be worth in excess of $50 billion by 2015, says Microprocessor Review.
High expectations on Marvell’s opportunities with China Mobile
Follow-up: First real chances for Marvell on the tablet and smartphone fronts [Aug 21 – Sept 25, 2011]
After the technical and business excellence well reflected in my previous posts Marvell seems to be on the high rise.
See my previous posts as well:
– ASUS, China Mobile and Marvell join hands in the OPhone ecosystem effort for “Blue Ocean” dominance [March 8, 2011]
– Kinoma is now the marvellous software owned by Marvell [Feb 15, 2011]
– Marvell to capitalize on BRIC market with the Moby tablet [Feb 3, 2011]
– Marvell ARMADA beats Qualcomm Snapdragon, NVIDIA Tegra and Samsung/Apple Hummingbird in the SoC market [again] [Sept 23, 2010 – Jan 17, 2011]
Update: Marvell Leads TD-SCDMA Market with Industry’s First Commercially Available Single-Chip Solution Shipping in China [June 1, 2011] (emphasis is mine)
Company showcases at Computex 2011 a suite of new smartphones, tablets and mobile hotspot devices developed for the China market powered by Marvell’s PXA920 series of high performance single-chip TD-SCDMA solutions.
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… said Weili Dai, Marvell’s Co-Founder. “Marvell has raised the technology bar for the entire industry. We believe Marvell has delivered a quantum leap to the development and adoption of the TD-SCDMA standard. Because of this breakthrough, more than a dozen world-leading mobile OEMs are launching Marvell® PXA920 based products in China. We’re very proud to enable the next billion users of connected devices in China.”
Marvell’s industry-leading TD-SCDMA solution is designed to deliver world-class performance – 3D graphics, mobile gaming, mobile TV, and high definition video with a unified user experience across different product platforms enabled by Marvell’s beautiful and easy-to-use Kinoma® software. Additionally, the PXA920 series of products are the industry’s first TD-SCDMA solution that combines a high performance application processor and modem and enables realization of the long-standing quest for mass market smartphones priced at 1,000 RMB. This same platform is designed to support worldwide 3G and 2G standards, allowing OEMs to rapidly deploy WCDMA smartphones, tablets, and mobile hotspot devices in China and beyond.
Marvell provides a complete solution including system-on-chip (SoC) communication processors, modems, RF, PMIC, and integrated Wi-Fi/BT/FM connectivity including 1×1 and 2×2 mobile MIMO with beamforming capabilities. Marvell’s TD-SCDMA silicon and software solutions were developed at its Shanghai design center, home to approximately 1,000 engineers dedicated to the China market.
Update: The PXA920 opportunity was realized only in September 2011, two years later than the September 2009 launch. See:First real chances for Marvell on the tablet and smartphone fronts [Aug 21, 2011]
Marvell Up 11%: Street Says ‘Inflection Point’ [May 27, 2011] (emphasis is mine)
Shares of Marvell Technology Group (MRVL) are up $1.53, almost 11%, at $16.09 after the company last night missedfiscal Q1 estimates but forecast the current quarter ahead of consensus, based on an expectation for a pick-up in its wireless chip business.
Most analysts this morning are saying business has hit bottom and is on the way back up. Estimates are up all around, though there are no ratings revisions, as far as I can see, and price targets are mostly staying where they were.
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The China Mobile (CHL) “OPhone” project for TD-SCDMA handsets could bring the company $40 million in the latter half of this year.
… in Ophone it believes it has ~80% of a 10-12M C12 TD unit oppty …
… the Q2 forecast is “a fundamental inflection point,” even though the ramp-up of wireless chips for China Mobile’s OPhone will be relatively immaterial. “We believe the company is ramping several OEMs this quarter, with one being ASUS. Previously, management indicated that it had garnered design wins for 90% of current OPhone models across eight of the top nine OEMs. The company now expects to ship to over 12 customers this year with a design win rate of ~80%.” …
With that market capitalization of Marvell went from $9.2B to $10.2B in a single day.
Marvell Technology Group’s CEO Discusses Q1 2012 Results – Earnings Call Transcript [May 26, 2011] (emphasis is mine)
Given the recent market concern surrounding our Mobile and Wireless business, I would like to take a moment to address this up front. First, I would like to stress that the mobile end market is a key area for Marvell, and we continue to invest new product development and to strengthen our infrastructure to support new customers.
As an example, we are currently supporting over 20 handset designs at new customers. In addition to our current 3G and TD offerings, our investment in advanced technologies, such as LTE, are starting to pay benefits. We are already sampling our LTE solutions at some of our key customers and believe we are well positioned to benefit when the market ramps. Although quarter-to-quarter fluctuations are hard to avoid, we believe our business at our leading customers will be sustained, and we will continue to be a significant player in this space.
Second, I want to share with you the current status of the ramp in TD products. We are winning about 80% of the TD smartphone designs on the Android and OMS platforms. Our single-chip solutions address the entire spectrum of low- to high-end TD phones, and we are firmly entrenched in the high-volume sweet spot. We believe our solutions are compelling for this market and should translate into solid growth for our TD business this year.
We remain confident that our early investment in support of the TD has been extended in China will be very beneficial to us as the majority of China’s mobile 600 million subscribers continue migrating to the smartphone market on the TD standard.
In addition, we are working with our key carrier partners and handset customers on prototypes for our next-generation TD LTE, which we’ll be sampling later this year. These new products are best in class and fully backward-compatible. We believe these investments will further distance us from our competitors in TD.
During the last quarter, we achieved a significant milestone as the first company to ship TD single-chip solutions in production volumes. We expect these revenues to more than double in the second quarter. This should provide clear evidence that our strategy in TD is successful.
Question-and-Answer Session [of the above]
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Let me add a little bit more color about why is TD so important to China. There’s a lot of people — a lot of people in outside China are skeptical about the opportunities of TD in China. The way I look at it, I can explain it from a technical point of view. But then, I can speak until I’m tired, and nobody will care anyway. So I’m trying to, this time, answer you from a different angle, from a non-technical point of view.
As you know, Chinese have been run — the society has been run for 4,000 or 5,000 years of history. And over those history, they invented many new technologies hundreds of years before anybody else invented those technologies. Yes, okay, recently, okay, in the modern eras, in the cell phone, they were behind. But they were behind only for a few years. The TD-SCDMA industry standard was developed a few years later than the WCDMA 3G standards. So it’s natural for the WCDMAs to be ramping up in the rest of the world first.
However, China, with understanding the Chinese, already waited 5,000 years in history. Waiting for a few more years for ramping up all the majority of their cell phones to use Chinese phone standard. Okay, it’s of the highest priority for the Chinese people. So this, compared to anything else, this is more important than, let’s say, speeding up the deployment of 3G into China by using outside technology. And they’re only few years. And from then on the Chinese people will be labeled do not have any 3G technology. So the way I look at it, okay, that’s not going to happen.
What’s going to happen is that TD is beginning to be deployed in China for the Chinese people. They’re ramping up huge number of subscriber, and as I mentioned earlier, 600 million subscribers. Over time, those subscribers will all move to TD-SCDMA and TD LTE. The base stations already been deployed. More than 220,000 base station last year being deployed throughout the whole China, not just in the big cities. Everywhere, throughout the whole China. That’s more than base stations, the number of base stations in the largest area in, let’s say, in the U.S. in total. And this is just the new base station for China Mobile, and they continue to invest in new base stations this year and next year.
So you can see that the opportunities for us is great. The only thing, as Clyde said, is we need to just wait and see when the rest of the customer will ramp up. As the products get more mature, as the prices goes down, it will be natural for those design wins to continue to go into production. And the beauty is that we have 80% of design wins. So at least we don’t have to worry about, okay, when it actually ramps, it will be somebody else, not only us.
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… there’s a 800-pound gorilla that’s out there that’s very strongly the tablet business. So every other — the vast majority of companies there working on the tablet solutions do have a challenge on trying to get the tablet market in the short term.
In the long term. In the long term, I do believe that our strength in being able to integrate the modem and the application processors will be important not just in the cell phone, in the smartphone, but also in the tablet. There are so many — because after all, the tablet — if you think about what’s in the tablet, the tablet really is a smartphone with a bigger screen. So it’s just a matter of time.
You’re asking about in the next 2 or 3 years, I do believe in the next 2 years or so when things, the dust settle down, the tablet and the smartphones really looks just the same like we have design wins like we have significantly done with in the smartphones market, but we’ll have design wins, sizeable design wins, in the tablet. For the market, they are obviously, we’ll use the type of technology, the modem technology that we developed. For this market that we don’t use our own, the modem that we don’t develop, obviously, they’ll go somewhere else.
But as I said, TD-SCDMA, we invest in TD-SCDMA, LTE, TD LTE, as well, and WCDMA. So this is at least 70%, 80% of the market of the world anyway, so that’s enough. There’s a big enough time for us to address. And so if we can address our fair share of market share for those markets, we’ll be just fine.
And so for now, for us is to invest. We have to invest in the software. We have to invest and support of the customers. We have to design new chips with more advanced technology, better and higher integrations, and make the things lower cost and so on. So the standard stuff that we do in any other businesses. So sometimes these things takes time, longer time than we expect. I understand the frustration. I also wish I could get things get done sooner, but sometimes we win some. Sometimes, we lose some, and then things get delayed. We’ll come back and recover, and then we’ll become a stronger company as a result.
Microsoft’s next step in SoC level slot management
Update: Microsoft postpones IDP for 2 weeks to re-consult with chip players [June 2, 2011]
Microsoft has postponed its Integrated Development Program (IDP) for Windows 8 as the plan created significant dissatisfaction within the upstream supply chain. Microsoft is set to re-consult with the five major chip players about IDP, while Microsoft OEM vice president Steven Guggenheimer also paid visits to executives of Acer and Asustek Computer on June 1, to communicate and is set to re-release details of IDP after two weeks, according to sources from notebook players.
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Sources from chip players pointed out that Microsoft’s actions have their reasons, but the way the company unfolded the plan to its partners could make its partners feel unpleasant since players that do not participate believe they will lose the opportunity to launch Windows 8-based products first hand, which could seriously affect their product lineup in the future.
The chip players also noted that the development of ARM-based Windows 8 has difficulties and if Microsoft adopts an open development program as in the past, the company may not have enough manpower to support and answer all the problems and questions chip and system players have.
Following Microsoft’s CES 2011 move to the SoC level slot management of the market, here is the next step in that direction:
Taiwan PC vendors seeking participation in developing Windows 8 [May 25, 2011] (emphasis is mine)
Microsoft has talked with Nvidia, Qualcomm, Texas Instruments (TI), Intel and AMD for their participation in its Integrated Development Program specifically for developing Windows 8 for use in tablet PCs and has asked each IC vendor to invite two PC vendors for joint development and testing, according to industry sources in Taiwan. Taiwan-based PC vendors who have been in long-term partnerships with Microsoft have complained to the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) because they were not invited to participate, and hope for the government’s negotiation with Microsoft, the sources added.
For each of the five IC vendors, Microsoft seems to have desirable PC vendors such as Samsung Electronics, Hewlett-Packard (HP) and Dell, the sources indicated.
The IC vendors are actually unwilling to invite only two PC vendors because they each have many PC clients and participation of more PC vendors is commercially favorable for them. Thus, the IC vendors have urged Microsoft to invite more PC vendors, but Microsoft has so far insisted on the quota of two for the initial period, the sources said.
Wu Ming-ji, director general of the Department of Industrial Technology under MOEA, indicated the department has heard about Microsoft’s move from Taiwan-based PC vendors although Microsoft has not confirmed it.
In view of the business performance and global reputation of Taiwan-based vendors Acer, Asustek and HTC, the Taiwan government recommends that Microsoft invite them to co-develop Windows 8 in the first round because this would be in Microsoft’s best interest, Wu emphasized.
However, Wu did not indicated whether the government will negotiate with Microsoft or make any arrangement.
What happened at CES 2011 has been described in my CES 2011 presence with Microsoft moving to SoC & screen level slot management that is not understood by analysts/observers at all [Jan 7, 2011] report.
Since that report is enormously large I will include here all the relevant excerpts regarding the SoC level of slot management:
Microsoft’s CES 2011 presence is summarized in two detailed parts below, one for the System on a Chip (SoC) support announcement and the other based on the Steve Ballmer’s CES 2011 opening keynote. The first one has, however, been a source of great confusion among the company watchers, analysts and observers, therefore before we start the detailed overview in these two parts we should look into that situation first.
While the company has clearly stated that Microsoft Announces Support of System on a Chip Architectures From Intel, AMD, and ARM for Next Version of Windows [Jan 5] even such an ardent Microsoft watcher as Mary-Jo Foles interpreted this as a simple message that CES: Microsoft shows off Windows 8 on ARM [Jan 5]. No wonder that Computerworld has written an article that an Analyst ‘baffled’ by Microsoft talk of Windows 8 on ARM [Jan 6]:
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In an accompanying analysis article IDG News Services has even up the ante by declaring that Microsoft must get ISVs onto ARM bandwagon, Microsoft has a lot of work to do moving Windows to ARM chips [Jan 6]:
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This is all absolutely wrong. The truth is that Microsoft made a strategic decision of moving its core slot management approach to the key System on a Chip (SoC) vendors. It is a decision of enormous significance because up to now the company was managing the slots created by the PC vendors. That is Microsoft had been trying to ensure all along that the client PCs shipped to the market, the “slots” in terms of Microsoft internal way of thinking:
- Are best when they are running Microsoft system software.
- Have that software already installed when the devices are out of the factory floor (with OEM versions)
From now on Microsoft will do a kind of similar thing on the SoC level (and on the screen level as well), this is my conclusion as I carefully compiled all the available information in the two parts available below. This became absolutely obvious to me as I compared the below details with the radically new “slot situation” represented in my previous post Changing purchasing attitudes for consumer computing are leading to a new ICT paradigm [Jan 5].
Look for example how PC vendors were underrepresented in the keynote compared to what had been before (see my earlier posts: Windows slates in the coming months? Not much seen yet [July 13 – Oct 6, 2010] and Windows 7 tablets/slates with Oak Trail Atom SoC in December [Nov 1 – 24, 2010]) as well as how on the electronics industry level things had been changed recently (see my earlier posts: Marvell ARMADA beats Qualcomm Snapdragon, NVIDIA Tegra and Samsung/Apple Hummingbird in the SoC market [again] [Sept 23 –Nov 4, 2010,] and Intel’s industry position and prospects for years ahead [Dec 9, 2010]).
Notes:
– Mary-Jo Foley started to discover some, but only some real motives in her latest With Windows coming to ARM, what happens to Windows Embedded Compact? [Jan 7]. There she mused about the really significant fact of the cancellation of Microsoft OEM chief’s planned appearance at the J.P. Morgan Tech Forum at CES (see the final agenda where Microsoft is missing) which was much anticipated by the investor community.
– Although for me that sign is important as well, the fact that HTML5 related announcements (as was anticipated in my previous post of Windows 7 slates with a personal cloud based layered interface for touch-first HTML5 applications on the CES 2011 [Dec 14, 2010] post) were postponed has even much bigger significance. Whatever will come regarding that upto the MIX 2011 of April 12-14 will be equally important to clarify the rest of the new strategic Microsoft picture. Particularly I am expecting that Silverlight technologies will nicely join the already known IE9/HTML5 push in a new platform technology setup.
Part I. The SoC support announcement
Microsoft Announces Support of System on a Chip Architectures From Intel, AMD, and ARM for Next Version of Windows [Jan 5], (emphasis is mine):
Microsoft Corp. today announced at 2011 International CES that the next version of Windows will support System on a Chip (SoC) architectures, including ARM-based systems from partners NVIDIA Corp. [Tegra platform], Qualcomm Inc. [Snapdragon platform] and Texas Instruments Inc [OMAP platform]. On the x86 architecture, Intel Corporation and AMD continue their work on low-power SoC designs that fully support Windows, including support for native x86 applications. SoC architectures will fuel significant innovation across the hardware spectrum when coupled with the depth and breadth of the Windows platform.
At today’s announcement, Microsoft demonstrated the next version of Windows running on new SoC platforms from Intel running on x86 architecture and from NVIDIA, Qualcomm and Texas Instruments on ARM architecture. The technology demonstration included Windows client support across a range of scenarios, such as hardware-accelerated graphics and media playback, hardware-accelerated Web browsing with the latest Microsoft Internet Explorer, USB device support, printing and other features customers have come to expect from their computing experience. Microsoft Office running natively on ARM was also shown as a demonstration of the potential of Windows platform capabilities on ARM architecture.
…SoC architectures consolidate the major components of a computing device onto a single package of silicon. This consolidation enables smaller, thinner devices while reducing the amount of power required for the device, increasing battery life and making possible always-on and always-connected functionality. With support of SoC in the next version of the Windows client, Microsoft is enabling industry partners to design and deliver the widest range of hardware ever.
Next Version of Windows Will Run on System on a Chip (SoC) Architectures from Intel, AMD and ARM [Jan 5]
(emphasis is mine) Q&A: In a technology preview at CES, Microsoft demonstrates Windows running on new SoC x86 and ARM-based systems.
The Microsoft News Center team talked with Steven Sinofsky, president of the Windows and Windows Live Division, in advance of the announcement.
Microsoft News Center: Can you give us an overview of what led you to make this announcement today and what the specific news is?
Sinofsky: We are making this announcement now to allow greater collaboration across our expanded partner ecosystem so we can bring to market the widest possible set of PCs and devices, from tablets on up, with the next generation of Windows. We’re at a point in engineering the next release of Windows where we are demonstrating our progress and bringing together an even broader set of partners required to deliver solutions to customers.
We’ve reached a point in technology where everyone really does want everything from their computing experience — the power and breadth of software for today’s laptop, the long battery life and always-on promise of a mobile phone, and the possibilities from a new generation of tablets. Bringing these capabilities together to meet customer demand requires innovation in hardware as well as a flexible, evolving software platform to bring it to life.
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Microsoft News Center: Tell us about your partners on ARM-based systems. How were they selected and what do they bring to the table?
Sinofsky: It takes experienced partners to help deliver Windows to a whole new set of devices and we’re pleased NVIDIA, Qualcomm and Texas Instruments have joined us in this technology demonstration. We look forward to even more robust collaboration between silicon partners and a broader set of partners as we work together to bring new PCs and devices – from tablets on up – to market with the next version of Windows.
Microsoft News Center: You’ve talked about these new systems being ready for the next version of Windows. What does this mean for future hardware innovation on Windows 7?
Sinofsky: Windows 7 continues to be extraordinarily well-received by customers – consumers and businesses – using a broad selection of PCs for a wide variety of usage scenarios. There is no better place to see this array of choice and innovation than at a show like CES. At the Windows 7 launch, we saw a terrific line-up of new offerings from partners, and this CES brings another wave of great Windows 7 PCs across a wide range of form factors and capabilities, including new designs on Intel’s 2nd Generation Intel® Core™ Processor Family and AMD’s Fusion APUs. OEMs are delivering great designs and personalized selection across the wide range of PCs including convertibles, gaming rigs, all-in-ones, ultraportables, everyday laptops, and tablet PCs. We know we’ll see additional waves of hardware innovation over the next several seasons as well and we look forward to continuing to work closely with our partners.
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Microsoft News Center: What exactly are you demonstrating today as part of this announcement with respect to Windows on ARM?
Sinofsky: Today’s demonstrations will highlight the work we have done on the architecture of Windows to enable the richness of the Windows platform to run natively on the ARM platform. That includes support across a full range of scenarios like hardware accelerated media playback, hardware accelerated Web browsing with the latest Internet Explorer, USB device support, printing, and other features customers have come to expect from their computing experience.
The underlying architecture and engineering work includes a significant set of capabilities to run natively on ARM across the low-level subsystems of Windows as we bring Windows together with this new hardware platform.
Today’s demonstration represents the first showing of the next release of Windows. We know many of our most enthusiastic supporters are interested in learning more about the user interface, programming APIs, and other new features to come in Windows. The announcement today is just the start of our dialog with a broad community around Windows and, as with Windows 7, we will be engaging in the broadest pre-release program of any operating system. So there is a lot more to come.
Microsoft News Center: What can you tell us about Office on ARM?
Sinofsky: We’re committed to making sure that Windows on SoC architectures is a rich Windows experience. Microsoft Office is an important part of customers’ PC experience and ensuring it runs natively on ARM is a natural extension of our Windows commitment to SoC architectures.
Microsoft News Center: What else can you say about the next version of Windows?
Sinofsky: What we showed today was a technology preview of how Windows can adapt to run on SoC architectures. We are making this announcement now to enable our silicon partners, including new ARM partners, to collaborate across the ecosystem to bring innovation to market with the next version of Windows. We’re hard at work on all the aspects of the next version of Windows and we’ll share more information when the time is right.
Update: Intel CEO Paul Otellini addresses Microsoft’s ARM move in the wake of record earnings announcement [Jan 13] (emphasis is mine)
The plus for Intel is that as they unify their operating systems we now have the ability for the first time, one, to have a designed-from-scratch, touch-enabled operating system for tablets that runs on Intel that we don’t have today; and, secondly, we have the ability to put our lowest-power Intel processors, running Windows 8 or the next generation of Windows, into phones, because it’s the same OS stack. And I look at that as an upside opportunity for us.
On the downside, there’s the potential, given that Office runs on these products, for some creep-up coming into the PC space. I am skeptical of that for two reasons: one, that space has a different set of power and performance requirements where Intel is exceptionally good; and secondly, users of those machines expect legacy support for software and peripherals that has to all be enabled from scratch for those devices.
Part II. The Steve Ballmer CES 2011 opening keynote and all other Microsoft related
– Footage from the Microsoft keynote with some relevant keynote transcript excerpts included
– New Windows Laptops, Tablets and Slates Showcased
– The Next Generation of Microsoft Surface – LCDs That Can ‘See’
– New Xbox Avatar Capabilities on Display
– Copy-and-Paste Coming to Windows Phone 7
– Additional details for the three PCs demonstrated in the keynote
– Other new PCs
– Hardware acceleration for cloud clients (browsers etc.): AMD Fusion APUs, NVIDIA GeForce 500M [Jan 14]
– Xbox and Surface 2 additional information
– Windows Embedded Standard 7: the first wave of OEM partners exploiting the included Windows Media Center
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See more in my CES 2011 presence with Microsoft moving to SoC & screen level slot management that is not understood by analysts/observers at all [Jan 7, 2011] report.
TSMC led foundries and their SoC customers against Intel
See also: Intel’s SoC strategy strengthened by 22nm Tri-Gate technology [May 10, 2011]
Follow-up: Next-gen Snapdragon S4 class SoCs — exploiting TSMC’s 28nm process first — coming in December [Aug 9 – Nov 25, 2011]
Update: TSMC seeing tight capacity for 28nm processes [Nov 25, 2011]
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) continues to see orders heat up for advanced 28nm technology, despite a general slowdown in the semiconductor industry, according to industry sources. Order visibility has stretched to about six months, said the sources.
TSMC is expected to see 28nm processes account for more than 2% of company revenues in the fourth quarter of 2011. The proportion will expand further to over 10% in 2012, as more available capacity coupled with rising customer demand boost the output, the sources indicated.
Wafer output using 28nm processes is projected to top 20,000 units a month by the end of 2011, and will expand significantly in 2012 when new capacity at Fab 15 comes online, the sources noted. Fab 15, TSMC’s third 12-inch fab, will begin volume production in the first quarter of 2012, and ultimately raise its monthly capacity to the designed level of 100,000 wafers per month.
Altera, AMD, Nvidia, Qualcomm and Xilinx have all contracted TSMC to manufacture their 28nm products. Broadcom, LSI Logic and STMicroelectronics reportedly are among potential clients for TSMC’s 28nm technology.
TSMC chairman and CEO Morris Chang remarked during the company’s most-recent investors meeting that sales from 28nm process technology would play an important source of company growth.
TSMC to Double Output Capacity in Five Years [May 6, 2011]
Over the past three years, the No.1 silicon foundry spent around US$16 billion boosting production capacity, to an equivalent of 10 million 200mm wafers. The company`s four new factories will help achieve the 20 million wafer goal after entering into pilot production sometime this year.
Advanced process technologies are crucial in the goal. The company will put its 28nm process into pilot production at its Fab 15, an extraordinarily huge wafer fab by capacity, in the third quarter of the year. By the end of this year, the company`s 300mm wafer fabs are projected to have total output of 300,000 wafers of chips a month.
TSMC Estimated to Earn NT$7 Per Share in 2012 [May 10, 2011]
The No.1 silicon foundry recently announced it would enter pilot production based on 28nm process technology sometime in the third quarter ahead of schedule and kick off volume production in the following quarter. So far, the chipmaker has completed 89 contracted 28nm tapeouts, the final results of photomask design for 28nm integrated circuit.
Industry watchers pointed out that the tapeout number is 10 times the number of all its competitors and twice the number of the company`s 40nm tapeouts introduced in 2008. TSMC, they added, has seen hefty revenue and earnings from 40nm process, which it took two years to develop.
Some institutional investors noted that advanced process technologies have propelled TSMC far ahead of its rivals in market dominance, with 65nm process securing a 65% of the contracts depending on the process and 40nm wining an 80% of the customers using the process. Overall, TSMC has filled 47.1% of world demands for silicon foundry service.
They analyzed TSMC still gains an upper hand in 28nm competition in spite of formidable competitors as Intel and Samsung. These competitors would have an uphill battle against TSMC if they fail to put 28nm process into volume production by the end of this year.
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Over the next three years, smartphone and tablet PC will remain the major drivers behind TSMC`s growth.
This year, TSMC has budgeted US$7.8 billion for boosting its 28nm, 40nm and 65nm production capacities, compared with its US$5.9 billion spending on advanced process projects last year.
TSMC Makes Fortune From Smart Phones [May 3, 2011]
For every smartphone sold on the market, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) rakes in an average of US$7 in revenue from the sale, the company`s chairman and chief executive officer, Morris Chang estimated.
TSMC has been the primary contract manufacturer of the chips for almost all smartphones other than iPhones. Its contract buyers include processor vendors Nvidia Corp., Texas Instruments Inc. (TI) and Marvell Technology Group Ltd. as well as wireless-chip vendors Broadcom Corp. and Qualcomm International Inc.
Thanks to a strong smartphone market, sales of contracted chips for communications products constituted 48% of TSMC`s revenue of NT$105.3 billion (US$3.5 billion at US$1: NT$30) for the first quarter.
TSMC to Launch 20nm Pilot Production in 2012 [April 26, 2011]
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) will put its 20nm process into pilot production sometime in the second half of 2012 as its first step into 450mm wafer era, according to the company`s senior vice president in charge of research and development, S.Y. Chiang.
The senior vice president disclosed the process-technology roadmap yesterday at a forum, held in Taipei, addressing very-large scale integration (VLSI) technology.
As for 28nm process technology, Chiang pointed out that the company, which is recognized as the world`s No.1 pure silicon foundry, will place the process on volume production lines in the second half of this year. The company has begun pilot run of this process technology in the second quarter of the year on some design tapeouts. Tapeout means the final step of IC design cycle at which the photomask of the IC is sent for manufacturing.
Chiang noted that 28nm process can turn out more than twice as many chips as 40nm can on the same wafer. He added the company will complete pilot production of the process on 70 tapeouts throughout this year.
Chiang estimated the Moore`s Law, which is named after Intel Co-Founder Gordon E. Moore describing the number of transistors in an IC chip will double about every 18 months since the 1965 invention of IC, will remain applicable in the semiconductor industry at least until 7nm process is introduced.
He said in the future wafer foundries will not only shrink chip size but also system-on-chip size and the room for size-shrinkage technology to advance will remain ample.
Also, the room for cooperation between silicon foundries and chip assemblers, Chiang added, will grow bigger when sizes of single chips and system chips continue scaling down.
UMC Scrambles to Boost 300mm Capacity to Combat Nearest Competitor [April 13, 2011]
United Microelectronics Corp. (UMC) plans to set aside nearly 90% of the US$1.8 billion it plans to spend on expansions this year for boosting capacities at its 300mm wafer fabs, in a bid to further stay ahead of the ambitious GlobalFoundires Singapore Pte. Ltd.
GlobalFoundries, currently the world`s No.3 pure silicon foundry next to Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) and United Microelectronics Corp. (UMC), has vowed to soar past UMC as its primary goal. The company has budgeted US$5.4 billion for expansions this year in conjunction with its ambition.
GlobaFoundries plans to boost output at its 300mm fab each in New York, Singapore and Dresden to the maximum 190,000 wafers altogether a month by 2012.UMC plans to boost output of 300mm wafers to 150,000 a month sometime in the second half of next year after ramping up to 100,000 by the end of this year. Although the volume is 40,000 wafers fewer than GlobalFoundires’, UMC`s outputs of 200mm wafers are 20-30% above GlobaFoundries’ 200mm wafer outputs.
Industry executives estimated UMC would offer 40-50% more 200mm wafers than the nearest rival as soon as it merges HeJian Technology (Suzhou) Co., Ltd.
The 28nm Turning Point [Tom R. Halfhill, The Linley Group, April 18, 2011]
Foundries Bring High-k Metal Gates to the Masses
Metal tools delivered humanity from the Stone Age, and now, metal is enabling another technological breakthrough. For the first time, metal-gate transistors are broadly available to chip designers, allowing them to create higher-performance microprocessors that can still occupy less silicon and consume less power. This nanoscale application of metallurgy has been touted as the biggest advance in electronics since the invention of planar integrated circuits.
As usual, Intel got there first. In 2007, Intel introduced the first microprocessors built in its new 45nm high-k metal-gate (HKMG) process. The company substituted hafnium dioxide for the transistor’s silicon-dioxide gate dielectric and replaced the polysilicon gate electrodes of NMOS and PMOS transistors with other metallic materials. Thanks to higher dielectric constants (k), these materials increased the gate capacitance without reducing the thickness of the dielectric, allowing the transistor to operate at higher currents when switched on and to leak less current when switched off. (See MPR 1/29/2007, “Intel Leads the Way for High-k.”)
The rest of the semiconductor industry has been waiting four years for the same technology. Now, the wait is over. At the 32/28nm node, the leading independent foundries are introducing their own HKMG processes, and their first 28nm HKMG chips are entering production this year. Chip designers can use HKMG to deliver higher performance (by driving more current into the transistors) or to save power (mainly by reducing static current leakage). Most designers want a little of both.
Now that almost all digital-semiconductor companies except Intel rely on independent foundries or technology consortiums for their IC-process development, the 32/28nm rollout makes HKMG available to the entire industry. But the corollary is that HKMG probably won’t alter the competitive balances between most semiconductor-product companies, for the same reason: the technology is available to everyone. Although Intel enjoyed a four-year head start, the competitor most affected was AMD, the only other major vendor of PC processors. For the most part, everyone else competes with each other and not with Intel, and they’re all getting HKMG at about the same time.
Instead, the biggest contest is shaping up between leading semiconductor foundries, specifically TSMC (which reaps more than three times the revenue of any competitor) and upstart GlobalFoundries. If one of them can ramp production and improve yields significantly better than the other at 32/28nm, the foundry business could look much different at the 22/20nm node and beyond, when even more exotic technology will arrive.
Microprocessor Report subscribers can access the full story (7 pages, 5 graphics) here:
http://www.mdronline.com/mpr/h/2011/0418/251601.html
FinFETs Extend Intel’s Technology Lead [Tom R. Halfhill of the Linley Gwennap Group, May 6, 2011] (emphasis is mine)
Cadillac introduced tailfins to evoke high-tech style in the 1950s, but Intel’s new finned transistors are far from cosmetic. Purely functional, highly efficient, yet equally brash, these fin-shaped field-effect transistors (finFETs) are sure to be copied as widely as Cadillac’s useless appendages—and they will play a similar role in defining an era.
Intel calls finFETs “tri-gate” transistors, touting them as the first true three-dimensional devices built on planar integrated circuits. A tri-gate transistor folds a conventional planar gate into an inverted U-shaped fin that protrudes above the silicon substrate. By coating all three sides of the fin with metal, Intel builds a 3-D gate structure that has much more volume than a planar gate while still squeezing into the same horizontal space.
Tri-gate transistors can handle greater drive currents, allowing higher clock frequencies. They can switch states at a lower threshold voltage without sacrificing as much switching speed, which reduces dynamic power consumption. In addition, the thicker gate leaks less current, reducing static power. As always, chip designers can trade off these factors in various ways to achieve the best balance of performance and power consumption for the target application.
Intel will use the new transistors for both logic circuits and memory arrays in all its microprocessors built in the next-generation 22nm process, which debuts later this year. The company has demonstrated PC and server processors built with the new technology and is already shipping samples to OEMs for system design. Volume production is scheduled to begin in the fourth quarter and ramp quickly next year. And Intel isn’t hedging its bets: contrary to rumors, the new chips will use tri-gate transistors universally, abandoning planar transistors forever.
FinFETs reinforce Intel’s significant lead in chip fabrication. In addition to using new transistors, Intel is moving to the 22nm mode about two years ahead of the rest of the industry, which is only now beginning the transition to 32/28nm technology. The independent foundries serving virtually all of Intel’s competitors have no plans to use finFETs before the 14nm node—and adoption may be tentative even then. It appears that Intel has gained a head start of at least four years, much as the company achieved in 2007 by introducing high-k metal-gate (HKMG) transistors at the 45nm node. FinFETs could boost Intel’s position in the mobile and consumer markets, where it needs an edge to overcome entrenched competitors. —Tom
Integrated chips fuel smartphone growth [April 19, 2011]
Silicon integration will be the key differentiator in smartphones which could grow to 600 million units in 2014, driven by expansion in low-cost handsets, according to a presentation at the inaugural Linley Tech Mobile Conferencehere.
“The next 300 million smartphones will come from feature phone replacements,” said Linley Gwennap, principal of The Linley Group (Mountain View, Calif.), organizer of the event. “The pressure for smartphone designers will be in reducing systems cost to meet this growing demand for lower cost smartphones and silicon integration is a key,” Gwennap said.
Much of the integration will come from combining application and baseband processors. By 2014 nearly 70 percent of all smartphones will use such integrated chips, up from 40 percent in 2010, Gwennap predicted.
Such chips will be key as designers try to hit prices as low as $100 for smartphones sold in emerging markets. Meanwhile, “the percentage of the market you can address with stand-alone application and baseband processors is slowly diminishing” to about 80 to 100 million units a year, Gwennap said.
…
Qualcomm and Marvell led the move to integrated application and baseband processors and along with Broadcom and ST Ericsson own the pieces required for next-generation integrated chips, Gwennap said.
Qualcomm is shifting from a four- to a three-chip smartphone set in 2012 with separate devices for digital, RF and analog, he added. However many integrated chips may actually use multiple die in a package.
Quad-core chips too hot
In application processors, dual core is sweeping the market this year. Nvidia led the way with its Tegra 2 processor already shipping in LG smartphones and Motorola tablets. A half a dozen other dual-core mobile processors from all the leading chip makers will ship in systems this year, Gwennap predicted.
In February Nvidia demonstrated its next generation, the quad-core Tegra 3. Freescale and Qualcomm have announced similar products on the horizon.
“Some of the initial quad-core designs will exceed the thermal limits of what you can do in a smartphone, so you will need to throttle them back and then you won’t get the performance you expect,” Gwennap said. “Thus quad-cores will be more successful in tablets initially because of their better heat dissipation” until 28nm versions for smartphones are available, he said.
…
“Over the next year or two, Nvidia and Qualcomm will duel over the performance lead in apps processors, and TI never quite gets there,” said Gwennap. “Broadcom is aiming for lower performance mainstream tablets and feature phone replacements rather than the high-end luxury market [because] you don’t have to be the performance leader to make it in this market,” he said.
Intel is likely to find a small but significant foothold in smartphones over time, Gwennap said.
“By 2014, we expect Intel to have pretty competitive products on aggressive process technologies that may be enough to get them in a small number of phones but there are big barriers for them in creating a software ecosystem,” he said.
Mobile 3-D graphics are also on a tear moving from dual-core chips this year to quad-core versions soon. However, measuring raw mobile graphics performance remains a challenge, said Gwennap, calling for a mobile graphics benchmark.
The hardware along with new video engines will help process either two 1080-progressive video streams at 24 frames/second for stereo 3-D or 60 frames/s video for picture quality. To handle the load at low power rates will require video engines access system memory directly without going through a host CPU, he said.
Nokia may lag shift to dual-core phones [May 4, 2011]
Nokia may lag the shift to dual-core smartphone processors happening this year for lack of support from Microsoft, its new operating system partner.
Three companies are already shipping dual-core mobile processors and as many as eight will be by the end of the year, according to a talk at the Multicore Expohere. “Just about every high end smartphone” will move to dual-core processors in 2011, said Linley Gwennap, principal of the Linley Group (Mountain View, Calif.).
…
Microsoft removed multicore support from its Mobile Phone 7 OS, focusing the software only on a single-core Qualcomm chip set in an effort to get it to market quickly, said one source. The company knows it needs to update its mobile software more often than its desktop code, but it’s not clear when it will add multicore support.
Handsets typically have a 12-24 month lifecycle, said Gwennap. The lack of multicore support “could limit Nokia until Microsoft can retrofit the software for dual core,” Gwennap said.
Nokia has long been the leading supplier of cellphones, making its Symbian OS among the most popular mobile software platform. But the handset giant has been slow to respond to the concept of a Web-connected device pioneered by the Apple iPhone.
In the first quarter, Apple lead growth in smartphone unit sales, according to IDC.
Symbian^4 is expected to be released soon supporting multicore processors. However, Nokia recently struck a deal with Accenture to hire its Symbian team as part of a plan to layoff 7,000 people.
The LG Optimus smartphone was the first smartphone to use a multicore chip when it shipped in January, quickly followed by tablets from Motorola and Apple in February and March. Mobile multicore chips coming later this year include (in order of their expected appearance) the Samsung Exynos 4210, Qualcomm MSM8260, ST Ericsson U8500, Marvell Armada 2828 and Broadcom BCM 11311.
“ARM has a dual-core Cortex A9 reference design enabling the chip vendors to ship quickly. Most vendors are using it except Marvell and Qualcomm that designed their own multicore architectures.
The multicore chips will help speed core apps from the OS makers such as browsers, Flash and PDF viewers. They will also be used by third party game developers.
“It will take time for a broad base of multicore mobile software to appear,” said Gwennap.
About 21 percent of mobile devices will use multicore processors in 2011 rising rapidly to 94 percent in 2015, Gwennap estimated. By 2013 more multicore processors will ship in mobile systems than in PCs and servers, he said.
The trend will be accelerated by the arrival in 2012 of dual-core chips based on ARM’s Cortex A5 core replacing single-core Cortex A8 chips in mid-range phones. By 2014, those chips will get packed into low-cost smartphones, said Gwennap.
Serving a purpose: Why the ARM architecture is attracting attention in the server market [Feb 21, 2011] (emphasis in red is mine)
Power consumption in data centres is becoming an increasingly important issue – no surprise when these centres can house tens of thousands of servers. So there is a push towards the development of processors which offer higher performance with lower power consumption.This emerging market is attracting the attention of a number of processor developers, including Marvell. “Marvell is targeting data centres that support cloud computing and which provide web services,” said Linley Gwennap, principal analyst at The Linley Group. “In those cases, there would be some significant interest in what Marvell is doing.”
The latest processor family from Marvell, the Armada XP (Extreme Performance), uses the low power ARM architecture to deliver a 1.6GHz quad core variant that has the processing performance needed for the enterprise market. According to Viren Shah, Marvell’s senior director of marketing for embedded SoCs, the device family is aimed at networking, network attached storage, laser printers and the server market. “The server market is dominated by the x86 [architecture], but ARM is making forays into that segment – and the reason is mainly its low power,” said Shah.
Power is the all important metric. “With the quad core design, our goal is to be sub 10W,” said Shah. This is a noteworthy figure; according to Gwennap, Intel’s Xeon processor consumes around 40W. “Even at that power level, Xeon is not designed as an SoC.” In addition to Xeon, a South Bridge chip and Ethernet controllers would also be needed. Marvell has Sheeva, an ARM based core developed after gaining an architectural license when it acquired Intel’s XScale business in 2006.
Sheeva, which is ARM v6 and v7 instruction set compatible, is a two issue design: either two integer instructions or an integer and floating point are issued each clock cycle. The core also has a limited ability for instruction look ahead, boosting code throughput by reordering the sequence in which instructions are processed.
There are five devices in the Armada XP family: two single core; two dual core; and a quad core, the MV78460 (see fig 1). All are pin compatible, but vary in the on chip peripherals, cache size and the width of the memory interface. Each ARM cpu on the MV78460 has a 32kbyte instruction cache and 32kbyte data cache, while the four cores share a 2Mbyte L2 cache. The other Armada XP SoCs have a 1Mbyte L2 cache. The L2 cache is doubled in size in the MV78460 to maintain processing performance.
Sheeva cores access external memory through a controller, with the processor supporting DDR3 memory clocked at 800MHz. The device has 40bit physical addressing that supports up to 1Tbyte of dram. Three Armada XP SoCs, including the MV78460, support a 32 or 64bit memory data interface, while the rest have a 32bit bus. The MV78460 includes two serial ATA (SATA), four PCI Express and four Gigabit Ethernet (GbE) media access controllers (MACs).
These 10 controllers share 16 6GHz serdes, so the PCI Express controllers could be configured as three x4 ports and one x1 port, while the chip cojuld also support two SATA interfaces and a GbE interface. The Ethernet MAC supports the QSGMII interface such that all four GbE ports can be put onto a single serial link. One design challenge with the MV78460, according to Marvell, was cramming four cores and the I/O peripherals onto an SoC. “We have multiple fast I/O that must coexist in the system,” said Erez Alfiya, an application manager at Marvell. “Contention on one affects the whole system performance.” To this end, an on chip crossbar switch connects the cores and the L2 cache, as well as the peripherals as they access DDR3 memory.
The interface between each core and the L2 cache is 128bit wide and includes a coherency unit, which ensures cache coherency by updating the cache whenever data is written to external memory. The crossbar switch also supports the various on chip blocks. “That is a lot of bandwidth we need to supply to the different I/Os,” said Alfiya.
As an example, he cites the case of a GbE interface being used alongside two PCI Express ports. “You have traffic coming from the Ethernet port and from the two PCI Express ports. You need to balance the traffic and allow DDR access to the three interfaces,” said Alfiya. “We have arbitration between the units because only one unit can access the DDR at any time.” Other on chip peripherals include a security engine and support for VoIP via a time division multiplexing (TDM) interface.
The security engine can encrypt 2Gbit/s data streams using such algorithms as AES and 3DES. With the TDM interface, the SoC supports up to 32 channels of VoIP. Marvell uses several power saving techniques to limit the MV78460’s power consumption to 10W. The device can power down unused cpus and vary the clock frequency dynamically to adapt power consumption to processing load. In sleep mode, the cpus can be turned off while the L2 cache remains powered. In deep sleep mode, the L2 cache is saved in dram before being powered down.
The I/O ports then wake the cpus when data arrives. The GbE MACs are Energy Efficient Ethernet compliant (see NE, 25 January 2011) and support DDR3L. Because DDR3L operates at 1.35V, instead of 1.5V, this can reduce power consumption by up to 20%. The device can run one operating system in symmetric multiprocessing mode or asymmetrically.
The latter is less common for servers, but features more widely in embedded applications, where the cores can run separate operating systems. “By integrating everything onto one chip, Marvell has designed a single chip quad core server,” said Gwennap. This is different to Intel’s approach, where two Xeon multicore chips can be put side by side – a so called two socket server configuration. “You cannot do that with the Marvell chip,” said Gwennap. “Marvell has boiled the whole server down to a chip; if you want to scale it, you have to add a whole new, separate, server.” The Armada XP is currently implemented on TSMC’s 40nm G cmos process, although the roadmap includes an eight core design at the 28nm node. The Sheeva cores will be clocked at 3GHz or more, while the SoC will support 10Gbit Ethernet and the PCI Express 3.0 specification.
But Marvell isn’t the only company looking to bring ARM cores to the server market and ARM is seeding the process with a quad core reference design for the Cortex-A9 architecture, while the basic design for the Cortex-A15 is also quad core (see fig 2). One contender is Calxeda, in which ARM is an investor. It is using a quad core implementation of the Cortex-A9 but, because it is limited to four cores per die, it will probably need to use multiple chips to match the performance of Xeon processors.
But the startup is not providing details on the interconnect or the blocks it plans to integrate. “We are going to see a lot of quad core Cortex-A15 designs coming out in a year or so,” Gwennap concluded.
Intel’s SoC strategy strengthened by 22nm Tri-Gate technology
Asustek may have difficulties achieving 2011 notebook shipment goal See also: Intel: accelerated Atom SoC roadmap down to 22nm in 2 years and a “new netbook experience” for tablet/mobile PC market [April 17, 2011]
Update 5 [Ivy-Bridge related]
Intel Schedules Core i 3000 “Ivy Bridge” Desktop Processors Launch to Q2 2012 [Nov 30, 2011]
Intel Corp. has notified its partners about its decision to introduce of its next-generation code-named Ivy Bridge processors in the second quarter of 2012. Previously the company planned to release the Core i 3000-series central processing units (CPUs) for desktops in March – April timeframe, which left a possibility to unveil the chips in the first quarter.
…
Intel has also disclosed specifications of its next-gen Ivy Bridge chips for desktops to its partners. The initial family to be released in Q2 2012 will not include Core i3-3200-series chips and will consist of Core i7-3700 and Core i5-3500/3400 families.
…
Ivy Bridge will generally inherit Sandy Bridge micro-architecture and will sport a rather significant number of improvements. Firstly, it will have certain improvements that will boost its performance in general applications by around 20% compared to Core i “Sandy Bridge” chips (e.g., enhanced AVX acceleration). Secondly, the forthcoming chip will have a new graphics core with DirectX 11 and OpenCL 1.1 support, 30% higher performance compared to the predecessor as well as new video processor and display controllers. Thirdly, Ivy Bridge will feature PCI Express 3.0 x16 interconnection as well as PCIe 2.0 x4 controller. In fourth, the processor will support a number of power management innovations.
Update 4 [Cedar Trail-M related]:
Intel to ship new netbook platform in November [18 Aug, 2011]
Intel recently adjusted the launch schedule of its next-generation
netbook platform, Cedar Trail-M, from September to November because the platform has encountered some graphics driver issues and has not yet passed certification for Windows 7, according to sources from notebook players.The Cedar Trail-M platform will include two new CPUs, 32nm-based Atom N2800 (1.86GHz) and N2600 (1.6GHz), priced at US$47 and US$42, and will replace the existing Atom N475 and N455. The CPUs will also feature an integrated GPU that supports DirectX 10.1 technology. The platform will also adopt the existing NM10 chipsets for southbridge capability.
Since netbooks are no longer a mainstream product in the IT market, while AMD also has a similar-level solution, Intel’s delay of Cedar Trail-M will not affect notebook players much, the sources added.
In addition to the netbook platform, Intel’s new CPUs, Atom D2700 (US$52) and D2500 (US$42), for nettops will also be delayed to November.
Update 3 [CULV related]:
Intel’s CEO Discusses Q2 2011 Results – Earnings Call Transcript Q&A [July 20, 2011]
Uche Orji – UBS Investment Bank
Let me just ask you about Ultrabooks. Sean was quoted at the Computex as saying that this should be about 40% of the consumer mix by the end of next year. If one were to go back and compare this to CULV from a couple of years ago, what makes you more confident that this will achieve this level of success? Do you enjoy the form factor? I think CULV also had performance issues. So if you can talk about the level of confidence you have with Ultrabooks, and how you see that ramping from now until next year to get to that 40%?
Paul Otellini
Well, as I look at this, I don’t think that the Ultrabook strategy is anywhere near equal to the CULV strategy as you call it. That was really a kind of a point product. It was focused on form factor. We didn’t really put a lot of engineering into it with our customers, and we didn’t look at other features. If you will, it’s kind of a trial run in hindsight is the way I would look at it. The Ultrabook project is much more akin to Centrino. It’s a very holistic approach to moving the entire market to a different kind of form factor, not just in terms of its thinness, but in terms of the feature set. I talked about always on, always connected. So the machine is always aware of the networks around it. I talk about instant on, instant boot capability. We talked about building in integral touch into it, another feature set. So this is as much about the features around the skin, or inside the skin, as the shape of the skin. And as we look at this with our customers, we also see that there’s a great deal of engineering that has to be done. Because one thing we know is that today, these feature sets cost more money. But we don’t think that PC prices are going to go up over time. So what we have to do is work with the ecosystem to cost engineer these features for high-volume price point displacement. And that’s the only way you can achieve sort of a 40% number as Shawn predicted in that timeframe is by doing price point replacements. And then looking forward a year later, into the next generation, silicon, it gets cheaper to do it so we could penetrate more of the market.
Update 2 [MacBook Air related]:
– Asustek expects better business performance in 2H11 [Aug 17, 2011]
Asustek Computer expects its performance in the second half of 2011 to be better than that of fellow Taiwan-based companies, according to CFO David Chang.
Asustek is likely to hit record quarterly revenues in the third quarter and is optimistic about business operation in the fourth mainly due to the launch of second-generation Eee Pad Transformer tablets and ultrabook notebooks, Chang said.
Asustek aims at a 14% market share for notebooks in China, and
became the largest vendor in Eastern Europe’s notebook market in the second quarter. In addition, Asustek is poised to make forays into Latin America, especially Brazil and Mexico.Asustek expects to ship 14 million notebooks and 4.5-5 million Eee PCs in 2011, Chang indicated. Asustek shipped 11.4 million motherboards in the first half and expects to ship 22.5-23 million for the year.
– HP to pioneer launching Ultrabook-concept notebooks, say sources [July 11, 2011] “even ahead of the planned release of the UX21 Ultrabook by Asustek Computer slated for September“
– Asustek may have difficulties achieving 2011 notebook shipment goal [July 26, 2011] “of 20 million notebooks and netbooks combined … the shipments may only reach 18.5-19 million units“
– Notebook players to mass produce ultrabooks in September [July 26, 2011]
First-tier notebook players including Hewlett-Packard (HP), Acer, Asustek Computer, Dell and Lenovo are all set to launch ultrabooks in the second half of 2011 with mass production scheduled for September.
However, due to most players still suffering from low yield rates over panel production, Asustek, which already finished developing its ultrabook, is expected to become the fastest to mass produce the ultrabook, according to sources from the upstream supply chain.
For the second half of 2011, Asustek placed orders for 400,000-450,000 ultra-thin notebooks each month to its upstream component suppliers with 100,000 units being ultrabooks.
As for Acer and Dell, due to both players suffering from low panel yield rate at their partners, though the two firms plan to mass produce their ultrabook in September, the production volume and schedule may be delayed.
As for HP, although its ultrabook is rumored to be launched in August and produced by Foxconn Electronics (Hon Hai Precision Industry), the actual release time is estimated to be in the fourth quarter or early 2012.
Update: – Acer Ultrabook pushing for September launch, says paper [Aug 19, 2011]
Acer reportedly is aiming to launch its Ultrabook in September to compete against Asustek’s UX21, which is also set to appear in the month, and has been pushing its development schedule; however, because the Ultrabook has not yet entered mass production, the plan may still be changed, according to a Chinese-language Commercial Times report.
An Acer executive also pointed out that the company has already revised the internal design of its Ultrabook twice and the company will only launch 13-inch models initially, the paper added.
– Asus: Super-Thin ‘Ultrabooks’ Can Capture 50% Of Notebook Market [July 29, 2011]
“Ultrabooks may have a better market than people thought,” said Asus Chairman Jonney Shih in an interview during a rare trip to New York. Shih, who was Chief Executive of the Taiwan-based electronics giant until 2008, cites internal studies as support. The research indicates consumers are willing to pay “a little higher price” than Asus’ other laptops for ultrabooks, he said.
…
Shih declined to comment on the UX21′s price. But he was optimistic that ultrabooks would catch on — in fact, even more optimistic than Intel. When the chip giant introduced the ultrabook concept at the Taipei Computex trade show in June, its executives said the new devices could capture 40% of the global notebook market in 18 months. Shih believes that number could reach 50% though he didn’t specify a timeframe for reaching that goal beyond “eventually”.
Shih’s enthusiasm stems, in part, from Asus’ plan to expand its ultrabook selection to include other designs and prices. Future Asus ultrabooks need not be as super-thin as the UX21, Shih explained. Perhaps they will be 18 millimeters thick and come with different — likely, cheaper — processors, said Shih.
Consumers should get more information in a few weeks. Asus is targeting an on-sale date sometime this fall. Though recent reports have pointed to HP as the frontrunner to introduce an ultrabook, Shih said he believed Asus would be first. Asus, he noted, had already designed the UX21 when Intel began approaching manufacturers about making ultrabooks. That head start helped Asus land the distinction of being the first company to show an ultrabook prototype, at Computex.
– Asustek rebuts Intel forecast on low cost of Ultrabooks series [July 26, 2011]
Asustek Computer Inc (華碩), the world’s No. 5 PC brand, yesterday said its upcoming UX series Ultrabook platform would fail to carry price tags of less than US$1,000, as claimed by Intel Corp.
“Unless we use Intel Core i3 chips [the Ultrabooks will not be less than US$1,000]. The price tags will have to go beyond US$1,000 if [more advanced] i5 and i7 chips go into the notebooks,” a person familiar with UX development said.
…
Daiwa Capital Market’s analyst Calvin Huang (黃文堯) said on July 13 that Intel was merely cutting prices for its low-voltage processors to help thin and light notebooks make a comeback.
However, in Huang’s view, Intel’s help might not be enough because to make an Ultrabook, other more advanced and expensive components — such as ultrathin panels, solid-state hard drives, metal casings, high-density interconnect and polymer batteries — are required to make it comparable to the MacBook Air.
– Don’t count on ‘ultrabook,’ says Daiwa analyst [July 15, 2011]
“While some believe ultrabooks could revive notebook growth and Asustek [Computer Inc (華碩)], the first to introduce the ultrabook, should benefit, we think the ultrabook is killing notebook contract makers’ premium lines and may dilute their profit margins,” Daiwa Capital Market analyst Calvin Huang (黃文堯) said.
“We forecast zero growth for global notebook shipments for 2011 and believe the ultrabook alone may not be enough to revive notebook growth in 2012,” he said in a report dated Wednesday.
…
These ultrabook notebooks are intended to compete with Apple Inc’s MacBook Air, whose worldwide shipments could easily top 600,000 units per month, the report said.
…
Daiwa said Intel was lowering the price of its low-voltage processors to make thin and light notebooks mainstream.
“In other words, Intel is cutting prices to stimulate notebook demand,” Huang wrote.
Intel’s subsidy is not enough because to make an ultrabook, other advanced and expensive components, like ultra-thin panels, solid state drives, metal casings and polymer batteries, are required to make it comparable to the MacBook Air.
Huang said these advanced components generally cost 50 to 100 percent more than mainstream components used in notebooks.
Because of this, to match the MacBook Air’s price tag, Taiwanese notebook contract makers may have to compromise and use second-grade components in the ultrabooks, which could compromise performance, he said.
The other deciding factor is that Microsoft Corp’s Windows 8 may or may not add to the overall user experience of ultrabooks, and consumers would only be able to tell when the operating system finally comes on the market late next year, Daiwa said.
– Apple Updates MacBook Air With Next Generation Processors, Thunderbolt I/O & Backlit Keyboard [press release, July 20, 2011]
Apple® today updated the MacBook Air® with next generation processors, high-speed Thunderbolt I/O technology, a backlit keyboard and Mac OS® X Lion, the world’s most advanced operating system. With up to twice the performance of the previous generation, flash storage for instant-on responsiveness and a compact design so portable you can take it everywhere,* the MacBook Air starts at $999 (US) and is available for order today and in stores tomorrow.
… The 11-inch model weighs 2.38 pounds and provides up to 5 hours of battery life, while the 13-inch weighs 2.96 pounds and provides up to 7 hours of battery life. … latest Intel Core i5 and Core i7 dual-core processors … Thunderbolt I/O technology provides expansion possibilities never before available to MacBook Air users. Through a single cable, users can connect to high performance peripherals and the new Apple Thunderbolt Display, the ultimate docking station for your Mac® notebook. Thunderbolt can easily be adapted to support legacy connections such as FireWire® and Gigabit Ethernet. … an innovative glass Multi-Touch™ trackpad … supports Lion’s new Multi-Touch gestures such as momentum scrolling, tapping or pinching your fingers to zoom in on a web page or image, and swiping left or right to turn a page or switch between full screen apps. … also features a brilliant, high resolution LED backlit display that is amazingly thin yet has the resolution of a much larger, bulkier screen.
The 1.6 GHz 11-inch MacBook Air is available in two models, one with 2GB of memory and 64GB of flash storage for a suggested retail price of $999 (US), and one with 4GB of memory and 128GB of flash storage for $1,199 (US). The 1.7 GHz 13-inch MacBook Air comes in two configurations, one with 4GB of memory and 128GB of flash storage for a suggested retail price of $1,299 (US), and one with 4GB of memory and 256GB of flash storage for $1,599 (US). Configure-to-order options and accessories include a 1.8 GHz Core i7 processor, additional flash storage, MacBook Air SuperDrive® and a USB Ethernet Adapter.
Additional technical specifications and configure-to-order options and accessories are available online at www.apple.com/macbookair.
– Mac OS X Lion Available Today From the Mac App Store [July 20, 2011]
Some of the amazing features in Lion include: new Multi-Touch® gestures; system-wide support for full screen apps; Mission Control, an innovative view of everything running on your Mac; the Mac App Store, the best place to find and explore great software, built right into the OS; Launchpad, a new home for all your apps; and a completely redesigned Mail app.
…
Additional new features in Lion include:
- Resume, which conveniently brings your apps back exactly how you left them when you restart your Mac or quit and relaunch an app;
- Auto Save, which automatically and continuously saves your documents as you work;
- Versions, which automatically records the history of your document as you create it, and gives you an easy way to browse, revert and even copy and paste from previous versions; and
- AirDrop, which finds nearby Macs and automatically sets up a peer-to-peer wireless connection to make transferring files quick and easy.
Mac OS X Lion is available as an upgrade to Mac OS X version 10.6.6 Snow Leopard® from the Mac App Store for $29.99 (US). Lion is the easiest OS X upgrade and at around 4GB, it is about the size of an HD movie from the iTunes Store®. Users who do not have broadband access at home, work or school can download Lion at Apple retail stores and later this August, Lion will be made available on a USB thumb drive through the Apple Store® (www.apple.com) for $69 (US). Mac OS X Lion Server requires Lion and is available from the Mac App Store for $49.99 (US).
– The web weighs in on iOS-like Mac OS X Lion [July 21, 2011]
iOS-inspired Multi-Touch gestures, full screen apps, Mission Control, Launchpad, autosave and a brand new Mail application are just a few of the most lauded features in the eighth major release of the Mac OS X platform.
Reviews ranged from one-line tweets from early adopters to in-depth, book-length reports covering every facet of the OS.
“Apple’s Lion Brings PCs Into Tablet Era,” said Walter S. Mossberg writing for AllThingsD. His enthusiastic tone was echoed throughout the blogosphere with only minor complaints getting any airtime.
Microbloggers praised Lion’s low price, “One perk about Lion, you buy it once, you can put it on all your machines (as long as you use the same App Store login),” and posted their initial thoughts.
– 8 Features Mac OS X Lion Borrowed from its Little Brother, iOS [July 25, 2011]
Apple is slowly but surely, making the transition from iOS or the mobile world as a whole, over to the Mac. We already know that Apple is selling more iPads than Macs, but what we did not know is that Apple is replicating the iOS experience on its Mac lineup, but that is clearly the case. Much has been said about the “post PC era” and we have seen many new features over the past few months making their way to mobile first and only Web or desktop second.
The following 8 features, or should we call them functionalities, that are built into Lion are clearly taken from the iOS experience and ported over to the Mac:
1: Multitouch Gestures
… In Lion, you can swipe between desktops using three fingers, go Back or Forward in Safari using two, and activate Mission Control using three fingers. … I am now using the Trackpad on my Macbook Air exclusively.
2: Multiple Home Screens
… the new Mission Control system behaves exactly like many mobile devices do in that you can easily swipe between active applications and work in parallel on different projects. …
3: Scrolling Method
… Basically, just like on iOS, in Lion you are dragging the content and not the scroll bar. … Personally, it has completely grown on me and now my PC is what seems foreign to me.
4: The Mail UI
… the UI, which is pretty much identical to the iPad Mail app, which is one of the best email UIs I have ever used. The new Lion Mail resembles the iPad Mail app in so many ways including the simple setup, the side by side user interface, and much more.
5: Jiggling Icons and Folders
I totally missed these features until someone on Twitter pointed them out to me. When you are in your LaunchPad in Lion, a long press on an icon will cause all the icons to jiggle (out of lack of a better word) and you can then move them around or delete them from Launchpad. You don’t need a good imagination to see that this is identical to iOS. Of course, you can also drag one icon on top of another and create a folder, again, exactly like in iOS.
6: Air Drop
Of course transferring files is not something new to computers, but Airdrop enables you to share a file with another Mac in your nearby vicinity. This is of course something we were able to do for years on mobile devices with some old school devices using Infrared and the newer phones using Bluetooth to share files. Yes, computers also have Bluetooth and can share files, but if you have used Airdrop, you must have felt that the experience very much resembled that of a mobile device sharing with another one in its proximity.
7: Full Screen Apps
I have been running Safari in full screen mode for the past few days and I can safely say, I cannot go back to the non-full screen mode. This new option of running Mac apps in full screen and certain options appearing as you hover over a certain location on the screen is yet another feature borrowed from iOS. Just think about the Photos app on your iPhone and how the pictures appear in full screen until you want the navigation options to appear and bring you back to the album or onto the next picture. Not convinced? Check out the Reader option in Safari on iOS5. That is exactly the same as full screen on Lion minus the removal of ads, which is not something included in Lion’s full screen mode.
8: No Wire Download
Maybe this one should be first on the list, but when have we ever seen a computer’s operating system that the user can download from an app store on the current operating system? Just trying to wrap my head around the concept is starting to give me a headache. How can I download the OS as an app within the current OS and then install it over the current OS without an external disk or USB drive? Yet, Apple pulled it off and made the whole upgrade process as seamless as any upgrade I have ever done. The whole experience of the app store and downloading updates over the air is so mobile-like, and just a few days ago, Apple enabled OTA updates for iOS with iOS5 beta 4.
Update 1 (Computex-related):
– Intel paying handsomely to attract downstream vendors into launching Ultrabooks [July 4] (emphasis is mine)
Intel has recently started planning a new marketing strategy for its Ultrabook concept and has invested heavily into the related budget and resources hoping to attract first-tier notebook vendors into developing Ultrabooks, according to sources from downstream notebook players.
Due to the failure of Intel’s Consumer Ultra Low Voltage-based (CULV-based) ultra-thin notebooks in 2009, while the notebook market has been severely impacted by tablet PCs, most notebook vendors are taking a conservative attitude toward Intel’s Ultrabook concept and Intel is hoping its heavy investment will be able to attract these vendors to launch Ultrabook products, the sources noted.
Intel announced its Ultrabook concept in June with a goal of having 40% of the global consumers notebooks using its Ultrabook concept at the end of 2012. Asustek is already set to launch its first Ultrabook concept-based notebook, UX21, in September.
Although Intel is providing a significant budget to support its partners launching Ultrabooks, the Ultrabook CPUs’ rather high prices are currently still affecting downstream vendors’ willingness to adopt as vendors are still concerned whether the Ultrabook product’s prices can reach as low as US$1,000 as claimed by Intel. Although the vendors have already started testing Ultrabooks, most of them are still conservative about opening projects for production.
Currently, most of the vendors are monitoring Asustek’s performance with its UX21 and will cut into the market when the timing is appropriate.
For the Ultrabook product line, Intel has recently launched four dual-core CPUs and is set to launch a single-core Celeron 787 CPU in September and Celeron 857 in the fourth quarter to replace Celeron 847, the sources added.
– The “Ultrabook™”
(part of Intel’s Maloney Talks Mobile Growth, Industry Opportunities at Computex [May 30, 2011], emphasis is mine)
Intel’s vision is to enable a new user experience by accelerating a new class of mobile computers. These computers will marry the performance and capabilities of today’s laptops with tablet-like features and deliver a highly responsive and secure experience, in a thin, light and elegant design. The Ultrabook™ will be shaped by Moore’s Law and silicon technology in the same way they have shaped the traditional PC for the past 40 years.
[Sandy Bridge / Ivy Bridge relevance is only from 00:48 on.]
Maloney described three key phases in the company’s strategy to accelerate this vision, which begins to unfold today with the company’s latest 2nd Generation Intel® Core™ processors. This family of products will enable thin, light and beautiful designs that are less than 20mm (0.8 inch) thick, and mainstream price points under US$1,000. Systems based on these chips will be available for the 2011 winter holiday shopping season and include the UX21, ASUS* Ultrabook™. ASUS Chairman Jonney Shih joined Maloney on stage to showcase the company’s new ultra-thin laptop based on the latest 2nd Generation Intel Core processor.
“At ASUS, we are very much aligned with Intel’s vision of Ultrabook™,” said Shih. “Our customers are demanding an uncompromised computing experience in a lightweight, highly portable design that responds to their needs quickly. Transforming the PC into an ultra thin, ultra responsive device will change the way people interact with their PC.”
Building on the latest 2nd Generation Intel Core technology, Maloney outlined the next generation Intel processor family codenamed “Ivy Bridge,” which is scheduled for availability in systems in the first half of 2012. Laptops based on “Ivy Bridge” will bring improved power efficiency, smart visual performance, increased responsiveness and enhanced security. “Ivy Bridge” is the first high-volume chip based on Intel’s 22 nanometer (nm) manufacturing technology that uses a revolutionary 3-D transistor design called Tri-Gate announced in May. Maloney also highlighted complementary USB 3.0 and Thunderbolt™ technologies which are part of Intel’s ongoing work to drive the PC platform forward.
Following “Ivy Bridge,” planned 2013 products codenamed “Haswell” are the third step toward achieving the Ultrabook™ and reinventing the capabilities of the laptop in ultra thin and light, responsive and more secure designs. With “Haswell,” Intel will change the mainstream laptop thermal design point by reducing the microprocessor power to half of today’s design point.
End of the updates
Intel Reinvents Transistors Using New 3-D Structure [May 4, 2011] (emphasis in red is mine)
For the first time since the invention of silicon transistors over 50 years ago, transistors using a three-dimensional structure will be put into high-volume manufacturing. Intel will introduce a revolutionary 3-D transistor design called Tri-Gate, first disclosed by Intel in 2002, into high-volume manufacturing at the 22-nanometer (nm) node in an Intel chip codenamed “Ivy Bridge.” A nanometer is one-billionth of a meter.
…
The 22nm 3-D Tri-Gate transistors provide up to 37 percent performance increase at low voltage versus Intel’s 32nm planar transistors. This incredible gain means that they are ideal for use in small handheld devices, which operate using less energy to “switch” back and forth. Alternatively, the new transistors consume less than half the power when at the same performance as 2-D planar transistors on 32nm chips.
…
Just as skyscrapers let urban planners optimize available space by building upward, Intel’s 3-D Tri-Gate transistor structure provides a way to manage density. Since these fins are vertical in nature, transistors can be packed closer together, a critical component to the technological and economic benefits of Moore’s Law. For future generations, designers also have the ability to continue growing the height of the fins to get even more performance and energy-efficiency gains.
“For years we have seen limits to how small transistors can get,” said Moore. “This change in the basic structure is a truly revolutionary approach, and one that should allow Moore’s Law, and the historic pace of innovation, to continue.”
World’s First Demonstration of 22nm 3-D Tri-Gate Transistors
The 3-D Tri-Gate transistor will be implemented in the company’s upcoming manufacturing process, called the 22nm node, in reference to the size of individual transistor features. More than 6 million 22nm Tri-Gate transistors could fit in the period at the end of this sentence.
Today, Intel demonstrated the world’s first 22nm microprocessor, codenamed “Ivy Bridge,” working in a laptop, server and desktop computer. Ivy Bridge-based Intel® Core™ family processors will be the first high-volume chips to use 3-D Tri-Gate transistors. Ivy Bridge is slated for high-volume production readiness by the end of this year.
This silicon technology breakthrough will also aid in the delivery of more highly integrated Intel® Atom™ processor-based products that scale the performance, functionality and software compatibility of Intel® architecture while meeting the overall power, cost and size requirements for a range of market segment needs.
Newsroom: Intel 22nm 3-D Tri-Gate Transistor Technology, Version 29 [May 2-5, 2011]
Fact Sheets & Backgrounders
- Fact Sheet: Global Intel Manufacturing Fact Sheet(PDF 414KB)
- Presentation: Intel Announces New 22nm 3D Tri-gate Transistors(PDF 6.4MB)
- Presentation: 22nm Details(PDF 1.1MB)
- Fun Facts: How small is 22nm?(PDF 150KB)
- Backgrounder: History of the Transistor (PDF 218KB)
Event Replay
Photography
Related Information on Intel.com
Video Animation: Mark Bohr Gets Small: 22nm Explained [May 4, 2011]
First Demonstrations of Intel’s 22nm 3-D Tri-Gate Transistors [May 3, 2011]
FinFETs Extend Intel’s Technology Lead [Tom R. Halfhill of the Linley Gwennap Group, May 6, 2011] (emphasis in red is mine)
Cadillac introduced tailfins to evoke high-tech style in the 1950s, but Intel’s new finned transistors are far from cosmetic. Purely functional, highly efficient, yet equally brash, these fin-shaped field-effect transistors (finFETs) are sure to be copied as widely as Cadillac’s useless appendages—and they will play a similar role in defining an era.
Intel calls finFETs “tri-gate” transistors, touting them as the first true three-dimensional devices built on planar integrated circuits. A tri-gate transistor folds a conventional planar gate into an inverted U-shaped fin that protrudes above the silicon substrate. By coating all three sides of the fin with metal, Intel builds a 3-D gate structure that has much more volume than a planar gate while still squeezing into the same horizontal space.
Tri-gate transistors can handle greater drive currents, allowing higher clock frequencies. They can switch states at a lower threshold voltage without sacrificing as much switching speed, which reduces dynamic power consumption. In addition, the thicker gate leaks less current, reducing static power. As always, chip designers can trade off these factors in various ways to achieve the best balance of performance and power consumption for the target application.
Intel will use the new transistors for both logic circuits and memory arrays in all its microprocessors built in the next-generation 22nm process, which debuts later this year. The company has demonstrated PC and server processors built with the new technology and is already shipping samples to OEMs for system design. Volume production is scheduled to begin in the fourth quarter and ramp quickly next year. And Intel isn’t hedging its bets: contrary to rumors, the new chips will use tri-gate transistors universally, abandoning planar transistors forever.
FinFETs reinforce Intel’s significant lead in chip fabrication. In addition to using new transistors, Intel is moving to the 22nm mode about two years ahead of the rest of the industry, which is only now beginning the transition to 32/28nm technology. The independent foundries serving virtually all of Intel’s competitors have no plans to use finFETs before the 14nm node—and adoption may be tentative even then. It appears that Intel has gained a head start of at least four years, much as the company achieved in 2007 by introducing high-k metal-gate (HKMG) transistors at the 45nm node. FinFETs could boost Intel’s position in the mobile and consumer markets, where it needs an edge to overcome entrenched competitors. —Tom
Multigate device – Varieties – FinFETS [wikipedia excerpt on May 10, 2011]
The term FinFET was coined by University of California, Berkeley researchers (Profs. Chenming Hu, Tsu-Jae King-Liu and Jeffrey Bokor) to describe a nonplanar, double-gate transistor built on an SOI substrate,[6] based on the earlier DELTA (single-gate) transistor design.[7]The distinguishing characteristic of the FinFET is that the conducting channel is wrapped by a thin silicon “fin”, which forms the gate of the device. The thickness of the fin (measured in the direction from source to drain) determines the effective channel length of the device.
In current usage the term FinFET has a less precise definition. Among microprocessor manufacturers, AMD, IBM, and Motorola describe their double-gate development efforts as FinFET development whereas Intel avoids using the term to describe their closely related tri-gate [1]architecture. In the technical literature, FinFET is used somewhat generically to describe any fin-based, multigate transistor architecture regardless of number of gates.
A 25-nm transistor operating on just 0.7 Volt was demonstrated in December 2002 by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company. The “Omega FinFET” design, named after the similarity between the Greek letter “Omega” and the shape in which the gate wraps around the source/drain structure, has a gate delay of just 0.39 picosecond (ps) for the N-type transistor and 0.88 ps for the P-type.
Multigate device – Varieties – Tri-gate transistors (Intel) [wikipedia excerpt on May 10, 2011]
Tri-gate or 3-D are terms used by Intel Corporation to describe their nonplanar transistor architecture planned for use in future microprocessors. These transistors employ a single gate stacked on top of two vertical gates allowing for essentially three times the surface area for electrons to travel. Intel reports that their tri-gate transistors reduce leakage and consume far less power than current transistors. This allows up to 37% higher speed, and a power consumption at under 50% of the previous type of transistors used by Intel.[8]
Intel currently plans to release a new line of CPUs, termed Ivy Bridge, which feature tri-gate transistors. [9] Intel has been working on its tri-gate architecture since 2002, but it took until 2011 to work out mass production issues. The new style of transistor was described on May 5, 2011, in San Francisco.[10] Intel factories are expected to make upgrades over 2011 and 2012 to be able to manufacture the Ivy Bridge CPUs.[11] As well as being used in Intel’s Ivy Bridge chips for desktop PCs the new transistors will also be used in Intel’s Atom chips for low powered devices.[10]
In the technical literature, the term tri-gate is sometimes used generically to denote any multigate FET with three effective gates or channels.
Intel(‘s) Take(s) On Tablets & Other Mobility Devices [May 6, 2011]
Part of being an Intel Advisor is getting insights and information directly from inside Intel. This month’s conference call with Intel and other Intel Advisors was no different and we learned about a hot topic in the Tech industry – the tablet race. Leading our discussion was Mark Miller, director of outbound marketing from Intel’s Netbook and Tablet team. Not only did we learn Mark’s take on tablets and other mobility devices, but also he explained Intel’s vision to take ON tablets and these devices and move the space forward.
…
Miller breaks down the “Mobility” category into 3 segments: Netbooks, Tablets and a new third category which they are simply calling a “Hybrid Device.”
Exploring the Categories
What’s below is obviously not an exhaustive discussion of these categories, as the specs, features, ideas and concepts are still being decided on and written. But the Advisor briefing definitely got the gears spinning.
Netbooks
… there still is demand, especially for an even lower price point…the magic number of $199 for a netbook targeted towards emerging markets, schools & education or even as a second PC. But users might not be waiting simply for a lower price, they want better performance from the CPU and more powerful graphics capabilities. To accomplish this, Intel will be introducing a new Atom processor, code named “Cedar Trail” which is expected to be released in the second half of 2011. Core to this updated netbook infrastructure will be the addition of more PC-like features like Wi-Di or PC sync. I saw Wi-Di (“Wireless Display”) in action at a couple of shows; it’s an impressive way to share multimedia content from a computer to a big screen TV. Simply start playing a movie, for example, on a Wi-Di enabled computer and then with an appropriately configured TV, your media starts streaming. It’s very similar to Apple’s AirPlay.
Tablets
… In April of this year, Intel introduced a new Atom processor for tablets, code name “Oak Trail” which should start hitting tablets in May. Most of Intel’s efforts has been around Windows 7-based tablets but there are definitely efforts underway to handle other mobile OSes like Android.
… Miller acknowledges that Intel is a bit behind the game in the tablet race. However, they do seem to also have a differentiating vision, in my opinion. With Apple, it’s pretty much one size fits all, meaning the experience is focused more around the device and less around a particular user’s use case. I think that this is fine for Apple, as this is where they want to be, providing an elegant and easy to use, but controlled environment. Intel believes, however, that tablets should be as individual as you are, meaning that you should be able to customize and tailor a tablet to better fit a given user. With the iPad, IT is the center as opposed to the person using it being the center. This concept actually is even more appropriate for the 3rd category below.
Intel will be working to make the processor technology within tablets faster, while designing their chipsets to use less power and be smaller, thus allowing for thinner tablets. Some benchmarks outlined by Miller was getting below 8mm in thickness (e.g., “thinness”) and having 10 hours active battery life with 30 days of standby – pretty much a good standard. If they can pull this off running a mobility version of Windows 7, that would be impressive.
…
“Hybrid Device”
This next category is really the intriguing one and represents a merging of the best features and technology available to netbooks and tablets. There are already devices like this in the market, in fact, Microsoft had supported this type of computer many years before the iPad even came out. We have seen swivel-display computer from Fujitsu, for example, that had a screen that pivots to cover a keyboard. This “hybrid” style is exactly something that Intel believes is worth investing in. Think about coupling a touch screen display (e.g., a tablet) with a keyboard (e.g., a clamshell or netbook) and you have this hybrid device. The Dell Inspiron Duois a current example of this type of form-factor.
However, Miller believes that there is much more to be done with this form-factor and the underlying OS and software driving it. Without offering many details, he did say they will be ultra thin with low power consumption, which seems to be a common thread on all new consumer electronics devices coming out these days. But what was presented was the idea of this device really meeting multiple yet individual needs. For example, you could have it so that if when you are using the keyboard and are at work, you would use Windows 7 as the OS, but when you went home and move more to a tablet-appropriate environment, the OS might shift to Android. Also, as kids are growing up using these devices much the same way we used pen and paper, there could be appropriate “user environments” within this hybrid device to satisfy their needs.
…
So What’s Next?
12 to 18 months ago, tablets didn’t exist (although there are plenty of people who will disagree with this statement). So, to qualify that a bit more, I would say the modern, consumer-friendly tablet didn’t exist. In another 12-18 months, the tablets (like the iPad) that we know and love currently will be long gone and replaced with devices that are more powerful, thinner, multi-function with batteries that last 20 hours of active use, and capable of powering full entertainment systems and replace computers. Well, I could be dreaming a bit.
Oh, and one more thing…on Wednesday, Intel introduced a new design to their transistor chip. Called “Tri-Gate,” this revolutionary 3-D designclearly shows Intel’s innovation at work. While the concept of this design has been discussed for several years, Intel is the first manufacturer to move this design into production. It provides not only performance improvements, but also allows for power reduction within 22nm-based devices that include the categories mentioned above.
Above you can see an illustration of the 32nm transistor (on the left) compared to the new 22nm (on the right). The yellow dots represent how the current flows. The 32nm illustrates current flowing along a plane while the 22nm shows it flowing on 3 sides of a vertical fin.
But back to the tablet race, Apple seems to have the lead…for now. But as companies regroup and look to improve, I’m expecting some pretty innovative products coming out. I think with Intel working to drive the innovation from within, providing more powerful and smaller chipsets to power these emerging tablets, we are just beginning to see a really exciting market develop and emerge.
Intel: accelerated Atom SoC roadmap down to 22nm in 2 years and a “new netbook experience” for tablet/mobile PC market
Update: Intel will be able to maintain the original 22nm timetable with delivery of Haswell and next-gen Atom products on 22nm in Q2 2013 (see: Intel Haswell: “Mobile computing is not limited to tiny, low-performing devices” [Nov 15, 2012]). This progress, however, will not be enough against the 28nm ARM SoCs of that time, so it is proceding further as fast as only could to 14nm. Expect products from this in H2 CY2014: Intel progressing in development of 14nm technology, says CTO [DIGITIMES, Dec 5, 2012]
Intel CTO Justin Rattner on December 4 said that Intel’s development of 14nm technology is on schedule with volume production to kick off in one to two years and development of 18-inch wafers is under way through cooperation with partners.
Rattner also noted that Intel’s aggressiveness over technology advancement will allow Moore’s Law to extend for another 10 years.
At the end of 2013, Intel will enter the generation of 14nm CPUs (P1272 [process: a shrink from the previous P1270 22-nm process as well as a reduction in power consumption]) and SoCs (1273), while expanding its investments at its D1X Fab in Oregon, and Fab 42 in Arizona, the US and Fab 24 in Ireland, and will gradually enter 10nm, 7nm and 5nm process generations starting 2015.
As for Intel’s competitors, Samsung is already set to enter 20nm in 2013 and is already working on its 14nm node, while Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company’s (TSMC) 20nm process will enter small volume production in the second half of 2013 with the first 3D-based FPGA chips to also start.
Globalfoundries has previously announced its 14nm FinFET process will start pilot production at the end of 2013 and enter mass production in 2014.
As for 18-inch wafers, Intel has invested in Holland-based ASML for its EUV technology, and related technologies are expected to start entering production in 2017.
See also: Intel’s industry position and prospects for years ahead [Dec 9, 2010]
Follow-up:
– Intel’s SoC strategy strengthened by 22nm Tri-Gate technology [May 10, 2011]
– Netbook prices starting $50 less at $200 via Intel MeeGo strategy [July 29, 2011]
Intel adjusts netbook strategy [April 14, 2011]
Intel has recently adjusted its netbook strategy and is set to cooperate with its partners including Asustek Computer and Acer to launch netbook devices priced below US$199 in regions such as the Middle-East, Latin America and Eastern Europe, according to sources from notebook players.
As for markets such as Europe, the US and China, Intel will continue to push netbook models using the new Cedar Trail-M platform and will add new technologies such as Wireless Display (WiDi) and wireless audio into these devices, for a price of US$299-599 depending on specifications and operating system.
Netbook models priced at US$199 will adopt Intel’s own MeeGo operating system and Intel is currently working on developing content and applications that suit each region and has already demonstrated engineering samples to its partners. Asustek, Acer and several China-based second-tier white-box netbook players have already prepared to launch machines with Intel’s US$199 platform in the second half of 2011.
Updates from Computex 2011:
– Chip Shot: Intel Unveils Innovative New Concept Design, “Keeley Lake” [May 31, 2011]
At Computex, Intel unveiled “Keeley Lake ” an innovative, newly-developed convertible design based on the upcoming Intel® Atom™ netbook platform, codenamed “Cedar Trail.” Whether creating with a keyboard or browsing with touch, “Keeley Lake” will offer customers the best of both worlds with stylish designs, sleek form factors, new capacitive multi-touch displays and thinness from 17mm-20mm. Designs like “Keeley Lake” based on “Cedar Trail” will provide the most flexible platform of choice by enabling operating systems including Chrome OS, MeeGo and Windows. Intel has enabled ODMs with the “Keeley Lake” design and already started to see the demand.
– Chip Shot: Medfield – The Next Generation of Tablets from Intel [May 31, 2011]
At Computex, Intel reiterated its Atom System on a Chip (SoC) roadmap, highlighting “Medfield,” which will be built using Intel’s 32nm high-k metal gate process technology. The purpose-built solution will provide lower power, a smaller footprint and more integration of features and performance for the tablet market. “Medfield” will enable sub-9mm tablets that weigh less than 1.5 pounds and provide all day battery life. The processors will be in production later this year for tablet designs in market the first half of 2012 and support a range of operating systems including Google Android (“Honeycomb”), Windows and MeeGo.
– Chip Shot: MeeGo Netbooks Based on Intel Atom Arrive at Computex [May 31, 2011]
The ecosystem around MeeGo-based netbooks expands with the introduction of devices including the Acer Aspire One Happy 2, Asus Eee PC X101, Samsung N100 and Lenovo IdeaPad S100 at Computex. These systems are based on the new, 1.33 GHz single-core Intel® Atom™ processor N435. These netbooks will provide new levels of affordability for market expansion. Acer and Asus netbooks will come pre-loaded with the Intel AppUpSM center in select countries. Also at Computex, Acer demonstrated a MeeGo-based tablet on stage at the Intel netbook, tablet and software focused satellite event.
– A Brief Interview with Intel’s Sean Maloney [May 27, 2011]
Editor’s Note: A few days before traveling to Taipei, Taiwan, where he is slated to deliver a keynote address at Computex 2011, Intel Free Press had a chance to sit down for a brief conversation with Intel Executive Vice President Sean Maloney, the newly named chairman of Intel China. Maloney returned to work in January after suffering a stroke last year.
…
IFP: How do you challenge the critics who are saying that some of this is too little, too late — that the ARM ecosystem is too firmly established now, particularly in tablets and phones?
Maloney: The ARM ecosystem is really well established, but I don’t think that anyone is in the position that Intel is in to get all the way from the bottom to the top. In process technology, we are still 2 years or more in front. I think it will be a good 4 or 5 years.
IFP: Intel has talked a lot about accelerating the SoC (System-on-a-Chip) roadmap, which according to some pundits can’t happen fast enough. Why is it taking so long for the company to accelerate Atom SoCs and is there anything you can do to make it go faster?
Maloney: Well, unfortunately 2 years ago we thought that the market was not moving as fast as it has moved. Now we’ve announced that we will be doing one new process generation every year for the next 3 or 4 years. That’s pretty fast. It’s a big acceleration from where we are now.
IFP: Intel CEO and President Paul Otellini mentioned during the recent investors meeting that China is poised to be No. 1 in the PC market next year. What does that mean for Intel?
Maloney: It means everything, right? The U.S. was the first and foremost market for 43 years at Intel. Now it’s going to be China, No. 1. That’s amazing. Really, I am excited about China. It’s the first market for Intel next year. There are so many things we can do in China, and we’re going to do them.
– Accelerating the Intel® Atom™ Processor Roadmap (part of Intel’s Maloney Talks Mobile Growth, Industry Opportunities at Computex [May 30, 2011], emphasis is mine)
Maloney highlighted key milestones and additional details on upcoming generations of Intel Atom processor-based platforms for tablets, netbooks and smartphones. The Atom processor will outpace Moore’s Law, accelerating from 32nm through 22nm to 14nm within 3 successive years. Having a cadence of a new-process-generation every year will result in significant reduction in transistor leakage, lower active power and an increase of transistor density to enable more powerful smartphones, tablets, and netbooks with more features and longer battery life.
Reaching its 100 million-unit milestone this month, Intel is preparing its next-generation netbook platform, codenamed “Cedar Trail.” “Cedar Trail” is the first netbook platform based on Intel’s 32nm technology, and will enable ultra-thin, fanless designs with new capabilities such as Intel® Rapid Start technology which provides fast resume, Intel® Smart Connect Technology which enables an always updated experience even during standby, Intel® Wireless Display and PC Synch, which let users wirelessly update and synchronize documents, content and media across multiple devices. In addition, the new platform is expected to enable more than 10 hours of battery life and weeks of standby. “Cedar Trail” will support leading operating systems, such as Microsoft Windows*, Google Chrome* and MeeGo*.
In addition, Maloney showcased more than 10 tablets, running on three different operating systems, that are available today based on the Intel Atom processor Z670. The platform already has more than 35 design wins since its launch in April, with several convertibles, sliders and other innovative designs on shelves now and more coming through the rest of the year.
[Medfield relevance is only upto 00:48.
Please note at 00:27: “… initially on Android, later on MeeGo …”]
Maloney also discussed “Medfield,” Intel’s first purpose-built 32nm platform for smartphones and tablets. “Medfield” has been optimized for both low power and high performance and will deliver long use-time, rich media and gaming, and advanced imaging capabilities. To illustrate this point in tablets, Intel showcased a “Medfield” design running Google Android* 3.0 (“Honeycomb”) for the first time. In production later this year, the platform will enable sub-9mm designs that weigh less than 1.5 pounds for tablet designs in market the first half of 2012. It will support a range of operating systems including Android and MeeGo.
According to Maloney, “The work Intel is doing with the Intel® Atom™ processor roadmap, coupled with the significant changes we are making to our Intel® Core™ processor roadmaps, will continue to enhance Intel’s ability to deliver complete hardware solutions with a choice of software platforms across a full spectrum of computing — from back-end servers that power the cloud to the billions of devices that access the cloud.”
– Computing Becomes More Personal at Computex [June 7, 2011] (emphasis is mine)
Reflecting on Computex last week, I’m once again in awe of all the time and energy across the company (and around the world!) goes into pulling off this event. For Intel, it was a great show. We highlighted several technologies and innovations that will push the envelope when it comes to enhancing what we’re calling “companion computing.” As Intel Executive Vice President Sean Maloney pointed out in his keynote, “computing is taking many forms” and Intel innovation is the “catalyst” for exciting new technologies that will empower our mobile lifestyles.
I hope you heard our big news around the introduction of a brand new category of ultra-slim laptops called “Ultrabooks,” targeted to penetrate 40 percent of the market by end of 2012.
Along that same vein, the Netbook and Tablet Group at Intel, made some exciting disclosures to help meet the varied expectations of the companion device market. One of those was “Keeley Lake,” a brand new, convertible design based on the upcoming Atom netbook platform, “Cedar Trail.” With its swivel and fold monitor design, “Keeley Lake” packs in the power and performance of a netbook and the functionality of a tablet.
It will have more than 10 hours of battery life and will include Rapid Start, Smart Connect and Intel Wireless Display for displaying content on TVs and PC Synch.
Intel also highlighted “Medfield,” its first purpose-built 32nm platform for smartphones and tablets. Optimized for low power, high performance and longer use-time, these processors will be in production later this year and you can see “Medfield”-based tablets out in the market in the first half of 2012.
Both “Keeley Lake” and “Medfield” will support a range of operating systems including Windows, Google Android and MeeGo.
Speaking of MeeGo, the ecosystem around MeeGo-based netbooks is expanding. At Computex devices such as the Acer Aspire One Happy series, the Asus Eee PC X101, the Lenovo IdeaPad S100 and Samsung N100 were introduced. These systems are based on the new 1.33 GHz single-core Intel® Atom™ processor N435 and will provide new levels of affordability for market expansion.
At the show, we demonstrated the traction our formerly codenamed “Oak Trail” platform, now the Intel Atom processor Z670, has received since it began shipping in April. “Oak Trail” has garnered huge market acceptance and already has more than 35 design wins, 10 of which were showcased on the Computex stage. In addition, several convertibles and sliders are on shelves now, with more coming through the end of the year.
Mobile computing is indeed taking many new forms and I’m looking forward to the future to see how these shapes evolve. Computex 2011 has definitely set the tone for the exciting times ahead!
End of updates from Computex 2011
Intel pushes Android plans [April 14, 2011]
Intel, in the third quarter of 2011, is set to announce a new plan for tablet PCs – PRC Plus, pushing an Intel/Android 3.0 platform, after nearly half of year of negotiations with Google, according to sources from notebook players. However, Intel declined to comment on market rumors.
The sources pointed out that the PRC Plus plan is to use Intel processor’s advantage of stronger performance than ARM-based processors and improve on the operating system’s user interface and user experience. The new plan is also expected to save costs from Windows licensing fees for downstream vendors.
In addition to pushing an Intel/Android 3.0 platform, Intel is also set to adopt a similar strategy as in the PC industry and pay a subsidy of US$10 for each Intel CPU-based tablet PC to attract first-tier notebook vendors.
Asia-based Acer, Lenovo and Asustek Computer have all agreed to start up new netbook projects in the second half of 2011, while Cisco is also set to launch devices adopting Oak Trail/Android 3.0 targeting the enterprise market, the sources added.
As Android for tablets falters, opportunity for Intel [CNET, April 15, 2011]
Intel has been criticized here and in other venues for being late to the tabletparty. But Android’s slow start in tablets may mean latecomers aren’t necessarily losers.
Intel was demoing an Atom-based tablet at its developer conference in Beijing this week (Credit: Intel)
A stroke of serendipity has arrived in the form of a tepid consumer reception so far for tablets beyond Apple’s iPad. Sales of the Motorola Xoom are, to date, anemic, while the sell-through to consumers of Samsung’s Android tablet has also been underwhelming.
And Digitimes reported todaythat tablet suppliers Asus and HTC are delaying Android tablet rollouts.
Meanwhile, RIM’s BlackBerry PlayBook–which is more like an appendage to a BlackBerry phonethan a standalone tablet–is not targeted at the high-volume consumer space.
So, with tablets based on chips from companies like Nvidia (Xoom, Samsung Galaxy Tab) and Texas Instruments (PlayBook) not likely flying off the shelf, are Intel’s chances any better now?
“The door to this market is open. The longer it takes for these other products to get rolling, the more opportunity there is for Intel,” said Richard Shim, an analyst at DisplaySearch.
But:
– No hope: Intel’s new Oak Trail chip headed for tablet limbo [Ars Technica, April 13, 2011]
Everything about the Android tablet experience, from the hardware and software to the price point, is inferior to the iPad. So what hope is there for Intel’s Oak Trail to swoop in and change the game?
There is no hope, but that’s not really the point of Oak Trail. Intel’s latest stab at an MID/tablet-oriented hardware platform is just one more step on its long march to the smartphone, a destination it’s unlikely to reach until it gets a future Oak Trail successor down to 22nm. Until then, Intel will keep producing these “tablet” chips, which will find their way into designs from a number of OEMs, some of which are neat in a gimmicky sort of way, and none of which are likely to sell well.
If netbooks were still selling like hotcakes, this could significantly improve Oak Trail’s prospects, because it will be a solid netbook part. But they aren’t, so we’re left to watch Intel mark time in this fashion for another year or so until it finally catches up to the ARM ecosystem.
– Intel does fondleslabs with Atom ‘Oak Trail’ [The Register, April 11, 2011]
Monday’s announcement of the Oak Trail rollout, while welcome news to Intel fans, may not be “longer-term” enough to make significant inroads into a market now dominated by ARM variants. Although it’s too soon to tell, those same fans may have more reason to hope that the soon-to-follow Cedar Trail might have the chops to move the Intel architecture into a critical mass of “Companion Computing” devices.
Doug Davis: Devices and the Future of Personal Computing [Keynote webcast, April 12, 2011] (some parts transcribed here with their corresponding slides)
[8:20] According to the Moore’s law every two year we delivered a new generation of process technology. … Our 32 nm technology – for example – deliveres 25% increase in performance at the same power level, at the same leakage, OR we can deliver 10X lower leakage at the same performance level [8:41][8:59] Now Intel is accelerating the Atom SoC road map. Over the next several years we’re going to move faster than Moore’s law. … Our 45 nm volume products are shipping today. 32 nm will ship in volume over the next 6 months, and 22 nm will be in volume within 24 months. [9:25]
[9:38] The 1st generation of Atom processor was built on 45 nm technology. That product line brought about 10X thermal power reduction vs. our lowest power Celeron products. The 2nd generation Atom added a new set of power management capabilities and features. The focus there was to drive idle power at platform level down by 50X and we beat our own goals.Our 3d generation Atom will continue to bring new architectural innovations to improve performance and power. With 10X lower leakage on the 32 nm SoC process enables longer standby and idle power improvements as well.
Our 4th generation of Atom will again continue to drive new architectural innovations , and performance and power. It will be built on 22 nm process technology. The most important benefit of 22 nm process technology is to continue to provide very low leakage, and [it] also will provide about 2X reduction in active power along with about 2X improvement in transistor density as well. All this compared to our 32 nm process technology. [10:55]
[14:00] … [New] features [on the upcoming 32 nm Cedar Trail] we are bringing to these new netbook experiences:We will have things like Intel Wireless Display that allows to project what is on the screen of your netbook onto a larger system like the television in your home.
Intel Wireless Music which allows you to take a playlist on your netbook and to be able to stream it to almost any power speakers in your home. You can listen to that music while you are looking at those pictures from your last vacation.
Always Updated is the technology that keeps tweets and RSS feeds, and e-mail, all of those types of things updated on your netbook even when it is in standby. So when you open up the system and you want to do something all of your information is up to date.
The Intel App Up allows you to have applications from thousands of different developers.
PC Sync is a great technology that allows you to seamlessly connect all the devices in your home so that they stay in sync automatically.
And my personal favorite is Fast Flash Standby. This allows you to be able to come up and use the device instantly. It is really [the case that] the device is ready for a new meeting. [15:24]
Netbook Nation: IDF Beijing 2011 Round Up [April 15, 2011] (emphasis is mine)
If you want the inside scoop on what went on at IDF Beijing 2011 you’ve come to the right place. Netbook News was the only English speaking blog at the Chinese conference. So what went on? We’ll we’ve got a video showing you our favorite products and announcements below, but if you perfer reading, I’ll spell it out for you. Cedartrail Intel’s latest Netbook platform was launched. No details on performance gains, but three new features were added: Intel Wireless Streaming [rather: Wireless Display], Intel [Wireless] Music and Wireless file sharing [rather: PC Sync]. During the Day 1 Keynote we were able to grab a video of the on stage demo in case you’re curious. [the demo of those 3 features is from [4:44] to [6:08] of the below video]
Oak Trail was officially announced with tablets hitting the streets in May. So far all the tablets are 10.1 inches and about 10mm thick. Nothing to get too excited about as we have yet to see what kind of battery life we might be getting. Some tablet manufactures like Evolve Three came out with a unique design integrating a kick stand and keyboard into the hard cover. We’ve included a hands on in the Netbook Nation video if you’re keen to grab a look. [see between 2:40 and 3:45]
Taking a look at gaming hardware there was only one notable announcement and that was by Razer who is bringing the Switchblade, the most innovative Oak Trail device to date to the Chinese market first. And Tencent, China’s largest ISV is going to be providing the installed gaming user base! Razer and Tencent are bring four immensely popular online games with roughly 600 million monthly gamers to mobile. Razer is going to focus optimization of the Switchblade on League of Legends as well as Dungeon & Fighter, Crossfire and QQ Speed. Tencent sees 130 million active monthly users between the four games and views Oak Trail as the mobile computing platform able to deliver a powerful gaming experience. Though the Switchblade is currently running Windows 7, both Tencent and Razer concluded that they were interesting in the possibility of delivering MeeGo on the device.
So check out the video below that also shows off a special PRC skin of the MeeGo tablet UI! [see between 6:16 and 8:24]
Intel Developer Forum: Executives Talk Evolution of Computing with Devices that Touch People’s Daily Lives [April 11, 2011]
Doug Davis: Reinventing Personal Computing for Devices
During his keynote presentation, Davis discussed how companion computing devices, including netbooks, tablets and other devices are tranforming the world we live in through personal, mobile and connected experiences. He described how Intel, over the next 3 years, is accelerating the Intel Atom product line on a pace faster than Moore’s Lawto deliver increased battery life, enhanced performance and new features for amazing user experiences.Davis also unveiled the highly anticipated Intel® AtomTM Z670 processor and Intel® SM35 Express Chipset platform, formerly codenamed “Oak Trail,” with a range of innovative tablets and form factors. These devices are available from leading customers with operating system of choice including Android*, Windows 7* and MeeGo* starting in May.
Highlighting the evolution of netbooks, Davis also disclosed “Cedar Trail,” Intel’s next-generation netbook and entry-level desktop platform. Based on Intel’s leading-edge 32nm process technology, “Cedar Trail” will include more than 10 new features that will improve media, graphics and power consumption in upcoming netbooks. The chip’s design, efficiencies and latest manufacturing process technology will enable fan-less, fully enclosed and thus ultra-sleek devices. Davis said other new features will be disclosed in the coming months, with the processor due in the second half of the year.
Renée James: Creating the Ultimate User Experience
During her keynote, James discussed Intel’s transition from a semiconductor company to a personal computing company, and emphasized the importance of delivering compelling user experiences across a range of personal computing devices. To develop and enable the best experiences, James announced a strategic relationship with Tencent*, China’s largest Internet company, to create a joint innovation center dedicated to delivering best-in-class mobile Internet experiences. Engineers from both companies will work together to further the mobile computing platforms and other technologies.James also announced new collaborations for the Intel AppUpSM center and the Intel AppUp Developer Program in China to help assist in the creation of innovative applications for Intel Atom processor-based devices. Chinese partners supporting this effort include Neusoft*, Haier* and Hasee* and Shenzhen Software Park*.
Oak Trail Press Deck [April 8, 2011] slide #12:
Intel® Atom™ Processor Z670 (512K Cache, 1.50 GHz) (some extracted specification)
# of Cores 1
# of Threads 2
…
Max TDP 3 W
…
Tray 1ku Budgetary Price $75.00
…
Max Memory Size 2 GB
(dependent on memory type)
…
Integrated Graphics Yes
Graphics Base Frequency 400 MHz
…
Intel® Hyper-Threading Technology Yes
…
Enhanced Intel SpeedStep® Technology YesEnhanced Intel SpeedStep® Technology is an advanced means of enabling very high performance while also meeting the power-conservation needs of mobile systems. Conventional Intel SpeedStep Technology switches both voltage and frequency in tandem between high and low levels in response to processor load.
More information:
– Oak_Trail_Atom_Processor_Factsheet [April 8, 2011]
– Embedded_Oak_Trail_Factsheet [April 8, 2011]
– Oak_Trail_Press_Deck [April 8, 2011]
– Oak_Trail_Press_Presentation [April 8, 2011], from which one slide is worth to show here:
Intel® Atom™ Processor Z650 (512K Cache, 1.20 GHz)
The same specifications except the clock speed and there is no price given.
Intel® SM35 Express Chipset (some extracted specification)
Product Name Intel® 82SM35 PCH
Code Name Formerly Whitney Point
…
Max TDP 0.75 Watts
…
Integrated Graphics Yes
…
Graphics Output HDMI
More information: Intel® SM35 Express ChipsetOverview
Intel, on the go [April 16, 2011]
Intel has finally taken an important step in its shift toward making chips for mobile devices, ending a year of speculation.
The processor manufacturing giant on Monday launched a new processor, a low-power version of Intel chips slated for tablets, notebooks and smartphones.
The next-generation Intel Atom processor platform, formerly code-named “Oak Trail,” will appear in 35 tablet computers and other mobile devices, including those made by Lenovo and Fujitsu, in May and throughout 2011, California-based Intel announced.
…
Other device makers using the new Atom Z670 include Motion Computing, Razer and Viliv. The new chip, like other processors from the line, supports Google Android, MeeGo and Windows operating systems.
With the launch of the new Intel Atom processor platform, Intel is finally making progress in the world of chip manufacturing for mobile devices, which has been predominantly occupied by the Cambridge-based ARM.
During the Intel Developer Forum (IDF) in Beijing, which opened on Tuesday and ended on Wednesday, Intel also announced that its AppUp center, currently optimized for netbooks and laptops, will be extended to support mobile devices, including tablets and smartphones, in the near future.
The localized Intel AppUp center and Intel developer program for the Chinese market, in cooperation with some local partners, is also expected to debut at the end of the year, Intel said during the IDF. The chip giant also announced at the forum the launch of a joint innovation center with Tencent to focus on mobile computing platforms.
Steering away from purely serving as a technology provider to creating a more user-friendly experienceis a tough job which cannot be done overnight, Yang Xu, president of Intel China, told reporters during the IDF.
…
Razer Switchblade
San Diego, California-based gaming hardware producer Razer showcased at the forum its gaming handheld concept device Switchblade, powered by the new Intel Atom processor. Running on Windows 7, the handheld, with a size of 172mm x 115mm x 25 mm, supports both WiFi and 3G. The gadget combines a new dynamic tactile keyboard and a multi-touch-screen, and, if required, a mobile gaming mouse.As a concept for now, the device is expected to be available soon in the market, but its exact availability and pricing remains uncertain.
Evolve III Maestro C tablet
[A stand can be kicked off as well as a wireless keyboard has been integrated into the hard cover so the cover is freely detachable. See the excerpts from the video hands-on in the “Netbook Nation” article seen before. A truely innovative design.]
Sydney-based tablet maker Evolve III will join the likes of Lenovo and Fujitsu to become the first batch of manufacturers to use the new Intel Atom Z670 processor. The firm unveiled at the IDF its Maestro Convertible tablet, based on a 1.5-gigahertz Intel Z670 processor. The tablet, featuring a 10.1-inch capacitive touch display, is convertible and will be offering a triple booting of Windows 7, Android and MeeGo.
The weight of the device is 910g. The device, which mainly targets a business clientele, will first go on sale in the US and Europe around June, retailing for $729, according to Warrick Dainter, executive director of the Australian tablet maker. The device is also expected to hit the Chinese market in July or August, which will be the first launch of the firm’s products in China, Dainter said.
More information:
From Intel Newsroom:
Fujitsu stylistic tablet
The Fujitsu Stylistic Q550 is a business-class slate PC designed for the high-security requirements of mobile enterprise computing, and with the Intel® Atom™ processor Z670 inside, the device provides all-day battery life.
Lenovo Ideapad Slate
The new Intel® Atom™ processor Z670 inside Lenovo’s IdeaPad Slate enables reduced power consumption, extended battery life and full 1080p HD video support. The Lenovo IdeaPad Slate is powered by the new Intel® Atom™ processor Z670, as well as 2GB of RAM and a 30GB SSD for storage with a form function offering both finger and stylus input.
Motion CL900 Tablet PC
The Motion CL900 tablet is the first 10-inch, rugged tablet that enables both touch and stylus input on the display along with a full day of battery life using Intel’s next generation Intel® Atom™ processor Z670. The CL900 incorporates the new Intel® Atom™ processor Z670 to provide the ideal balance between power and battery consumption while running multiple enterprise applications. The new Intel® Atom™ processor Z670 inside the Motion CL900 enables lighter devices, allowing users to work faster and more effectively in today’s decentralized work environments.
Viliv X70
The slimmest Windows 7 tablet yet, the Viliv X70 Slate offers a custom-split keyboard to ease thumb typing, Clear Type LCD screen and an Intel® Atom™ processor Z670 to provide the ideal balance between power and battery consumption.
New Intel® Atom™ Processor for Tablets Spurs Companion Computing Device Innovation [April 11, 2011]
Company Outlines Plans to Accelerate Intel Manufacturing Lead with Intel® Atom™ Processor Family and Move Faster than Moore’s Law
Intel Corporation today announced that the Intel® Atom™ platform, formerly codenamed “Oak Trail,” is now available and will be in devices starting in May and throughout 2011. Over 35 innovative tablet and hybrid designs from companies including Evolve III*, Fujitsu Limited*, Lenovo*, Motion Computing*, Razer*, and Viliv* are based on “Oak Trail” and running a variety of operating systems.In addition, at the Intel Developer Forum in Beijing, the company will give a sneak peak of its next-generation, 32nm Intel Atom platform, currently codenamed “Cedar Trail.” This solution will help to enable a new wave of fanless, cool and quiet, sleek and innovative netbooks, entry-level desktops and all-in-one designs.
“The new Intel Atom ‘Oak Trail’ platform, with ‘Cedar Trail’ to follow, are examples of our continued commitment to bring amazing personal and mobile experiences to netbook and tablet devices, delivering architectural enhancements for longer battery life and greater performance,” said Doug Davis, vice president and general manager of the Netbook and Tablet Group at Intel. “We are accelerating the Intel Atom product line to now move faster than Moore’s law, bringing new products to market on three process technologies in the next 3 years.”
The new Intel® Atom™ processor Z670, part of the “Oak Trail” platform, delivers improved video playback, fast Internet browsing and longer battery life, without sacrificing performance. The rich media experience available with “Oak Trail” includes support for 1080p video decode, as well as HDMI. The platform also supports Adobe* Flash, enabling rich content and Flash-based gaming.
With these significant improvements in power-efficient performance, the Intel Atom processor Z670 allows applications to run on various operating systems, including Google* Android*, MeeGo* and Windows*. This unique flexibilitydelivers both new experiences and more choice when it comes to tablets and hybrid designs that combine the best features of the netbook and tablet together.
The platform also helps deliver smaller, thinner and more efficient devices by packing integrated graphics and the memory controller directly onto the processor die. The processor is 60 percent smaller than previous generations with a lower-power design for fanless devices as well as up to all-day battery life1. Additional features include Intel® Enhanced Deeper Sleep that saves more power during periods of inactivity as well as optimized Intel SpeedStep® technology. An integrated HD decode engine enables smooth 1080p HD video playback at a fraction of the power consumption.
In addition, Intel Atom Z670 processors come with the Intel® SM35 Express Chipset, delivering a lead-free2, halogen-free3 design with high-speed USB 2.0 for greater performance and Intel® High-Definition Audioto enable premium home theater sound.
Also ideal for small form-factor and portable embedded designs, the platform provides an excellent solution for a range of tablets in retail, medical and industrial applications. Solutions such as mobile clinical assistantsallow medical staff to directly input data into patients’ electronic files and avoid paper charting. This can result in a reduction in errors, better workflow, higher productivity and reduced paper handling and overhead costs. In addition to the Intel Atom Z670, Intel is offering the Intel® Atom™ processor Z650 for embedded devices with 7-year lifecycle support on Windows and MeeGo operating systems.
Based on Intel’s leading-edge 32nm process technology, the next-generation “Cedar Trail” platform will feature improvements in graphics capabilities including Blu-ray 2.0 support, a dedicated media engine for full 1080p playback and additional digital display options including HDMI output and DisplayPort. New features will include Intel® Wireless Music, Intel® Wireless Display, PC Synch and Fast Boot. In addition, the enhancements made in power consumption and TDP will enable fanless designs with longer battery life. This means great acoustics without the hum of a fan and improved ruggedness and aesthetics of the design. Intel is currently sampling “Cedar Trail” to all major OEMs and ODMs. Users can look forward to a new generation of innovative mobile and desktop designs based on the “Cedar Trail” platform in the second half of 2011.
More information:
Maestro Tablet Runs Three Operating Systems [Jan 18, 2011]
…
IFP: Is this the first tablet that can switch between Android, MeeGo and Windows operating systems?
Warrick: Yes, we believe we will be the first to offer a triple boot OS for customers. We have been working on the dual boot tablets for a long time, working to get the boot interface to run nice and smoothly. Now the hard part is over. We can offer MeeGo over to the dual boot tablet making it a triple boot really because of the in-depth work that we are going with Intel directly.
…
We would like to work with Honeycomb, however we are devoting most of our efforts to make sure that MeeGo and Windows 7 is 100 percent supported, as we feel that the new MeeGo platform alongside Windows 7 is a more stable platform over the android platform.
Also, using the devices myself, I can’t live without Microsoft’s PowerPoint and Excel and Outlook while on the go. You can’t beat a company dedicated to creating OS platforms as a main market share product (Microsoft/Win 7). These guys have helped us get through the hard parts of moving an OS ecosystem revolving around keyboard and mouse, over to complete touch integration.
We’re getting 7 percent support on Android, compared to nearly 100 percent support from Microsoft and Intel for the MeeGo and Win 7 platforms.
IFP: How has it been working with MeeGo – what makes it different than Windows and Android?
Warrick:MeeGo has been fantastic. It feels great to me, as it’s on the forefront of the platform. We also felt very proud to showcase the new MeeGo platform (at CES), as a lot of internal people – even the guys working at the MeeGo stand had never seen our version of MeeGo. This was the very latest, genuine version of the MeeGo platform. It is so flexible to work with, and the fact that Intel gives us a world of support to move ahead, is a giant difference to developing on the Android platform, where we’re getting very little support.
IFP: What are some of the technologies or features you like most, ones that help set you apart from other new tablets?
Warrick: Some of the things we have been have been working on with Intel is to try to create the slimmest hard drive. To create a 4mm thick external hard drive, we have had to go through some serious R&D thinking to get around some of the issues associated with developing a product like this. For example, do we sacrifice speed for thickness (SATA port is 6mm thick, as opposed to a 1mm thick Micro USB port)? But in all, we want to deliver the best balance between speed and portability.
Once you get down to the nitty-gritty of things …. it’s the ability to access the hard drive remotely via WiFi. I mean, let’s face it, does everybody always want to be accessing their hard drive by plugging a USB into their SSD? Not really, so why not make it accessible via WiFi and USB? A WiFi-accessible hard drive is kind-of cool, but it’s also something people will find useful.
Intel’s support has allowed us to implant the Intel memory wafer directly into our own transistor with our own driver in the chip rather than an external chip, allowing us to create smaller packaged devices, revolving around a completely customized product, rather than taking an existing product and modifying it.
IFP: Why create a custom hard drive?
Warrick: Business is tough in the hard drive market, so we are in tune to be different, and this has evolved from a need for these devices to exist. Memory constraints for devices such as tablets and mobile phones are getting smaller and smaller because everything is getting held on the cloud. We see the need to still be able to store our data locally, but we want this data to be available to all of our devices, not just the one you plugged into.
on App Up:
– From Intel Developer Forum (IDF) Beijing: New Industry Collaborations in China [April 12, 2011]
– How to build an AppUp app from a web page using AppUp encapsulator [April 15, 2011]
– Calling all web app developers…we’ve got something for you! [April 11, 2011]
The Intel AppUp℠ developer program is excited to announce a new opportunity for web app developers to transform web apps into Intel AppUp℠ center apps. This opportunity, called Intel AppUp™ encapsulator, allows web app developers to expand their customer base and revenue potential by making an app from their existing web code that is compatible and available for the Intel AppUp℠ center.
How does this work? The Intel AppUp™ encapsulator embeds the web code into a native application wrapper (a hybrid app) and then creates installer packages. The native application wrapper integrates the Intel AppUp™ SDK for store authorization and QT WebKit which provides the HTML5 and Javascript engines that execute and render the web app code. After talking with one of the developers, Andy Idsinga, I got so excited because Andy said that this process is relatively simply and doesn’t require anything special to get the web code to work with the Intel AppUp™ encapsulator. In fact, developers can use their own web APIs, 3rd Party APIs, and even other 3rd party widgets. Essentially, the developer builds the web code just like other web apps utilizing html, css and javascript, images and AJAX.
Keep in mind that the developer will still need to test and debug the app. But the cool part about it is that the developer can run Intel AppUp™ encapsulator many times as the developer chooses in order to get the app to its desired final product. Once done, then the developer submits the final product to the Intel AppUp center. It’s just that simple!
For more information about Intel AppUp™ encapsulator, please read the FAQs for detailed information. If I’ve convinced you, and you’re ready to expand your customer, then launch the tool and get started now!
– Intel MeeGo 1.2 Tablet UX now open sourced. This and more now on MeeGo.com [April 4, 2011]
Mid February of this year, Intel released the MeeGo 1.2 Tablet UX pre-alpha to our developer community. And now a month later we are happy to announce that this release has been fully open sourced, where it is supported and available under the open source MeeGo project at MeeGo.com. At the time of this post, the open sourced version is pre-alpha and is released as the MeeGo Tablet Developer Preview. Via MeeGo.com:
We are pleased to open up development of the tablet user experience project. This release provides a touch-optimized user interface for MeeGo tablets, introducing the new panels UI concept and including a suite of built-in applications for Web browsing, personal information management and media consumption. This project is a work-in-progress under active development and considered pre-alpha. We welcome your involvement and contributions.
As you likely recall, Intel initially released the MeeGo tablet UX 1.2 pre-alpha in February to coincide with the release of the AppUp SDK beta for MeeGo. This release allowed developers to have the tools & user experience needed to start developing, testing, & submitting tablet applications for AppUp. At the time of initial release the tablet UX could not be fully open sourced, thus was initially released under the AppUp developer program site.
However, with the MeeGo tablet UX released as open source, it sits side-by-side the other device user intefaces (UI’s) from MeeGo.com, such as; the MeeGo Netbook UI, ivi UI, Handset UI and Smart TV UI. Along with these open source device UI’s, the tablet UI is available for the MeeGo community to freely download, support, and contribute to under the MeeGo open source project.
Visit the MeeGo.com site to download the MeeGo Tablet Developer Preview, and get a full list of features and supported hardware.
http://meego.com/downloads/releases/1.2/meego-tablet-developer-previewAlso visit the MeeGo developer portal for AppUp, to get all the information you need to develop and distribute a MeeGo application.
http://appdeveloper.intel.com/meegoMeeGo UX Components
In addition MeeGo.com has released QML based MeeGo UX Components and a cooresponding Wiki. The MeeGo UX Components make developing for MeeGo devices easier by providing a set UI elements that allow you to quickly build applications that tightly integrate with the look of the MeeGo user experience.
Visit the MeeGo UX Components Wiki
http://wiki.meego.com/MeeGo_UX_Components
This is how App Up has been started:
– Industry Support for the Intel Atom Developer Program [Sept 22, 2009]
During his keynote at IDF today, Paul Otellini announced the Intel® Atom™ Developer Program, a framework for creating and distributing applications designed specifically for Intel Atom processor-based devices. For the next level of detail, tune into Renee James’ IDF software keynote tomorrow at 10 a.m. PST where she will go into the program’s specifics and describe the benefits for software developers, ISVs and OEMs. For now, please refer to the Intel Atom Developer Program announcement and appdeveloper.intel.com for more information.
Although the program has just launched, we’ve already received some encouraging words of support from software companies and hardware manufacturers alike. Here’s what some of our partners are saying:
- “The Adobe Flash Platform enables developers to create and deliver the most compelling applications, content and video to the widest possible audience. We expect the Intel Atom Developer Program will be a great way for the Flash Platform community developing on Adobe AIR to monetize their AIR applications, and we are working closely with Intel to deliver the necessary technology to enable this opportunity on the Atom platform in the future.” – David Wadhwani, General Manager and Vice President, Platform Business Unit, Adobe
- “Customer adoption of our Intel Atom-based netbooks is exceeding our expectations. Acer is excited to see Intel’s effort in bringing new and innovative applications to netbooks and will use the Intel Atom Developer Program framework to open an application storefront.” – Jim Wong, president, IT Products Global Operations, Acer Inc.
- “The Intel Atom Developer Program is an integral element of providing a holistic netbook experience for our customers. Asus sees this new development model as an opportunity to encourage developers and ISVs. Asus plans to offer an application store based on this framework in order to make exciting applications available to our customers.” – S.Y. Shian, Vice President and General Manager, System Business Group, Asus
- “Dell is passionate about providing value for developers. The Intel Atom Developer Program will open a new world of innovation and business opportunity for developers and we look forward to working with Intel to foster the creation of exciting new Windows and Moblin-based netbook applications.” – John Thode, Vice President, Small Devices, Dell Inc.
then later transformed:
– Chip Shot: Mobile Apps Hit Netbooks [Sept 14, 2010]:
Intel announced the general release of its first netbook application store for consumers today at IDF, including both free and paid apps for entertainment, social networking, gaming and productivity. The Intel® AppUpSM centerheightens the user experience with applications optimized for the mobility and screen size of netbooks. To encourage consumers to discover new applications, the Intel AppUp Center features a free 24-hour “try before you buy” period for all paid applications. To download a copy of the Intel AppUp center today, visit www.appup.com.
Intel Opens Software App Store, Offers New Intel Atom Chips [Sept 14, 2010]
James: The Best Experiences Are Created on Intel Architecture
During her keynote at Moscone Center West in San Francisco, James outlined how tightly integrated and optimized software and platforms will deliver new levels of performance, along with fresh capabilities and the importance of creating an innovative experience across the personal computing continuum – from PCs to smart phones to tablets and cars, as well as any number of Internet-connected consumer devices.Emphasizing a seamless experience across operating systems, James introduced general availability of the Intel® AppUpSM center netbook app store for consumers. The Intel AppUp center includes both free and paid apps for entertainment, social networking, gaming and productivity, optimized for a netbook’s mobility and screen size. To encourage consumers to try new applications, Intel AppUp provides “try before you buy” solutions, encouraging consumers to purchase apps they otherwise might not have. The launch was also marked by the availability of Adobe* AIRapplications, as well as apps from companies including Accuweather*, Barnes & Noble*, Funkitron*, Gibson Guitars*, iWin*, Kaplan*, KONAMI*, and Lifetime*.
In an effort to reach netbook owners worldwide, James announced agreements with Best Buy*, UK-based Dixons* and India-based Croma* to outfit each retailer with the Intel AppUp center – pre-installed on netbooks the stores sell, as well as available for current netbook owners to download online. Similarly, James announced plans from ASUS* to ship its version of the Intel AppUp center on netbooks, the “asus app store,” starting in October.
During her keynote, James highlighted the Intel AppUp Developer Program, designed to drive innovative applications for end users and new revenue opportunities for independent developers and software vendors with programs such as the Intel Million Dollar Development fund. Rick Vanner from The Game Creators was recognized as winner of the “Most Innovative Application” in the Intel Atom Developer Challengefor his game titled, “Goals.” James also introduced the “On Intel AppUp” ISV identifier, designed to help developers promote their applications on Intel AppUp center.
James acknowledged seamless experiences are only part of the equation. Open operating systems – such as Intel and Nokia’s* MeeGo*, hosted by the Linux Foundation – allow developers to create, invent and innovate. Pointing to contributions from industry leaders, James discussed MeeGo ecosystem momentum, highlighting a variety of MeeGo-based devices and how third-party software developments and the upcoming MeeGo Web runtime, to be released in October, will make it easier to write applications for these devices. Internet TV pioneer Amino* also joined James onstage to demonstrate how the company is taking advantage of the flexibility and openness of MeeGo to deliver an innovative MeeGo-based smart TV solution.
ASUS, China Mobile and Marvell join hands in the OPhone ecosystem effort for “Blue Ocean” dominance
Follow-up: First real chances for Marvell on the tablet and smartphone fronts [Aug 21 – Sept 25, 2011]
Information about China Mobile’s related efforts on this blog:
– OPhone OS (OMS) 2.0 based on Android 2.1 [July 5 — Dec 13, 2010]
– 3.9G TD-LTE rollout in 2012 with integrated 2G, 3G and 4G? [July 19 — Dec 14, 2010]
– Could China close the gap in mobile Internet? It should! [July 21 — Oct 21, 2010]
– IMT-Advanced (4G) for the next-generations of interactive mobile services, China is triumphant [Oct 24 — Nov 24, 2010]
– Cloud Computing Strategy for Digital China: Taiwan is leading the way except IOT [Nov 8 — Dec 30, 2010]
– Marvell beaten by Chinese chipmakers in sub 1,000 yuan handset procurement tender of China Mobile [Nov 15, 2010]
Follow-up: High expectations on Marvell’s opportunities with China Mobile [May 28, 2011]
Marvell and ASUS Team Up to Enable Mass Market Availability of TD-SCDMA Smartphones [Marvell press release, Feb 23, 2011] (emphasis is mine):
Marvell … today announced that ASUS has chosen Marvell as a strategic partner to launch a new series of TD-SCDMA (Time Division-Synchronous Code Division Multiple Access) smartphones in China. ASUS‘ new T10 and T20 series smartphones are powered by Marvell(R) PXA920 platform, the first commercially available single-chip solution which supports China Mobile’s latest version of OPhone OMS system. … delivers gigahertz speed, dynamic multimedia for mobile TV, live video, gaming and many exciting new applications, all to be unified by Marvell’s beautiful and easy-to-use Kinoma(R) software experience.
In fact there were additional three devices, T25, T60 and T Pad, as well. See the following Forbes blog article (and even more below, or a very detailed event report with plenty of photos in Chinese, or look at an English translation by Google):
Asus Brings Five Android [rather OPhone OMS, see later] Devices To China In Bid For Billions Of New Customers [Feb 23, 2011] (emphasis is mine)
On Thursday afternoon in Beijing, Asus plans to announce a wide-ranging partnership with China Mobile that will make four Asus smartphones and one tablet available to the carrier’s millions of customers.
The deal is the cornerstone of Asus’ newest strategy to boost its mobile devices business. Though Asus is widely known for its computer parts, laptops and netbooks, it remains a bit player in the global cellphone and smartphone markets.
The company hopes a tie-up with China Mobile, which is both China’s largest wireless operator and the world’s biggest carrier by subscribers, will raise its mobile profile. “China will be our biggest mobile market,” said Benson Lin, Asus’ head of mobile devices, in an interview. “China is very important to our future.”
The partnership will be something of a gamble for Asus. China Mobile, like all Chinese carriers, uses a unique technology standard (TD-SCDMA) for its 3G cellular network. That means the phones Asus is providing to China Mobile — known as T10, T20, T25 and T60 — can’t be offered to any other operator.
Lin said the potential is worth the risk. He declined to share specific sales goals, but noted that China Mobile currently has nearly 590 million subscribers. Capturing 10% or even just 5% of that audience is “still a huge number,” he said.
Though all handset makers are interested in China, many are waiting for the country to upgrade its networks to the 4G technology LTE, said Lin. Asus believes it will benefit from forging a relationship with China Mobile now, when other phone vendors “aren’t paying attention,” added Lin. Europe is currently Asus’ largest mobile market, but Asus anticipates China will replace it soon.
The opportunity has pushed Asus to customize its “T” series of phones to Chinese tastes. Instead of automatically connecting to Google for browsing, the devices will link to the popular Chinese search engine Baidu. And instead of Facebook, they will access the Chinese social network RenRen.
…
All of the T phones run on the 2.0 version of China Mobile’s Ophone operating system, which is a variant of Google’s mobile platform, Android [not a variant since it has a Linux core and another user interface, as the most different aspects, but compatible with Android through source code reuse – see much below]. They also utilize special processors from California-based chipmaker Marvell. The design, which combines a CPU and modem on a single chip, is more affordable, efficient and compact than systems that use two chips, said Lin.
…
Developing the T phones took a year and a half of intense development at Asus’ Taipei campus, said Lin. Asus already has some phones in the Chinese market, but they are at a smaller carrier, China Unicom, which uses a different 3G standard called WCDMA.
Asustek to sell new line of smartphones through China Mobile [Feb 25, 2011] (emphasis is mine)
Designed specially for the TD-SCDMA network in China, this chip [the PXA 920] will help bring down the cost, size, and power consumption of Chinese mobile devices, Asustek said in a statement by email.
“The information technology industry is turning from personal computing to cloud computing, and mobile phones are expected to become the most important cloud computing devices due to a wide range of applications,” Asustek chairman Jonney Shih said in the statement.
…
This type of industry collaboration [with China Mobile and Marvell] represents a shift in Asustek’s strategy for its smartphone line. Last October, Asustek, which had been selling smartphones under the Garmin-Asus brand since early 2009, said it would not introduce any more co-branded handset models.
Media reports estimate that China Mobile will purchase a total of 12.2 million TD-SCDMA-based handsets this year. This includes 4 million phones designed for entertainment use, 3.2 million multi-media smartphones, 3.2 million entry and mid-level smartphones, 1.5 million high-end connected devices, and 300,000 dual-network phones.
ASUS Four New TD-SCDMA Smartphones in China [Feb 27. 2011]
The ASUS T10, T20, T25 and T60 smartphones are powered by an 806MHz Marvell PXA920 processor and known as the world’s first single chip supporting TD-SCDMA. These new handsets are utilizing a Marvell Avastar 88W8787 chip for enabling Wi-Fi 802.11b/g/n, Bluetooth 3.0, and FM radio.
ASUS T10 smartphone has a 3.2-inch resistive touchscreen display with resolution of 320 x 480 (HVGA), 5-megapixel autofocus camera, front-facing camera for video calls, 512MB RAM, 512MB ROM, MicroSD card slot, and GPS.
The ASUS T20 similar the T10 handset, but it has 3.2-inch capacitive touchscreen display, TV tuner, CMMB and a more powerful battery. The Asus T25 comes with a 3.5-inch display, while the Asus T60 feature a 4-inch display.
Beside that, ASUS has also showcased the fifth handset that sports a 4-inch screen and support 4G TD-LTE network. All five smartphones are running on OPhone OS 2.0 which modified version of Android 2.1.
Marvell PXA920 Mass Market Smartphone Communication Platforms [Feb 17, 2011] (emphasis is mine)
The Marvell® PXA920 communication platform [also called Pantheon platform elsewhere, see the same Pantheon Platform Brief [Feb 17, 2011] as well] is an advanced, highly integrated 3G platform for multimedia-centric handsets. The PXA920 platform solutions incorporate the performance of Marvell’s mobile application processor with Marvell’s mature and proven 3.5G technology to provide low-cost Linux™ and Android™ handset platforms. The combination of Marvell’s advanced, high-performance, low-power application processor technology with Time Division Synchronous Code Division Multiple Access (TD-SCDMA)/High Speed Downlink and Uplink Packet Access (HSxPA)/Enhanced Data for GSM Environment (EDGE) communication support for next-generation cellular services enable breakthrough end-user experiences for imaging, HD video, music, games, and other popular handset applications.
With Marvell’s 3G technology, seamless wireless connectivity, application processing, and support for next generation cellular data services — the new PXA920-powered smartphones offer exceptional performance for browsing, instant live video, access to personal music, 3D gaming, and other popular handset applications at attractive price points. The PXA920 supports Android and other major mobile operating systems (OS).
Tri-core, Shared Memory Hardware Architecture
- Dedicated Modem and Applications Processor Cores
– Modem RISC Core: Marvell-designed ARM9 [their pre-Sheeva core] with packet processing accelerators and L1/L2 caches
– Modem DSP Core: Micro-Signal Architecture VLIW DSP core with L1/L2 caches
– Marvell [Applications] CPU Technology with ARMv5 core [Sheeva PJ1 core, which is the less performant synthesizable Sheeva core, see: Marvell ARMADA beats Qualcomm Snapdragon, NVIDIA Tegra and Samsung/Apple Hummingbird in the SoC market [again] [Sept 23, 2010]] supports up to 806 MHz operation (1130 DMIPS)- Shared External Memory Interface
…
Multimedia (video, 3D, audio, imaging, display)
- Video Playback 720p at 30 fps for H.264, WMV, MPEG-4, H.263; Video Capture D1 at 30 fps for H.264, WMV, MPEG-4, H.263
- 3D Graphics capability up to 10Mtriangle/s sustained and 20Mtriangle/s at 50% cull rate; Integrated 2D accelerator; Supports industry standard APIs.
- Marvell’s unique Audio Accelerator Subsystem offers low power audio playback via audio streaming
- Image Sensor support for primary and secondary smart image sensors with MIPI CSI-2 and parallel interfaces; Supports one MIPI-CSI2 serial interface
- LCD Controller supports parallel LCD displays over an 8/16/18-bit parallel smart panel interface or a 16/18/24bit parallel active matrix interface with sync signals; Primary/secondary display supports up to 4 simultaneous overlays with base + rotation scaling
All details about Marvell’s System-on-a-Chip (SoC) products and related strategies on this blog:
– Marvell ARMADA beats Qualcomm Snapdragon, NVIDIA Tegra and Samsung/Apple Hummingbird in the SoC market [again] [Sept 23, 2010 — Jan 17, 2011]
– Marvell ARMADA with sun readable and unbreakable Pixel Qi screen, and target [mass] manufacturing cost of $75 [Nov 4, 2010 — Jan 11, 2011]
– Marvell beaten by Chinese chipmakers in sub 1,000 yuan handset procurement tender of China Mobile [Nov 15, 2010]
– Marvell to capitalize on BRIC market with the Moby tablet [Feb 3, 2011]
– Kinoma is now the marvellous software owned by Marvell [Feb 15, 2011]
Blue Ocean Strategy [Wikipedia] (emphasis is mine, see also: What is Blue Ocean Strategy? Ten Key Points) 
Blue Ocean Strategy is a business strategy book first published in 2005 and written by W. Chan Kim and Renée Mauborgne of The Blue Ocean Strategy Institute at INSEAD. The book illustrates what the authors believe is the high growth and profits an organization can generate by creating new demand in an uncontested market space, or a “Blue Ocean”, than by competing head-to-head with other suppliers for known customers in an existing industry.
…
Unlike the “Red Ocean Strategy”, the conventional approach to business of beating competition derived from the military organization, the “Blue Ocean Strategy” tries to align innovation with utility, price and cost positions. The book mocks at the phenomena of conventional choice between product/service differentiation and lower cost, but rather suggests that both differentiation and lower costs are achievable simultaneously.
…
The authors criticize Michael Porter‘s idea that successful businesses are either low-cost providers or niche-players. Instead, they propose finding value that crosses conventional market segmentation and offering value and lower cost. Educator Charles W. L. Hill proposed this idea in 1988 and claimed that Porter’s model was flawed because differentiation can be a means for firms to achieve low cost. He proposed that a combination of differentiation and low cost might be necessary for firms to achieve a sustainable competitive advantage.
China Mobile 2010 Interim Results [Aug 19, 2010]
China Seeks Blue Ocean Dominance in Mobile Internet [Borqs company news, Jan 8, 2011]
China Mobile is striving for blue ocean dominance in China’s mobile Internet, during which, the launching of OPhone has become an important milestone. At a recent conference, Xi Guohua, Vice Minister of Industry and Information Technology of China, recognized the development and achievements of OPhone over the past two years since its birth, and expressed his wish for introducing OPhone to the global market.
… the mobile Internet is the largest breakthrough innovation in the communication industry in the 21st century. Those who have dominated any blue ocean of the industry will obtain the greatest benefits and lasting advantages. The strategy and development of the mobile Internet is essential to China if the country wants to win an appropriate industry position and take the power to reshuffle the communication industry.
…
With the help of iPhone, China Unicom has achieved great market performance in a very short time. However, the success of iPhone attributes more to the worship of Steve Jobs by millions of Apple fans than to the product innovation of Apple. … China Unicom has no say on iPhone and has not entered into any cooperation in technology during the cooperation with Apple. Therefore, in my view, a great risk may sneak in the success of iPhone since China Unicom rests its market on a single product from its partner. This is almost against the “Blue Ocean Strategy” of the mobile Internet industry.
Quite differently, China Mobile has avoided this dependency relation wisely. Based on Android, an international advanced operating system, it develops a technical platform within its control, further cooperates with upstream and downstream vendors, and creates a global system featuring complete industrial chain with its advantage of leading position in user base. That is the origin and development strategy of OPhone.
Talking about OPhone, Mr. Li Yue, new President & CEO of China Mobile, defines the company’s short-term strategy as “Giving priority and building quality in par with competitors”. This strategy reveals the correct attitude and understanding of China Mobile in terms of the development of OPhone: The exclusive support policy used in China before shall be thoroughly abandoned to help OPhone become a powerful weapon for controlling mobile Internet. With priority given, OPhone must be built with the same and even higher quality than its competitors. OPhone, from its version 1.0 to 2.0, is reported to undergo an extensive rage of development and test in the aspects of web data processing, multimedia performance, graphic/entertainment performance, and full-range service processing. For China Mobile, whether mobile Internet is the “last ocean” in the communication industry remains unclear. But I believe that we will never act before it’s too late.
Guided by the idea of “Giving priority and building quality in par with competitors”, OPhone is breaking the monopoly of iPhone in mobile Internet. Thus, our understanding of mobile Internet is experiencing slight changes. … mobile Internet users have no real “loyalty”: they have switched to iPhone from Blackberry today, and in future they may again switch from iPhone to OPhone. Sticking to the strategy proposed by President Li , OPhone will substitute for iPhone, and easier to use. Openness is the key to realize these two advantages. The first character “O” of “OPhone” does stand for “open”.
Other strategy related communication of relevance from the new CEO Li Yue:
– China Mobile chief not optimistic on industry’s growth [Nov 18, 2010] (emphasis is mine)
“There are some who think the increase in data usage will lead to growth, but I am not so optimistic,” Li said at the GSMA Mobile Asia Congress conference in Hong Kong yesterday.
The head of the world’s biggest phone carrier by market value said operators need to offer services that integrate well with the daily lives of consumers and businesses.
Li is adding services such as a search-engine for mobile phones and wireless payments to sustain growth at China Mobile, where he took over as chief executive this year.
– New China Mobile CEO builds bridges [Nov 17] (emphasis is mine)
There is a big opportunity for mobile operators to act as the bridge between different partners within the telecoms space and between the telco industry and others, and future revenue is to be found in penetrating the daily lives of mobile users, according to the new man at the helm of the world’s largest mobile operator, China Mobile.
“The mobile market will become the future channel for all walks of life,” said Li Yue, president and CEO of China Mobile, in his first international keynote speech since taking over at the telco in August.
…
He also highlighted some of China Mobile’s new services, including the mobile reading offering launched by the telco in May. The service has attracted more than 30 million users, and now has 6 million paying customers, Li explained.
In a bid to drive mobile data services forward, China Mobile has created a platform to engage with content creators and partners, including a pool of terminals and operating systems to aid applications developers. The company believes it can create a “win-win situation” in the mobile marketplace, where all members of the value chain benefit.
China Mobile aims to be “a bridge with all suppliers… and also a hub,” said Li, adding that the telco is working on signing up more partners.
“[The mobile Internet] is changing our traditional ecology as a mobile operator,” said Li, since it has changed the way end users collaborate. And changing customer behaviour provides “a lot of opportunities” for mobile providers, he said.
Those opportunities also include vertical markets.
“[We will] try whatever possible to penetrate into all kinds of industries,” said Li. “We are the connecting bridge with all kinds of industries.”
Related development: Government Drives New Chinese Search Engine [Feb 24, 2011]
Transcript by http://www.newsy.com
BY KELSEY WAANANEN
You’re watching multisource tech video news analysis from Newsy.
If you want something done right, you have to do it yourself. That seems to be China’s approach to the Internet. State-owned news agency Xinhua and state-owned China Mobile – China’s largest phone carrier – are teaming up to run Panguso – China’s newest – and government-approved search engine.This joint venture was announced last summer – right after Google decided to pull out of China because the search giant refused to continue censoring material. A CBS report details the repercussions of Google’s departure.
“Now when users in mainland China go on to use this site, like this, they’re automatically redirected to a different site based in Hong Kong, where Google isn’t legally required to censor itself. … China’s own filter, known as the ‘Great Firewall of China’ is still at work screening out sensitive material. In fact there are concerns that China could now clamp down even harder…”
And it certainly looks like they have. In terms of just what Panguso is leaving out, PC Magazine notes…
“According to Panguso, Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Liu Xiaobo doesn’t exist. The same is true for the People’s University in Beijing, the first university founded after the 1949 communist revolution. “Dalai Lama” returns only tourism sites or state-sponsored criticism.”
But Panguso isn’t the only search engine on the market. Baidu, the current prominent search engine, accounts for more than 75 percent of web searches. But as TMCnet notes, Panguso offers a platform that Baidu doesn’t.
“…Baidu only controls about 36 percent of the mobile search market. By partnering with China Mobile, Xinhua may soon have a leg up on its competition in the mobile space.”
But a blogger for Download Squad suggests the Chinese government might have an ulterior motive — trying to get a slice of the search engine market.
“China already has a very strict policy on censoring politically-sensitive material, which Baidu strictly abides by — so unless it wants to further extend its control of information inside its borders, why would the Chinese government be interested in offering an alternative?”
According to Xinhua, the search engine will primarily focus on news for now. Xinhua will provide the news content — and China Mobile – the mobile subscriber base.
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ASUS Joins Hands with China Mobile to Launch ASUS TD Smart Phones [Borqs company news, Feb 28, 2011] (emphasis is mine)
On February 24th, ASUS held the ASUS TD Smart Phone Launch & Strategy Press Conference jointly with China Mobile and Marvell in Beijing. At this conference, the strategic cooperation of ASUS with China Mobile and Marvell has become the industry focus in addition to the launch of new TD smart phones and a TD slate.
Distinguished attendants at the conference include Mr. Wang Jianzhou, Chairman of China Mobile, Ms. Li Huidi, Chairman Assistant, Mr. Wu Wining, General Manager of Terminal Business Department of China Mobile, Mr. Huang Xiaoqing [also known as Bill Huang], President of the Research Institution of China Mobile, Mr. Shi Chongtang, ASUS President, Mr. Pat Chan, President & CEO of Borqs (accompanied by some other vice presidents of the company), and Ms. Dai Weili, President of Marvell.
Mr. Wang Jianzhou, Chairman of China Mobile, comments that China Mobile is very pleased to work with ASUS for the TD industry; since the emergence of this industry, terminal vendors have helped drive China’s TD industry. All terminals launched by ASUS at this time use OPhone OS and Marvell’s chips with significantly reduced costs, meeting the demand of China Mobile for low-price smart terminals. Also, Chairman Wang says that China Mobile will promote TD terminals this year, and purchase middle- and high-end TD terminals following its purchase of middle- and low-end TD terminals in 2010, bringing more choices to consumers.
At this conference, ASUS launches five new TD-SCDMA smart phones, including T10, T20, T25, T60 and TD-LTE, and one TD slate [TD Pad]. Based on the latest OPhone OS, these products adopt Marvell PXA 920 – the first TD-SCDMA single chip solution in the industry as core processor. TD smart phones with a single chip-based processor feature a slim body, high efficiency, and low price. By applying single chip solution into TD smart terminals, ASUS has maintained a benign partnership with Borqs and Marvell. This helps them meet the market demands for both quality but price. Furthermore, ASUS has become the first TD smart phone manufacturer applying single chip solutions in the world.
China Mobile has maintained a good share in China’s communication market and a great potential in OPhone OS system. This may be the main reason that ASUS has chosen to partner with it. As an open operating system developed by China Mobile, OPhone OS allows users to create personalized interfaces and install applications upon their demands, delivering users the operating experience of “My phone, my decisions”. By empowering mobile terminal products to deliver innovative, easy-to-use applications and enhanced experience, OPhone OS is a better choice for Chinese users.
The joining of ASUS has further expanded China’s TD camp, signifying a brand new beginning in the TD-SCDMA industry between the Mainland and Taiwan. This will promote and expand the development of the TD industry and OPhone-based terminals, also showcasing ASUS’s robust competitiveness in the Mainland market.
Borqs OPhone OS Roadmap [Feb 2011]
Greatest Shanzhai may prove to be an OS, not a handset [March 2, 2011] (emphasis is mine)
OMS is based on the Linux Kernel, and uses Android source code and integrated Java application framework to provide a complete software platform for application developers and users. … OMS is the first Android customization project where the developer (China Mobile and partners like Borqs) customized the entire user interface and applications of Android for a non-English language (in this case, Chinese).
… In a short span of time, China Mobile has been able to rope in the world’s leading mobile manufacturers to launch smartphones in China based on OPhone mobile OS. Motorola, LG, Philips, Dopod, Lenovo, ZTE, Samsung, and Sony are just a few of the distinguished makers of China Mobile’s OPhone range.
The extensive range of phones running the OPhone OS, based on the OMS platform, supercharged the 3G business and value added services of China Mobile. The OPhone OS, although it’s a variant of Android, doesn’t support Android Market; however, it has been tailored to include a built-in mobile app market called Mobile Market (MM), and other exclusive applications like Flying Letters, 139 Email, wireless music players and many more value-added services.
China Mobile is happy with the progress of the OPhone OS and unlike the rumors of it being shelved [see: China Mobile’s Ophone is Dead [Dec 16, 2010]], they have plans to provide new upgrades in 2011. Lu Zhihu, a deputy director at the China Mobile Research Institute, confirmed new updates at the 2010 International Mobile Internet Conference in Beijing. Version 2.5 will be out somewhere in February or March 2011 and version 3.0 later in 2011, with advanced features like voice recognition and better connectivity to mobile services.
China Mobile’s partner, Borqs, has already rolled out an international version of OPhone, which has been used by Dell and will run on AT&T. China Mobile has also established an industry alliance, the OPhone Innovation Alliance, to encourage developers and manufacturers to the OMS platform and OPhone OS. Rumor has it that China Mobile now want to show more convergence with Papa Android and they are planning to bring support for Android Market and many Android features into future releases to attract more users.
Important and quite illustrative information about the significant user interface improvements in 2.0 version:
Mobile OPhone2.0 design documents Exposure: compatible Android2.1_China Mobile China Mobile G3 / TD-SCDMA [June 4, 2010]
All other details about Ophone (OMS) on this blog:
OPhone OS (OMS) 2.0 based on Android 2.1 [July 5 — Dec 13, 2010]
Asustek announces 4 TD-SCDMA smartphones [Digitimes, Feb 24, 2011] (emphasis is mine)
… and the Taiwan-based company noted that it will participate in telecom carrier China Mobile’s open bid for TD-SCDMA handsets in February with result announcement scheduled for April.
The smartphone launch marks Asustek’s first foray into the TD-SCDMA segment. The devices include the T10, T20, T25 and T60. At the press event, the company also showcased a TD-LTE smartphone, and indicated it plans to incorporate TD-SCDMA modules in its tablet PC for China Mobile networks.
Asustek’s TD-SCDMA line is based on the Marvell 920 chip. The T10 is Ophone OS 2.0 enabled.
AsusTek Announces New Handsets, Partnership with China Mobile [Feb 25, 2011] (emphasis is mine)
Taiwan’s AsusTek Computer Inc announced a strategic partnership with China Mobile in Beijing on Feb. 24 while unveiling several customized products for the Chinese telecom operator.
At a press conference, AsusTek launched five smartphones and one tablet computer, using the Chinese time division-synchronous code division multiple access (TD-SCDMA) standard for mobile communication, with China Mobile chairman Wang Jianzhou attending the event.
This is the first time that Wang has taken part in such a product launch, which market observers viewed as a move by China Mobile to show the importance of its cooperation with AsusTek.
Wang’s presence was also seen as a positive sign for the Taiwan company, which made a bid with three of its models — the T20, T25 and T60 — in response to China Mobile’s announcement on Feb. 23 that it wanted to place orders for 12.2 million smartphones.
While China Mobile is not expected to announce its decision on suppliers until April, Wang said that the company plans to purchase more high-end smartphones to offer better options to its customers using third-generation (3G) mobile services.
Meanwhile, Benson Lin, general manager of AsusTek’s hand-held devices business, said that the company’s T-10 smartphone will make its debut on the market in March.
China Mobile to procure over 10 million TD-SCDMA handsets [March 2, 2011] (emphasis is mine)
China Mobile will announce suppliers in the second quarter, with large shipments slated for the second half of 2011, the sources indicated.
China Mobile had previously placed more emphasis on low-end smartphones since international handset vendors lacked higher end devices supporting the TD-SCDMA platform. Smartphones represent less than 20% of China Mobile’s revenues versus 40% for China Unicom and more than 20% for China Telecom, according to the sources.
Since China Mobile plans to procure higher-end TD-SCDMA handsets this time, both international and China-based vendors will see orders, unlike last round of procurement when China-based companies dominated the mainstream segment.
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Both Taiwan’s HTC and Asustek Computer have already formed strategic alliances with China Mobile, the makers said, adding that the two companies should receive orders as long as their pricing and specifications match the procurement criteria.
Marvell Technology Group’s CEO [dr. Sehat Sutardja] Discusses Q4 2011 Results – Earnings Call Transcript [Seeking Alpha, March 3, 2011] (emphasis is mine):
Last year, we introduced the PXA920 [see: Marvell Drives $99 Smartphones to Market With New Pantheon Platform [Feb 12, 2010] and Marvell Empowers Mass Market TD-SCDMA OPhones with PXA920 Chipset [Sept 8, 2009]]. 920 is a single-chip solution enabling mass-market availability of high-end TD smartphone markets specifically to the China market. These solutions that we provide includes a modem, application processor, management and RF devices. We are the first and only suppliers in the world with the complete high-performance TD smartphone solution for this market.
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At the Mobile Congress last month, we announced the follow-on of the 920 device. The 978 [PXA978] device is a single-chip solution of TD-SCDMA but now is combined with rigorous performance and advanced 3D graphics and 1080p multimedia, as well as the traditional 3G UMTS release [indiscernible] solution to address the requirements of the rest of the world. With these new solutions, cellphone OEMs will now no longer need to design separate development platforms to accommodate different wireless standards for the rest of the world and China. And they will be able to target markets around the world saving at the same time in development cost.
Now hopefully, you can see how our TD platform strategy unfolding. The 920 introduced last year initially targeted TD high-end and as well as medium-end smartphones. However, over time, as we reduce cost of the silicon, the wafers that used to build the 920, this platform will quickly transition to low-end and high-volume smartphones replacing the feature phones, which is the sweet spot market for many of the smartphones in this market. While the 978 will emerge as the new high-end TD-SCDMA phone, as well as high-end global phone.
… At Mobile World Congress, we, Marvell, introduced Kinoma, a software platform that is dedicated to dramatically transform the consumer interactions with electronic devices. Kinoma is a new foundation for creating and delivering fast, simple user experience for a wide range of devices and offers an experience and solution that is truly integrated of silicon to applications, creating new opportunities for OEMs and manufacturers.
…. Last year, when they [China Mobile] introduced the first-generation OPhones, the first-generation OPhones were selling for $300, $400, even $500, U.S. dollars. … In contrast, today, the 920 devices … are high-end smartphones targeted for prices the range of $100 to $150 smartphones. So now, we just need to figure out. The time will tell what will be the difference in the volumes of the TD smartphones when it’s priced between $100 to $150 versus when it was priced at $300 to $500.
Update: The PXA920 opportunity was realized only in September 2011, two years later than the September 2009 launch. See:First real chances for Marvell on the tablet and smartphone fronts [Aug 21, 2011]
ARM at MWC 2011 with Marvell – Kinoma [Feb 25, 2011]
All details about Kinoma on this blog:
Kinoma is now the marvellous software owned by Marvell [Feb 15, 2011]
Marvell Announces First ‘World Phone’ Single Chip Solution: 3G TD-SCDMA Baseband Combining High Performance 1.2 GHz Application Processor with Advanced 3D Graphics and 1080p Multimedia [Feb 14, 2011] (emphasis is mine)
Marvell (Nasdaq: MRVL), a worldwide leader in integrated silicon solutions, continues to build on its heritage of mobile communications innovations with the announcement of its world phone platform based on the Marvell® PXA978 communications processor with Marvell HSPA modem. Marvell’s PXA978 is the industry’s first single-chip solution to feature 3G UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System) and China’s TD-SCDMA (Time Division Synchronous Code Division Multiple Access) standard with HSPA (High-Speed Packet Access) support and is intended to enable mobile developers to design 3G cellular devices and tablets that can be used and supported globally.
“… It’s truly amazing that a tiny chip like the PXA978 integrates both 3G and TD-SCDMA basebands, a powerful application processor, all advanced 3D graphics capability, with a very low-power profile and affordable cost structure ideal for mobile devices, such as smartphones and tablets,” said Weili Dai, Marvell’s Co-Founder. “With the addition of Kinoma‘s elegant and intuitive software experience and integration of cutting-edge mobile technologies, Marvell has enabled the entire ecosystem – in both its depth and breadth – to convert conventional cell phones into multi-functional mobile gadgets ideal for gaming, video chatting, live news, and more. This small device has the potential to make a huge impact on our world. I envision that a true world phone will transform the global economy by lowering the cost and barriers to entry for billions more consumers and innovators.”
Unlike current technology on the market, the Marvell world phone development platform is the world’s first and only available solution of its kind featuring R7 3G UMTS and TD-SCDMA with HSPA. Additionally, the platform will feature the industry’s first Mobile MIMO, Avastar(TM) 88W8797, an 802.11n 2×2 dual-band Wi-Fi SoC designed to support high data rates for next-generation mobile devices.
Original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) no longer need to design separate development platforms to accommodate different wireless standards and target markets around the world, saving months of design time and cost. Instead, they can focus on creating a wide portfolio of 3G UMTS supported phones that can be used globally with other UMTS carriers worldwide – all based on a single development platform.
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Marvell’s PXA978 single chip solution uses advanced 40nm process technology and is designed to deliver 3G TD-SCDMA baseband combining high performance 1.2 GHz application processor with advanced 3D graphics and 1080p multimedia, ensuring a feature-rich, fast and exceptionally smooth user experience. Additionally, the processor’s extremely high power efficiency and true multitasking capabilities is intended to enable OEMs to design mobile devices that represent a significant leap beyond today’s most advanced smartphone and tablet devices. The platform will support all leading OS platforms.
Be aware of ZTE et al. and white-box (Shanzhai) vendors: Wake up call now for Nokia, soon for Microsoft, Intel, RIM and even Apple!
Update as of August 10, 2012: After acquiring the Qt commercial licensing business in March 2011 from Nokia, the Helsinki based, ~1000 people strong Digia, with 2011 sales of 121.9 million Euro, yesterday acquired all the rest of the Qt business from Nokia. More details in the Digia extends Its commitment to Qt with plans to acquire full Qt software technology and business From Nokia [Digia’s Qt Commercial Blog, Aug 9, 2012] and Digia Committed to Thriving Qt Ecosystem [KDE.NEWS, Aug 9, 2012] posts from Digia’s R&D director Tuuka Turunen. With this all pre-Windows Phone software platform commitments except the Java based S40 (evolved in the new Asha range) have strategically been revoked by Nokia.
Here is the shortest and still very comprehensive way to understand the essence of Nokia’s decision to radically change its strategy – Engadget’s video interview with Stephen Elop [Feb 15, 2011], the CEO of Nokia:
STATEMENTS IN THE ABOVE VIDEO YOU WILL FIND NOWHERE ELSE:
[00:48]: As it relates to the low-end we think regardless of how far we can push down Symbian and/or Windows Phone, which will rapidly come down in price as well, in price points, we believe there is always going to be this layer below, i.e. the absolute lowest level, highest cost-optimized approach. So Series 40 and its successors, and new work that we’ll do in that area, we think will continue to be an important part of the strategy going forward. [1:13] … [1:17] We call those ’mobile phones’ [i.e. not feature phones]. In our strategy, the Nokia strategy has three pieces to it: the smartphone strategy, which is about Windows Phone, it has what we call ’the next billion strategy’ which is about taking those first mobile experiences … at the very lowest of the price continuum, and the third part of our strategy is what we call ’the future disruptions’. Investing today to plan for to lead the next disruption beyond all the current activities we are doing today. [1:45]
[1:58]: Part of the specific relationship between Nokia and Microsoft is for us to contribute the expertise to planning, design and everything else, so that the Windows Phone product is not only a premium product but in the same way that Symbian has been pushed way down the price continuum, you’ll see us to do that very aggressively with Windows Phone as well. [2:16]
[08:07]: Our Plan B is to make Plan A successful. Just to be clear. What we’re doing is not thinking of MeeGo as the Plan B. We’re thinking about MeeGo and related development work as what’s the next generation. So to the extent that today there is a three horse race – Windows Phone, Android, Apple, and so forth – what comes next, what is the next major wave of business and technological disruption. We want to make it sure that we’re leading through that as well, and so the efforts will focus further into the future. [8:35]
Update: Nokia N9 UX [?Swipe?] on MeeGo 1.2 Harmattan [June 24, 2011]
Update: Open Letter from Purnima Kochikar to Developer Community [March 25, 2011] (emphasis is mine):
First, let’s recap what it is we announced; the three main areas of our strategy:
- Plans for a broad strategic partnership with Microsoft on Windows Phone
- Connecting the Next Billion
- Future disruptive technologies
What about Symbian? What about Qt?
Understandably, these are the first questions that come to mind. Although Windows Phone will become our primary smartphone platform, we will continue to deliver a great deal of value from Symbian. We’re making investments that will help us to engage and attract existing and new Symbian users and allow us to launch new competitive smartphones.
Over the past weeks we have been evaluating our Symbian roadmap and now feel confident we will have a strong portfolio of new products during our transition period – i.e. 2011 and 2012. These devices will take advantage of the strong integration of devices and services as well as our strength in areas such as imaging and location-based services. They will also include improvements in hardware performance such as GHz+ processing capabilities and faster graphics speeds.
To further enhance the competitiveness of these products we will deliver updates to the current Symbian user experience. The first major update will arrive in summer, delivering a new home screen, new flexible widgets, new icons, a faster browser, new Navbar and a fresh look and feel to Ovi Store and Ovi Maps, including integration of social media services in Ovi Maps….
I’ve been asked many times how long we will support Symbian and I’m sure for many of you it feels we have been avoiding the question. The truth is, it is very difficult to provide a single answer. We hope to bring devices based on Windows Phone to market as quickly as possible, but Windows Phone will not have all language and all localization capabilities from day one.
In many markets, including markets where Symbian is currently the lead smartphone platform with significant market share such as China, India, Russia and Turkey, we will continue to make our Symbian portfolio as competitive as possible while we work with Microsoft to introduce Windows Phone. For that reason certain markets will play a more significant role in selling the 150 million Symbian devices than others and we will be selling devices long after Windows Phone devices from Nokia have already started to appear in other markets. That is why we cannot give you the date when Symbian will no longer be supported.
… Qt, the development platform for Symbian and future MeeGo technology remains critically important and Nokia is committed to investment in Qt as the best toolset for those platforms and we are focusing on future developments in part by our plan to divest the commercial licensing business [“by the end of March 2011” Digia to acquire Qt commercial licensing business from Nokia [March 7, 2011]], used mainly by developers of embedded and desktop applications beyond the mobile market. [“Qt is actively used by around 3500 desktop and embedded customer companies which will be transferred to Digia upon closing. The commercial customers represent a broad range of industries, e.g. consumer electronics, finance, aviation, energy, defence and media.”]
Additionally we are readying app analytics, in-app advertising, in-app purchasing, a new browser and hardware enhancements. There are a lot of new things for developers to take advantage of in these soon-to-be-released APIs. We are continuing to explore Qt for use in other strategic investment areas as well.
WHAT IS NOT CLEAR AT ALL FROM THE VIDEO is the global market situation in all its details and nuances which forced Nokia to make such a radical change in its alltime strategies of going alone. From simple news articles it is also not clear to outsiders whether it was the best decision for Nokia or not, specifically considering the current favorite of the market, the Google Android platform. And to have a clear picture on both is more the essential. For everybody who is doubting that please first read Nokia’s radical CEO has a mercenary, checkered past [Feb 14, 2011] and after being confused with that (especially with the comments part) get yourself familiar with (emphasis is mine):
Shanzai [alt. sp. shanzhai or Shan Zai] literally means “Mountain Bandit or Fortress” [here is a very detailed wikipedia explanation] in Mandarin Chinese. It is a phenomenon that goes far beyond the simplistic view of “copycat products” and in popular Chinese cultural usage is used to describe a vendor who operates a business without observing traditional rules or practices — often resulting in innovative and unusual products or business models. Reading the stories on this website will open your eyes to a whole new business phenomenon that is affecting all of our lives whether we realize it or not.
from the Shanzai.com opened in July 2009, when it became obvious to Timothy James Brown, an IT executive working in Asia for the past 13 years, that Shanzhai (I will use rather this form as it is more general in referenced sources used below) is indeed a new business phenomenon which will start to influence the non-Chinese speaking world of the global technology in an big way. In the last two years another new name also came out for part of Shanzhai: white-box vendors, to reflect the fact that they were hard pressed (by the government) to leave the gray-market, thus to become legitimate in all respects, as well as naturally becoming larger scale operations capable of entering the international markets.
It is also worth to look at China Gray-Market Cell Phone Shipments Slow in 2011 [iSuppli press release, Dec 16, 2010] (emphasis is mine):
China’s gray-market cell phone shipments will amount to 255 million units in 2011, up 11.8 percent from 228 million in 2010. This compares to a rise of 43.6 percent in 2009.
Gray-market handsets are cell phones manufactured in China that are not recognized or licensed by government regulators. Makers of these products generally do not pay China’s value-added taxes and, therefore, profit illegally from their participation in the market.
“The object of a nationwide government crackdown, the gray cell phone market in the world’s most populous country is facing some trepidation as official scrutiny focused on illegal handsets and as consumers are starting to lose some interest in the devices,” said Kevin Wang, director of China research at iSuppli. “This created particular challenges for white-box handsets – on which gray-market dealers can put their logos. These types of phones use smuggled chips, carry no certification from China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, sport fake international mobile equipment identity codes and are smuggled to Hong Kong to avoid value-added taxes.”
What growth there is in 2011 will be driven by demand from emerging countries as well as by falling average selling prices for gray handsets.
After growing in 2011, the gray market will begin to decline in 2012. This is because gray market cell phone suppliers will be unable to cut prices any further – even if they wish to win more new customers in emerging countries. Suppliers also will find themselves competing with an increasing number of locally branded original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) that provide better quality and after-sales service, iSuppli believes.
The market for gray handsets
Aside from serving domestic demand in China, gray handsets command sizable sales in other countries in the Asia-Pacific region, an area that includes Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia and the Philippines – as well as Pakistan, a neighbor to China. And while gray-handset shipments in 2010 within China will fall to 24.2 million units, down from 33.2 million in 2009, gray-handset shipments to other Asian countries during the same period will rise to 154.4 million units, up from 110.2 million.
The market for non-gray handsets
Meanwhile, shipments from Chinese non-gray handset makers will grow by 36.4 percent in 2010 and continue to climb during the next five years. Not only will Chinese OEMs improve their global market sales – especially in the emerging countries – China’s white-box handset shipments also will keep growing. Furthermore, Chinese handset makers will win more orders from international carriers and from locally branded OEMs in the emerging markets.
Within the domestic market, China’s 3G handsets are poised for dramatic expansion – reaching 51 million units in 2010 and maintaining growth in the next five years, thanks to the continued decline of both 3G handset prices and service fees. By 2014, local 3G handsets are projected to reach 134 million units.
Read More > China’s Gray Market Handset Shipments Continue Expanding in 2011
Update: China’s innovation drive in “post-Shanzhai” era [Xinhua, March 11, 2011] (emphasis is mine)
The “Shanzhai” industry, which churns out electronic goods that imitate well-known brands, is declining even in its hotbed and birthplace in south China’s Shenzhen City.Signs that say “Shop to Let” adorned many electronic stores along Shenzhen’s Huaqiangbei Road. About one-third of Huaqiangbei’s estimated 3,000 sellers of “Shanzhai” cell phones have left the business, said Tang Ruijin, the secretary general of Shenzhen Mobile Communication Association.
The price cut of branded cell phones and the public’s growing intellectual property protection (IPR) awareness contributed to the decline of “Shanzhai.” But the heaviest blow came from China’s determination to enhance IPR protection and develop indigenous innovation, Tang said.
Sociologist Ai Jun noted that the “Shanzhai” phenomenon is a period that China and other developing countries must go through in fostering their companies’ innovative capacities. “It is a natural process to first imitate and then innovate.”
So it might quite well be the case that big name legacy businesses will need leaders like Stephen Elop to compete with the new, legalized (non-gray) “mountain bandits”, i.e. Shanzhai, if the bad-mouthing about Elop referred above is indeed true. If this is not true, then a very impressive leader, like Steve Elop is in the above video again, will be needed either.
You will understand this in all details when coming through the sections below:
- Stir in the “old boys” camp: Nokia, Microsoft, Intel, and Apple
- Earthquake like changes in the mobile phone market: numbers from IDC
- Radical strategy shift/reorg at Nokia
- White-box (Shanzhai) vendors
- MediaTek as the catalyst of the white-board ecosystem
- ZTE et al.
(If you don’t like such long readings you can finish with a quite literary type story of how Nokia’s Flirtations Put the Fear of Google Into Microsoft [WSJ, Feb 18, 2011]. The “only” thing you will miss will be the real understanding of the deal.)
Stir in the “old boys” camp: Nokia, Microsoft, Intel, and Apple
Nokia sees Windows phone prices dropping fast [Feb 18, 2011] (emphasis is mine)
Prices of smartphones using Microsoft’s Windows Phone software platform will fall fast, Nokia’s chief executive Stephen Elop said on Friday.
Last week Nokia, the world’s largest phone maker by volume, said it would adopt Microsoft’s software across its smartphones, raising fears the firm would miss out during the transition on surging demand for cheaper smartphone models.
Elop said one of the key topics in the talks on doing a deal with Microsoft was convincing Nokia that it could reach “a very low price point.”
“We have become convinced that we can do that very quickly,” Chief Executive Stephen Elop said in a meeting with Finnish business journalists.
Trying to better compete with Apple’s iPhone, Microsoft has so far had tight hardware requirements for phone models using its software — pushing up handset prices and limiting the potential market.
As part of the push to a wider market and lower prices, Microsoft plans to open its mobile platform to other chipset suppliers beyond Qualcomm.
Nokia’s shares dropped more than 20 percent after it announced the Microsoft deal, but industry executives have said the new alliance will be good for competition and innovation.
Elop said the final agreement between Nokia and Microsoft would be signed in the next few months.
“The conclusion of the agreement will happen, we think, quite quickly, measured in a couple of months, it may be a bit longer, it may be shorter,” he said.
ELOP SELLS MICROSOFT, BUYS NOKIA
Elop, who joined Nokia from Microsoft last September said he sold all his Microsoft shares on February 17 and has bought 150,000 shares in Nokia. The Canadian is the first non-Finn to head the firm.
Shares in Nokia were up 0.7 percent at 6.76 euros by 1038 GMT.
Now it is worth to watch a 7-minute highlights video of Microsoft’s (Steve Ballmer’s) keynote from the Mobile World Congress 2011 to understand the enhanced version of Windows Phone 7 which will be introduced quite probably in fall of this year with the new WP7 Nokia devices:
Stephen Elop has summarized the significance and the benefits of this new strategic partnership as follows (during Steve Ballmer’s keynote at the Mobile World Congress 2011 [Feb 14, 2011]): (emphasis is mine)
It’s truly a pleasure to address you here today at a moment that we think is pretty significant in how we see the evolution of the mobile industry evolve.
You’ve heard me talk about it in a number of forums, that the world is shifting from a battle of devices to a war of ecosystems. And with the announcement that we made jointly with Microsoft just a couple of days ago, it’s very clear the selection we’ve made as it relates to that war.
As you read all of the press and the analyst commentary, of which there’s been a little bit over the last couple of days, it is the case that there’s a common theme emerging that I want to focus on, and that is that Microsoft and Nokia together represent a natural partnership. People are getting it, and they’re getting it for a variety of reasons.
First of all, if you think about the device experience, Nokia brings iconic hardware, incredible industrial design, and we’re matching that up and bringing that together with a leading operating system platform for the future, with an amazing amount of capability that you saw demonstrated here today, and between the two of us we have the understanding of what it means to take it from where it is today, even more broadly down through the pricing continuum so that we have the opportunity to deliver an entire portfolio and range of devices the world over. So, that’s an incredible bit of symmetry and the complementary nature of the relationship, a very powerful element.
A second point of symmetry relates to the area of our global reach, our distribution, the power of our brand, the volumes that we bring, and what we can do to strength the Windows ecosystem, while at the same time getting the support from Microsoft to help us address some of our challenges, which, of course, relates to reentering the U.S. market in a compelling way where Windows Phone has already had a strong start, so there’s an opportunity there.
And, of course, the third point of symmetry relates to the services area that Steve referenced here a few moments ago. We bring mapping, location-based services, the capability to do local advertising, and a variety of other things, together with things like Bing search, Office for productivity, Xbox, and a variety of other things, and thereby form that third ecosystem, because again what our consumers are purchasing today is a combination of all of those things, a single user experience that is a combination of all of those pieces, and together we’ve been able to bring those together to create that third ecosystem.
But if you were to sum it all up, what we’re able to do through this relationship is to ensure that we deliver products that are more competitive, which, of course, is what it’s all about.
Now, it is our belief that this is good news for operators. It’s good news for operators because we’re in a situation where we can actually create that third ecosystem and create an entirely different dynamic than that which was appearing to be forming as it relates to the actions of those other ecosystems, and you understand what I mean in terms of the importance of that balance, because that balance also allows operators to deliver more choice to the ultimate consumer, which is important.
It is also the case that for operators Nokia has had a longstanding relationship with operators all over the world. We understand what it means to be the most friendly partner to operators, we know what we have to do, and this is an area where we will be contributing our strength and our knowledge, our engineering and other assets to allow the Windows Phone ecosystem to be unquestionably the most operator-friendly ecosystem that exists today, because that’s clearly part of it.
We also think this is very good news for developers. It’s good news for developers because we can bring a scale operation, a large number of devices and opportunities to reach customers all over the world through what Nokia will deliver to this partnership through our broad reach and distribution.
Microsoft has a very modern collection of tools to help developers move in that direction. Nokia contributes things like operator billing and other forms of monetization that are not available through any of the other ecosystems. So, we bring those pieces together.
And, of course, finally and most importantly, we think this is great for consumers: iconic hardware, stellar software, combined with unique services, the third ecosystem. We’re thrilled to have this opportunity.
So, there’s been a lot of news, a lot of things going on. Our focus today shifts to delivering those first devices, and changing the industry.
The upcoming new features of the WP7 are not limited to the ones demonstrated by Joe Belfiore in the previous video. Here is another benefit the combined Windows Phone 7, Xbox and Kinect experience [Feb 14, 2011]:
How Microsoft was summarizing the benefits of that strategic partnership? The shortest but still essential presentation of that was given on Microsoft financial analyst briefing at the 2011 Mobile World Congress [Feb 14, 2011] by Andy Lees, President of Microsoft Mobile Communications Business (emphasis is mine):
The other thing that we announced at Mobile World Congress is the partnership with Nokia. Our ecosystem is very important for the success of the phone. Nokia sold about 100 million smart phones over the last 12 months, and they are putting Windows Phone as their primary smart phone platform going forward. They’ll still continue to sell Symbian during a transition period. So, it will carry on in parallel for a while, but nonetheless, it’s a strong commitment to the ecosystem.
And that’s going to have a big acceleration for us. That’s going to have benefits for Microsoft, and actually for the ecosystem – that includes operators, ISVs, developers, and even, in many respects, the other OEMs. When speaking with the other OEMs, they’re excited about the competition in many respects, because it will broaden the overall size of the market, and <it will broaden> the adoption of Windows Phone by users and, therefore, the breadth of the ecosystem that supports it.
It’s a very good arrangement for ourselves, and it’s also good for Nokia. Nokia does a wide variety of things, not just the handset; they innovate in lots of different ways. And they’re going to be able to bring those <innovations> to the Windows Phone ecosystem. For example, the agreement includes mapping. We will adopt Nokia’s core mapping technology, which really is second to none. Bing will be integrated across everything that Nokia does. Their location services will generate advertising revenue for Nokia, not only on their phones, but actually across where those same location services are used on other phones, and even on the PC and other devices.
It’s a multi-faceted agreement, and it includes royalty payments for our software. It includes joint marketing and, as I mentioned, significant revenue opportunities. Considering the size of the smart phone market is growing to being in excess of half a billion phones over the next few years as a run rate, and an install base that will very quickly reach over a billion smart phones, you can see how the opportunity for them not only to sell more devices through the differentiation that they provide and the collaboration that we do to enable that, but also to add-on through these individual services.
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QUESTION: My question would be related to the Nokia licensing agreement. Do you see Nokia as a more important licensee to Windows Phone 7 than others? And are they going to have any special treatment when it comes to royalty fees? Thank you.
ANDY LEES: So, first of all, it’s a much broader agreement than being a licensee. It includes an element where they are a licensee but, as I described before, it incorporates a wide variety of things like mapping, location-based services, advertising, search, joint marketing, and joint development. Because of the footprint of Nokia, and the overall unit volume that they represent, the multi-faceted element of this agreement is unique.
Having said that, we do continue to support other OEMs. They’re excited about the impact that that’s going to have on the ecosystem. They also have the ability to differentiate and compete. So, yes, the agreement is very unique, because it’s multifaceted and very broad with Nokia, and that’s part of the reason why I think it’s going to be good for them. But also, we know that an important element is to have competition, and Nokia recognizes that, and it’s an important part for them that the ecosystem is healthy.
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QUESTION: I was wondering if you could help us understand a little bit about the timeframe for the design cycle for a new Windows Phone?
ANDY LEES: It varies a lot by OEM. If you were to start completely from scratch, it takes a while, 18 months. But, you don’t often need to start from scratch. If you’re asking specifically with Nokia, Nokia has lots of components that they can use in order to get a much faster start. So, it depends on how far progressed you already are, and how much is transferable with that.
One of the things that we did in Windows Phone 7 is to design much more of the totality of the core system, which does improve overall quality, and the predictability of the experience, but it has a nice side effect of being a much faster operating system for people to come on stream with. So, that’s an advantage of Windows Phone versus other options.
QUESTION: Nokia said that Microsoft will transfer billions to kind of get this ecosystem going. I’m just wondering what your priorities might be in terms of jumpstarting the initiative, where those billions might be spent, and also if you now have feedback from carriers of what they might be saying about the combination?
ANDY LEES: So, in terms of the agreement, it’s a long-term multi-faceted agreement, as I’ve just said. It includes search revenue transfer, advertising revenue transfer, location-based services revenue transfer, royalty payments for software, and it includes joint marketing. There are lots of facets of the deal. We’re not going into the numbers for each one of those things. Given the size of the total market, there is very substantial opportunity both for Nokia and for ourselves in order to grow units, revenue, and margin. We’re not predicting that, obviously. So, we see it as a good opportunity for us.
And I think Nokia went through a very rigorous evaluation process. Certainly from the conversations we had with them, and being involved in the process in that way, they did an evaluation that included the technology, a strategic evaluation of long-term roadmap and differentiation that they can provide, assets that they have that they can apply, and then, of course, an economic return through our businesses. And they chose this. They could have chosen whatever one, so they must think it’s the best opportunity for them going forward having done that, and I would say it was a very, very rigorous evaluation done over actually a few months. And it was probably one of the most rigorous things I’ve been involved in in that way.
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QUESTION: Just a quick one on sortre of skins and customization. I just wondered whether Nokia would be able to customize the devices that they offer with Windows Phone 7. And then related to that, whether there was an issue with Qt for Windows 7, or whether it wasn’t a problem, because I think Stephen Elop last night said that Qt wouldn’t be available for Win 7. Thank you.
ANDY LEES: So, the first question is about differentiation. Yes, we’ll enable differentiation. What we don’t want to do, though, is fragment the ecosystem. And fragment it for developers, or indeed for end users. So, we have a collaborative development process with OEMs, and in this case particularly with Nokia, to be able to listen to what it is they want to do and then make a joint decision. And what they know is fragmentation in the ecosystem is ultimately a significant problem. And so they don’t want that. And so having change for the sake of change, which is what does happen in other places, is sometimes a negative thing. So, yes, they can differentiate, yes they can add value, yes, they can enhance in that way. However, we want to make sure that we are consistent.
And then the second question was to do with Qt. Qt is a development part of Symbian. It is not a development part of Windows Phone. We will be helping developers with Nokia, who want to do that transition. But, they will be transitioning from Qt to Windows Phone. They will carry on development of Symbian for a number of ‑‑ quite a period of time. They have a huge install base and developers will want to go through and continue to address that.
So, they’ll continue to enhance and support Qt for quite some time. I think they’ve predicted that they will be selling, even from this day forward, about 150 million copies of Symbian over the next few years. So, it’s not that it’s a dramatic change over – it’s that there will be an evolution and we’ll help developers with that transition.
QUESTION: Can you summarize for us your message to the operators as Stephen Elop put it earlier today, the most operator-friendly ecosystem?
ANDY LEES: Yes, if you look at the choices that operators have in terms of fully fledged ecosystems, the conversations we’ve had with operators is that they have been ecstatic without exception, and I mean so much so that what they have said to us is that this is strategically important for us. They would like to have a balance of ecosystems. They want to bet on having a balance of ecosystems in their network and therefore, they will disproportionately work to help make sure this ecosystem is successful.
One of the things they are finding is that increasingly the other ecosystems appear more and more hostile, with the people that are working on those using it as a way to control revenue flow and to control relationships with customers. [Quite obvious reference to Apple and the way how AppleStore is set up, could be even a reference to Android ecosystem as well.]
That’s not our strategy and our strategy is to be a full-fledged ecosystem. We’re not trying to own the customer in the place of somewhere else, we’re not trying to stop other people from making revenue on the phone. An ecosystem is all about people working together and that means making money together and dealing with customers together. So, that really is our strategy. We are therefore very operator-friendly. So is Nokia. And that really helps us, I think, quite a lot in getting their support.
UPDATE 2-Intel says will find new MeeGo partners [Feb 17, 2011] (emphasis is mine):
Intel Corp (INTC.O) said its partner Nokia dropped the MeeGo operating system [not exactly true, see later] after Microsoft offered “incredible” amounts of money for the phonemaker to switch to Windows but it would find new partners for MeeGo.
Intel’s Chief Executive Paul Otellini said in a meeting with analysts in London, accessed by Reuters via conference call, that Nokia’s (NOK1V.HE) choice of Microsoft (MSFT.O) over Google’s (GOOG.O) Android platform was a financial decision. [ID:nLDE71A0DG]
Otellini said Nokia’s Chief Executive Stephen Elop received “incredible offers — money” from Google and Microsoft to switch.
“I wouldn’t have made the decision he made, I would probably have gone to Android if I were him,” he said. “MeeGo would have been the best strategy but he concluded he couldn’t afford it.“
Microsoft was not immediately available for comment.
Google Chief Executive Eric Schmidt said at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona on Wednesday that he had held extensive talks to try to woo Nokia. [ID:nLDE71F026]
Otellini said Nokia would find it hard to differentiate using the Windows platform: “It would have been less hard on Android, on MeeGo he could have done it.”
“We will find another partner. The carriers still want a third ecosystem and the carriers want an open ecosystem, and that’s the thing that drives our motivation,” he said.
MeeGo was created last year by the merger of Nokia and Intel’s Linux-based platforms Maemo and Moblin. [ID:nLDE61E0Z2]
Otellini said in Barcelona that open systems had the edge over closed systems: “Some closed models will certainly survive, because you can optimise the experience, but in general, if you harness the ability of all the engineers in the world and the developers in the world, open wins.”
Intel as the new champion of open systems? YES. Nokia’s decision is – however – representing the best interests of Nokia. There is certainly nothing left to Mr. Ottelini as represent his own company’s best interests which he does well, by championing open systems for example. Another proof is just that when President Obama Visited Intel’s Oregon Research and Manufacturing Site, Highlights Education, Jobs and Innovation [Feb 18, 2011] the simultaneous announcement was that Intel to Invest More than $5 Billion to Build New Factory in Arizona [Feb 18, 2011] (emphasis is mine):
The new Arizona factory, designated Fab 42, will be the most advanced, high-volume semiconductor manufacturing facility in the world. Construction of the new fab is expected to begin in the middle of this year and is expected to be completed in 2013.
“The investment positions our manufacturing network for future growth,” said Brian Krzanich, senior vice president and general manager, Manufacturing and Supply Chain. “This fab will begin operations on a process that will allow us to create transistors with a minimum feature size of 14 nanometers. For Intel, manufacturing serves as the underpinning for our business and allows us to provide customers and consumers with leading-edge products in high volume. The unmatched scope and scale of our investments in manufacturing help Intel maintain industry leadership and drives innovation.”
While more than three-fourths of Intel’s sales come from outside of the United States, Intel manufactures three-fourths of its microprocessors in the United States. The addition of this new fab will increase the company’s American manufacturing capability significantly.
Building the new fab on the leading-edge 14-nanometer process enables Intel to manufacture more powerful and efficient computer chips. The nanometer specification refers to the minimum dimensions of transistor technology. A nanometer is one-billionth of a meter or the size one ninety-thousandth the width of an average human hair.
“The products based on these leading-edge chips will give consumers unprecedented levels of performance and power efficiency across a range of computing devices from high-end servers to ultra-sleek portable devices,” said Krzanich.
Fab 42 will be built as a 300mm factory, which refers to the size of the wafers that contain the computer chips. The project will create thousands of construction and permanent manufacturing jobs at Intel’s Arizona site.
Considering that it was just last October as came the news Intel Announces Multi-Billion-Dollar Investment in Next-Generation Manufacturing in U.S. [Oct 19, 2010] (emphasis is mine):
- Intel will spend $6-8 billion in manufacturing to support future technology advancements in Arizona and Oregon.
- The investment supports the creation of 6,000-8,000 construction jobs and 800-1,000 permanent high-tech jobs, and also allows Intel to maintain its current manufacturing employment base at these U.S. sites.
- The investment will fund a new development fab in Oregon, as well as upgrades to four existing fabs to manufacture the next-generation 22-nanometer (nm) process technology.
- Intel’s next-generation, 22nm microprocessors will enable sleeker device designs, higher performance and longer battery life at lower costs.
Intel’s strategy – quite obviously – is to “outmanufacture” everybody else. See also my post: Intel’s industry position and prospects for years ahead [Dec 9, 2010 with updates till Jan 14, 2011]. In a longer term it is definitely the best representation of Intel’s own interests.
Parallel to that they are strengthening their software-related investments as well, see Intel Capital Investments to Help Expand the Mobile Ecosystem [Feb 14, 2011] (emphasis is mine):
MOBILE WORLD CONGRESS, Barcelona, Feb. 14, 2011 – Intel Capital, Intel Corporation’s global investment organization, today announced six new investments to drive continued innovation across the mobile hardware, software and applications ecosystems. The new deals total approximately $26 million and include open source mobile software solutions company Borqs; location-based mapping platform and tools provider CloudMade; QuantumFilm™-based image sensor vendor InVisage; open source online video platform Kaltura; online authentication provider SecureKey Technologies; and unified communications and collaboration service software provider VisionOSS Solutions.
The six companies each have developed innovative technologies to enhance the user experience across a continuum of devices, including handhelds, tablets and laptops, that run a variety of operating systems including MeeGo and Android*.
…
Borqs Ltd. (Borqs) (Beijing) is an Android software integrator for mobile devices. The company works with name-brand smart phone OEMs, semi-conductor companies, and mobile operators to enhance the Android system to meet their requirements. With expertise ranging from kernel, device-level drivers to top-level user interfaces, Borqs Android solution has been deployed in more than 30 Android mobile devices for W-CDMA networks and TD-SCDMA networks. Borqs Android solution is Google CTS compliant. The investment from Intel Capital, subject to the satisfaction of closing conditions, aligns with Intel’s port of choice strategy to support multiple operating systems across a variety of devices and will be used by the company for business development.
CloudMade (Menlo Park, Calif.) was founded in 2007 to enable developers to build location-enabled applications and services. The company provides application developers with a range of innovative tools and application programming interfaces to enable the creation of unique location-based applications across all major web and mobile platforms. Today there are more than 16,000 developers using CloudMade’s tools to create applications for mobile and Web consumers. The investment from Intel Capital will be used to further strengthen the platform and to work with developers to provide them with an unparalleled suite of tools designed for their specific needs. CloudMade will be certified under the Intel’s AppUp™ application store.
Kaltura (New York) provides a widely adopted open source online video platform. More than 100,000 media and entertainment companies, enterprises, small- and medium-size businesses, educational institutions, service providers, platform vendors and system integrators use Kaltura’s flexible platform to enhance their websites, Web services and Web platforms with advanced customized rich-media functionalities that are delivered through any connected device. Kaltura’s features and products enable the easy deployment of custom workflows involving video, photo and audio creation, ingestion, publishing, management, distribution, engagement, monetization and analysis. The investment will be used to enhance rich-media functionalities on tablets, mobile phones and other connected devices, with a special emphasis on supporting the MeeGo™ mobile operating system and Intel’s AppUp application store.
Software-wise Intel’s strategic bet is definitely the open-source as it was already shown in my earlier post Intel’s industry position and prospects for years ahead [Dec 9, 2010 with updates till Jan 14, 2011] by a single presentation excerpt of:
(where Nokia was already missing from the MeeGo design wins !) as well as by the another post of mine Intel Oak Trail to beat ARM with MeeGo specific prices [Nov 25, 2010]. Note that Android is high on Intel’s list as well since MeeGo is a quite new system. See Nokia, Intel release MeeGo 1.1; lacks support for tablets [Oct 29, 2010], For developers’ eyes only: MeeGo version 1.1 [Nokia’s own blog, Oct 28, 2010], MeeGo 1.1 Release [meego.com, Oct 28, 2010], MeeGo v1.1 for Netbooks (Google Chrome Browser) [meego.com], MeeGo v1.1 for Handset [meego.com] and MeeGo v1.1 for In-Vehicle Infotainment (IVI) [meego.com]. Nokia also had different plans for MeeGo from Intel back then platformwise as per Nokia Makes Qt its Sole App Development Framework [Oct 21, 2010], Nokia Focuses on Qt to Extend Reach for Developers, Make Mobile Experience Richer for Users [Oct 21, 2010] and Nokia further refines development strategy to unify environments for Symbian and MeeGo [Oct 21, 2010].
With the latest Nokia decision to select Windows Phone 7 as its primary operating system Nokia’s plans for MeeGo changed only in the sense that Qt has been dropped as the unified environment for developers but as per the Nokia outlines new strategy, introduces new leadership, operational structure [Feb 11, 2011]:
Under the new strategy, MeeGo becomes an open-source, mobile operating system project. MeeGo will place increased emphasis on longer-term market exploration of next-generation devices, platforms and user experiences. Nokia still plans to ship a MeeGo-related product later this year.
which is very painful for Intel as it practically should push MeeGo through the market alone while Nokia can pick the fruits of Intel’s effort practically free of charge when MeeGo becomes a factor on the market. Nokia’s biggest contribution to the MeeGo success will be just the advanced user experience as has been promised before, see my earlier post Nokia to enter design pattern competition for 2011 smartphones with MeeGo [Dec 9, 2010]. But that user experience wil be kept to Nokia, so Intel will not benefit from it elsewhere.
Whether Intel understands the upcoming threat to its business is still not clear from all that above.
Meanwhile Apple definitely needs to take the white-box vendors threat more seriously as indicated by two recent news below:
New York Times: Apple Is Not Making a Smaller iPhone [Feb 18, 2011]
The New York Times has poured cold water on a rumor that Apple is preparing to sell a smaller version of the iPhone.
The report conflicts with stories published earlier this week by Bloomberg and The Wall Street Journal, who both claim that Apple is making a smaller iPhone that relies heavily on cloud-based storage and media streaming.
Citing an anonymous source, NYT explained that Apple is working on methods to bring costs of the iPhone down, and a smaller iPhone wouldn’t necessarily be cheaper to produce, nor would it be easier to operate.
Two major publications say something is happening, and one major publication is saying it’s not. We’re inclined to believe NYT, however, because the explanation seems more rational. Reducing storage and size wouldn’t bring down costs much, and a different screen size would also cause fragmentation in the App Store.
Apples biggest plans to upset faster retail store progress in China [Shanzai.com, Feb 21, 2010]:
We’ve reported before that Apple was lagging on meeting its earlier commitments to open 15 or 25 retail stores in China this year but now it seems an effort to build its biggest store yet will slow things down further.
40,000 people/day apparently tromp through the few Apple retail outlets in China at the moment (I’m never sure but now I think there are 5 locations)… so bigger is probably a much welcome strategy for building an Apple shrine/store.
Since Apple revenue in China last year grew over 4x from the previous year, they’re probably needing to scout new locations that can handle higher retail traffic volumes.
Apple, which had all but neglected the China market for years, has recently stepped up efforts to expand outside the U.S. In its last earnings call, the company’s Chief Operating Officer Tim Cook said revenue from Greater China reached $2.6 billion, four times the company’s China revenue a year earlier.–Source
Apparently Chinese Apple retail store traffic is also 4x larger than American retail traffic so I suppose they’ll also need to find 4x the geniuses to guide consumers through the buy and use process.
Earthquake like changes in the mobile phone market: numbers from IDC
According to CORRECTING and REPLACING Mobile Phone Market Grows 17.9% in Fourth Quarter, According to IDC [Jan 28] the phone market changed significantly in 2010:
Considering the market changes in the 4th quarter 2010 the changes are even more significant:
IDC also released information about the smartphone part of the phone market. See Android Rises, Symbian^3 and Windows Phone 7 Launch as Worldwide Smartphone Shipments Increase 87.2% Year Over Year, According to IDC [Feb 7, 2011]. Here we can see even more troubling signs for four traditional phone vendors in the Top 5. Year-over-Year the situation is as follows:
Here Research in Motion (the Blackberry vendor) is quite visiblibly in a trouble zone as its strong smartphone position is fast declining against such Top 5 challengers as Samsung and HTC. Even Apple should worry since it barely succeeded grow a little faster than the overall smartphone market but the upcoming challengers, Samsung and HTC grew by several times faster, 318.2% and 165.4% accordingly. This observation for all three Top 5 companies in trouble is even more proven by IDC’s 4th quarter 2010 numbers:
Here we can see that Nokia lost 27.5% of its quarterly market share in a year, Research in Motion (RIM) 27.1%, and Apple remained on the same quarterly market share as a year before which means that all the lost marketshare by Nokia and RIM, which is not less than 16% of the overall (10.6% + 5.4% subsequently) went to the other challengers. Samsung’s and HTC’s gains were “just” 10.3% of the overall (6.6% + 4% subsequently) which means that even vendors in the “others” category were able to pick 5.4% out of the Nokia’s and RIM’s 16% combined loss of marketshare. For Apple it is as much of a danger sign as the most obvious things for Nokia and RIM.
IDC’s additional verbatim assesment of the 4th quarter situation (from their press release indicated above, emphasis is mine):
“Android continues to gain by leaps and bounds, helping to drive the smartphone market,” said Ramon Llamas, senior research analyst with IDC’s Mobile Phone Technology and Trends team. “It has become the cornerstone of multiple vendors’ smartphone strategies, and has quickly become a challenger to market leader Symbian. Although Symbian has the backing of market leader Nokia, Android has multiple vendors, including HTC, LG Electronics, Motorola, Samsung and a growing list of companies deploying Android on their devices.”
Adding to the competitive landscape is the entrance of two refreshed operating systems, Symbian^3 and Windows Phone 7 [wrong: WP7 is a completely new system, has nothing related to the previous Windows Mobile line]. “In their first quarter of commercial availability, both Symbian^3 and Windows Phone 7 ramped up quickly, just in time for the holidays,” added Llamas. “By the end of the quarter, Nokia had shipped five million Symbian^3 units while Windows Phone 7 vendors shipped more than 1.5 million units. Now, with the holiday quarter over, both platforms will need to sustain this initial growth in the quarters to come.”
Regarding Nokia IDC was even somewhat positive:
Nokia noted the positive progress of its new Symbian^3 smartphones during 4Q10: five million units combined from the N8, C7, and C601 worldwide, a strong showing given their recent introduction to the market. At the same time, Nokia’s volumes are largely comprised of older devices, while MeeGo-powered devices have yet to arrive on the market. In addition, Nokia continues to struggle in the North America market. The recent cancellation of the X7 smartphone at AT&T highlights Nokia’s challenges and a new device has yet to be revealed.
Regarding Apple and RIM IDC did not see any kind of problems worth to mention. Regarding the overal mobile phone market situation (as given in the first press release linked so far) their observations are (emphasis is mine):
It’s not just smartphone-focused suppliers that capitalized on the mobile phone market’s renewed growth last year. ZTE, a company that sells primarily lower-cost feature phones in emerging markets, moved into the number 4 position worldwide in 4Q10. It is the first quarter the Chinese handset maker finished among IDC’s Top 5 vendors.
“Change-up among the number four and five vendors could be a regular occurrence this year,” added Ramon Llamas, senior research analyst with IDC’s Mobile Devices Technology and Trends team. “Motorola, Research In Motion, and Sony Ericsson, all vendors with a tight focus on the fast-growing smartphone market who had ranked among the top five worldwide vendors during 2010 are well within striking distance to move back into the top five list.”
Regionally they were only indicating that (emphasis is mine):
… Domestic brands in India like G-Five, Micromax, and Karbonn grew with aggressive advertising and branding activities for entry-level phones, while ZTE and Huawei worked closely with carriers to push low-cost Android smartphones in China. …
… In Western Europe, carrier smartphone promotions motivated more users to scrap their feature phones, resulting in strong smartphone sales. … In CEMA, quarterly volumes breached the 70 million unit threshold for the first time, marked by an influx of Chinese and unbranded handsets. Meanwhile, smartphones experienced brisk growth due to falling prices and more Android-powered devices.
The United States … [and] Canada, the focus was on smartphones. Android-powered devices from multiple players, along with incumbent vendors RIM and Apple, pushed shipment volumes to a new record level.
In Latin America, sustained user interest in smartphones drove the market, resulting in strong results for Nokia, RIM, and Samsung as well as relative newcomer Huawei. Smartphones, as well as QWERTY-enabled feature phones, helped boost social networking and messaging, two fast-growing trends in the market. Finally, Alcatel and ZTE once again thrived in the inexpensive entry-level device market.
The numbers as have been indicated by me on the above tables are however exceptionally worrying for Nokia as the leaked internal memo (Engadget, Feb 8) by their new CEO Stephen Elop has described to the employees (emphasis is mine):
In 2008, Apple’s market share in the $300+ price range was 25 percent; by 2010 it escalated to 61 percent. They are enjoying a tremendous growth trajectory with a 78 percent earnings growth year over year in Q4 2010. Apple demonstrated that if designed well, consumers would buy a high-priced phone with a great experience and developers would build applications. They changed the game, and today, Apple owns the high-end range.
And then, there is Android. In about two years, Android created a platform that attracts application developers, service providers and hardware manufacturers. Android came in at the high-end, they are now winning the mid-range, and quickly they are going downstream to phones under €100. Google has become a gravitational force, drawing much of the industry’s innovation to its core.
Let’s not forget about the low-end price range. In 2008, MediaTek supplied complete reference designs for phone chipsets, which enabled manufacturers in the Shenzhen region of China to produce phones at an unbelievable pace. By some accounts, this ecosystem now produces more than one third of the phones sold globally – taking share from us in emerging markets.
While competitors poured flames on our market share, what happened at Nokia? We fell behind, we missed big trends, and we lost time. At that time, we thought we were making the right decisions; but, with the benefit of hindsight, we now find ourselves years behind.
… We thought MeeGo would be a platform for winning high-end smartphones. However, at this rate, by the end of 2011, we might have only one MeeGo product in the market.
At the midrange, we have Symbian. It has proven to be non-competitive in leading markets like North America. Additionally, Symbian is proving to be an increasingly difficult environment in which to develop to meet the continuously expanding consumer requirements, leading to slowness in product development and also creating a disadvantage when we seek to take advantage of new hardware platforms. …
At the lower-end price range, Chinese OEMs are cranking out a device much faster than, as one Nokia employee said only partially in jest, “the time that it takes us to polish a PowerPoint presentation.” They are fast, they are cheap, and they are challenging us.
And the truly perplexing aspect is that we’re not even fighting with the right weapons. We are still too often trying to approach each price range on a device-to-device basis.
The battle of devices has now become a war of ecosystems, where ecosystems include not only the hardware and software of the device, but developers, applications, ecommerce, advertising, search, social applications, location-based services, unified communications and many other things. Our competitors aren’t taking our market share with devices; they are taking our market share with an entire ecosystem. This means we’re going to have to decide how we either build, catalyse or join an ecosystem.
Note that Gartner’s numbers are diufferent, as descibed in Gartner’s 77 million shanzhai mystery [Nov 26, 2010]
Radical strategy shift/reorg at Nokia
As the result of Elop’s assesment on February 11 came the news that Nokia and Microsoft announce plans for a broad strategic partnership to build a new global ecosystem [Feb 11]. The line of thought behind this decision from Nokia’s part was clearly explained a couple of days later on the Mobile World Congress 2011 on the Stephen Elop’s Nokia Press Conference at MWC [Feb 14] as (emphasis is mine):
There were three possible options for Nokia’s future, he explained. It might pursue the internal route and rely on Symbian and MeeGo to see Nokia through to regaining its mobile crown through further and faster development. Second, the company could go to Google and become another licensee of the Android platform. Third, it could become a licensee of Microsoft’s Windows Phone.
Looking at the pace and performance of Symbian and MeeGo over recent years was enough to discount the first choice. Of course, he then talked to Google and Microsoft, the only two realistic external choices.
Both companies were keen. Nokia has a massive global footprint and retains an enormous market share. Nokia was, in Stephen’s words, “suited” by both companies.
So why choose Microsoft over Google? It’s all about how it affects the mobile ecosystem.
If Nokia had gone with Google, it would have been another Android licensee and handed Google massive share. The world of mobile phones would have become a “duopoly” – Google versus Apple.
Going with Microsoft might look counter-intuitive, given the lower market share and youth of that mobile operating system.
However the point, Stephen said, was exactly that. Microsoft has everything to gain by supporting Nokia’s venture in creating devices with its operating system. Windows Phone is a challenger in the mobile space, not one of the current incumbents.
Here’s the way the deal works: Nokia pays Microsoft royalties, it gives Microsoft unprecedented reach, it also gives them access to services such as Maps. Nokia’s hardware expertise creates devices that truly let the Microsoft’s new OS shine.
In return, Nokia gets a substantial reduction in its operating expenses; it gains a range of services to enrich its smartphone offering. There’s a new revenue stream for Nokia in the form of mobile advertising. It gets marketing support with a value of billions of dollars.
The real point is that there’s a co-dependency between Nokia and Microsoft – both partners need the other to fully succeed. That’s part of what makes it the right choice.
The other part of this is about new ecosystems. There are two flourishing apps and services ecosystems currently, Apple’s and Google’s. The combination of Nokia and Microsoft creates a third choice: that’s good news for consumers and good news for the whole of the mobile industry. More choice and more competition drives everything forward.
That means a complete overhaul of Nokia businesses which is best described in the Nokia provides financial targets and forecasts linked to new strategy [Feb 11] as (emphasis is mine):
Due to the initiation of Nokia’s strategic transformation on February 11, 2011, the full-year prospects for its Devices & Services business are subject to significant uncertainties, and therefore Nokia believes it is not appropriate to provide annual targets for 2011 at the present time. …
Nokia expects 2011 and 2012 to be transition years, as the company invests to build the planned winning ecosystem with Microsoft. After the transition, Nokia targets longer-term:
– Devices & Services net sales to grow faster than the market.
– Devices & Services non-IFRS* operating margin to be 10% or more.
During this two years transition there will be the following essential setup as per the Nokia outlines new strategy, introduces new leadership, operational structure [Feb 11]:
With Nokia’s planned move to Windows Phone as its primary smartphone platform, Symbian becomes a franchise platform, leveraging previous investments to harvest additional value. This strategy recognizes the opportunity to retain and transition the installed base of 200 million Symbian owners. Nokia expects to sell approximately 150 million more Symbian devices in the years to come.
Under the new strategy, MeeGo becomes an open-source, mobile operating system project. MeeGo will place increased emphasis on longer-term market exploration of next-generation devices, platforms and user experiences. Nokia still plans to ship a MeeGo-related product later this year.
In feature phones, Nokia unveiled a renewed strategy to leverage its innovation and strength in growth markets to connect the next billion people to their first Internet and application experience.
…
As of April 1, Nokia will have a new company structure, which features two distinct business units: Smart Devices and Mobile Phones. They will focus on Nokia’s key business areas: high-end smartphones and mass-market mobile phones. Each unit will have profit-and-loss responsibility and end-to-end accountability for the full consumer experience, including product development, product management and product marketing.
Smart Devices will be responsible for building Nokia’s leadership in smartphones and will be led by Jo Harlow [she is a 49 years old American marketing executive who joined Nokia in 2003 as VP of North America Mobile Phones Marketing, then responsible for the same just globally as a SVP, then a few device specific roles like Symbian smartphones and finally appointed to her smartphones releated role in July 2010, before the arrival of Elop]. The following sub-units now in Mobile Solutions will move under Smart Devices:
– Symbian Smartphones
– MeeGo Computers
– Strategic Business OperationsTo support the planned new partnership with Microsoft, Smart Devices will be responsible for creating a winning Windows Phone portfolio.
Mobile Phones will drive Nokia’s “web for the next billion” strategy [i.e. the feature phones as mentioned above]. Mobile Phones will leverage its innovation and strength in growth markets to connect the next billion people and bring them affordable access to the Internet and applications. The Mobile Phones unit will be led by Mary McDowell [she is a 46 years old American computer industry executive who joined Nokia in 2004 as an executive VP and GM of Enterprise Solutions, then leading the Corporate Development unit from 2008 until assuming her current role in July 2010, before the arrival of Elop].
…
Services and Developer Experience will be responsible for Nokia’s global services portfolio [i.e. location, messaging, entertainment and context-based services], developer offering, developer relations and integration of partner service offerings. Tero Ojanpera will lead the Services and Developer Experience unit in an acting capacity. [46 years old Tero Ojanpera has been with Nokia along his full carrier which started in research. He is said to be an oustanding radio engineer back then. In 2003-2004, he headed the Nokia Research Center, and was appointed chief strategy officer a year later. From 2006, Tero served as chief technology officer, responsible for corporate and technology strategy, strategic alliances and partnerships, research and intellectual property rights. He has been a member of the Nokia Leadership Team since 2005, and was appointed to his current position in 2009.]
NAVTEQ, an integral part of Nokia’s location and advertising business, will be headed by Larry Kaplan, and continue as a separate reporting entity.
…
Design, responsible for Nokia product and user experience design, will be led by Marko Ahtisaari. [Although not a member of the Leadership Team he is an equally important person on the new operational structure. Marko Ahtisaari re-joined Nokia in September 2009 to head the Design team within the new Solutions Unit and then becoming SVP Design and User Experience. Before he was the CEO and co-founder of Dopplr, the online social atlas for smart travel acquired simultaneously by Nokia. In 2006-2008, he was the Head of Brand & Design at Blyk, the free mobile service for young people. Previously, he worked at Nokia as Director of Design Strategy and held management positions in corporate strategy and venturing since 2002. In 1999-2001, he built and led the mobile practice at digital services company Satama.]
[as noted by ArcticStartup [Sept 29, 2009]: “Last time he stayed almost two years with the Finnish mobile phone giant pulling the Design unit from individual separate pieces into a well functioning shop before leaving in August 2006 to Blyk as a Head of Brand & Design.”]
Note that the above structure essentially means the dissolution of the previous Mobile Solutions unit with dropping the mobile computers focus for the next two years (just retained with MeeGo for longer term) as well as the focus on the “world-class suite of internet services under the Ovi brand” which is now moved into a joint services and developers unit responsibility. The previous structure was as follows:
Structure
July 1, 2010
Our organizational structure is designed to position us for a world where the mobile device, the Internet and the computer are fusing together.
Mobile Solutions is responsible for developing and managing our portfolio of smartphones and mobile computers. The team is also busy developing a world-class suite of internet services under the Ovi brand, with a strong focus on maps and navigation, music, messaging and media. Mobile Phones is responsible for developing and managing our portfolio of affordable mobile phones, as well as a range of services that people can access with them. Markets manages our supply chains, sales channels, brand and marketing activities, and is responsible for delivering our mobile solutions and mobile phones to the market.
Nokia Siemens Networks, jointly owned by Nokia and Siemens, provides wireless and fixed network infrastructure, communications and networks service platforms, as well as professional services to operators and service providers.
NAVTEQ is a leading provider of comprehensive digital map data and related location-based content and services for automotive navigation systems, mobile navigation devices, Internet-based mapping applications, and government and business solutions.
White-box (Shanzhai) vendors
While Nokia and Microsoft are talking about the need to have a third smartphone ecosystem (in addition to Apple’s and Google/Android’s) the fact is that within the Google/Android camp there is an absolutely threatening ecosystem in itself which is generally called the China-based white-box vendors. The Special Report: China’s white-box handset market (Jul 26) from Digitimes Research (Taiwan) describing this as follows (emphasis is mine):
In China, there is a specific form of business operation that has come to be called the white-box industry mostly targeting the vast low-income segment of the market. The white-box supply chain is a production system centered in southern China, with product designs relying on core component suppliers and with a supply chain working on a division of labor, high flexibility and a minimal amount of assets.
In more details this kind of model is described in Digitimes Research analyzes China white-box handset market in new report [Aug 10] (emphasis is mine):
While the mainstream business model for manufacturing and distributing mobile handsets remains leveraging the OBM/ODM/OEM/EMS model, a whole new paradigm has developed within China’s domestic market, according to a new report from Digitimes Research.
The local China-based industry called “Shanzhai,” but translated as “white box,” is based on small-scale or underground factories whose products are seldom sold through regular sales channels, but the scale of the market now rivals that of global top-10 brands or major Chinese brands in the domestic China market, Digitimes Research pointed out. The “white-box” industry currently accounts for more than 100 million handset shipments, and some players in the market, such as K-Touch (Beijing Tianyu Communication Equipment) and Gionee have made the leap to become recognized brands.
While accounting for about one-third of domestic handset shipments, the white-box industry in China has been working under the acquiescence, and even active encouragement in some cases, of the government and is proclaimed by its proponents as representing the success of China’s homegrown innovation and enterprise. The Digitimes Research special report examines the difference between the traditional ODM supply chain and the virtual organization used by white-box players, and highlights the advantages of the white-box business model.
Next we should clearly understand What drove the shanzhai success? [Shanzai.com, Nov 13, 2009]:
Shanzhai players have gained a strong foothold in the local market in the last two years [i.e. in 2008 and 2009]. Although they started off with copied brands, nearly one third of them are now [i.e. Nov’09] becoming more and more innovative in their products.
… Five years back, none of us had even heard of shanzhai. Copy or fake products existed only in the grey market.
… why are we instantly attracted to shanzhai products?
Price is surely one major factor. While you get a shanzhaid version of an Apple iPhone in China for around USD 70, the real iPhone will cost you 5 to 7 times more. The shanzhai have given a new ray of hope to the lower middle classes to flaunt the features of branded phones.
… While established brands are cautious about trying something new, the shanzhai design their products according to customer demand. Netbooks with CD drives and dual SIM phones with TV streaming are common examples of shanzhai designing customized products for identified consumers.
… The shanzhai option is also often the first way of getting a new product … er well, a version of a new model anyway, something Kiran [from shanzai.com] pointed out, “Since they are acutely aware of the need to cater to local needs, they have the inherent capability to produce a slew of new devices with the latest technology every one to two months. This innovative, flexible and cheap market strategy poses a huge challenge to legal branded manufacturers. For the branded manufactures, the gestation period of a new product is much longer than the shanzhai counterparts. If a new product is designed it takes approximately 6 months to release into the market as it passes through different safety and regulatory measures. By the time it enters the market, it is already out of date due to the early availability of its clone products devised by the shanzhai bandits.”
The shanzhai are also rebelling against established brands by promoting open source platforms, which cost less and offer similar features of other platforms. … The actual manufacturing cost of a phone is only 20% of the retail price of a phone; the rest is spent in designing, marketing, tax, regulatory checks, safety tests and post sales services. Shanzhai products save the funds spent in TV advertising and other marketing activities.
While price, specs and rebellion against established brands has contributed to the success of the shanzhai business model, another major factor responsible for the sudden boom of the shanzhai is the economic downturn of 2007-09. Although the impact of the financial crisis is less evident in countries like China and India, it has paralyzed foreign investments to a large extent. The recession has actually affected the spending power of people, so a person thinks twice even before making a small investment like buying a new phone. So when offered similar features at a much lower price, many people go for the cheaper option where they once might have stuck loyally with a big brand.
…
Shanzhai distribution channels work quite effectively and actually quite speedily too. In Shenzhen, a small group of workers have their own factories with R&D, software development and hardware manufacturing facilities. Go to any shop in Shenzhen in the morning and tell them the features you want in your mobile phone and collect your phone in the evening! Shanzhai prefers its marketing through its local channels; Chinese people also prefer their local brands over international products. If we take a look at tech building companies in countries like India and Brazil, the shanzhai lead there too. They export the hardware parts to save export duties, and then the completed products can be assembled easily in these countries.
[Another factor – in fact a major “catalyst type” force – is mentioned in the article as “the emergence of local silicon players like MediaTek” which – quite naturally – will be discussed in the next section separately: see MediaTek as the catalyst of the white-board ecosystem below.]
The attached diagramm (to the first news item above) of mainland China’s home market growth is clearly showing that there is essentially no forecasted growth for 2011 so there is no other way for the white-box vendors as enter the international market even more aggressively than before. Digitimes even reported that White-box handset makers gearing up smartphone and 3G handset production, MediaTek to benefit [Dec 3, 2010] also indicating the Chineses government increased support for that (emphasis is mine):
White-box handset makers in China are gearing up their production of in-house designed smartphones and 3G handsets, a trend which will benefit Taiwan-based IC design house MediaTek. China’s white-box handset industry in 2010, has begun to place more emphasis on upgrading specifications and added value to enter the high-end segment, and has allocated more resources on development of intellectual property.
Even the China government has voiced its support for the white-box industry. Yang Xueshan, Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT), recently said that the government will support the white-box business model as long as there is no infringement of IP.
Yang pointed out that from imitation to innovation is a process white-box handset makers have to go through, citing China-based telecom equipment maker Huawei Technologies as a success story. Huawei’s foray into the handset sector began with low-cost products and the company now has research and development capability, he said.
Supporting the white-box business model, given that no patents are infringed, is a good way to protect intellectual property rights as well as provide the most cost-effective products to consumers, Yang added.
Two months later came out the news that Shipments of sub-US$150 Android handsets to reach 20-25 million units in 2011, says Digitimes Research [Jan 28] (emphasis is mine):
Shipments of entry-level Android handsets with a price tag of below US$150 are likely to reach 20-25 million units in 2011 which could affect Nokia’s performance, according to an estimate by Digitimes Research.
Shipments of sub-US$150 Android phones totaled only 2.5-3 million units in 2010, mostly shipped by China-based Huawei Technologies and ZTE. However, the number of sub-US$150 Android phones is likely to increase by 8-10 fold in 2011 resulting a substantial increase in shipments, Digitimes Research said.
Google’s efforts to push Android phones to emerging markets, strong demand from markets in China, India, South America, Southeast Asia, Africa, and Russia, and a shift of telecom carriers in mature markets from feature phones to smartphones all work to stir up shipments of Android phones.
In addition to Huawei, ZTE, white-box handset makers in China and Taiwan-based ODMs, Samsung Electronics, LG Electronics and Motorola are also likely to step up their presence in the entry-level Android segment, Digitimes Research said.
The increasing popularity of low-cost Android phones is expected to have a major impact on Symbian-based smartphones as Nokia is projecting merely a 10% sales growth rate for its smartphones, far below the 50% growth projected for the segment, Digitimes Research noted.
Two weeks later even more threating news were coming stating that China-based white-box vendors to offer below US$100 Android smartphones for emerging markets [Feb 9] (emphasis is mine):
China-based vendors are poised to offer Android smartphones priced at below US$100 for sale in China and other emerging markets including India, Indonesia and Brazil [so called BRIC] in 2011, according to Taiwan-based handset and component makers.
Such low-price Android smartphones are equipped with basic functions including dual-mode or dual-SIM, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, FM radio, trackball and G-sensors, with other functions such as mobile TV and GPS available for additional choice, the sources noted.
The low price is based on non-customized turnkey solutions featuring the integration of chips, operating systems, software and user interfaces, the sources pointed out. Taiwan-based IC design houses MediaTek and Infomax Communication have offered such solutions at less than US$100 and US$80-90 respectively, while China-based Leadcore Technology and Fuzhou Rockchip Electronics have done so at US$80-105 and US$90-105 respectively, the sources indicated. Qualcomm, ST-Ericsson and Broadcom have also offered such solutions, but mostly for 3G and priced higher at US$100-120, the sources noted.
In an additional news it was indicated that FOB price of turnkey solutions for Android smartphones now under US$120, says Digitimes Research [Feb 9] (emphasis is mine):
FOB prices of turnkey chip solutions for Android-based smartphones are now under US$120, according to Digitimes Research.
Taiwan-based MediaTek and Infomax Communications are offering Android chip solutions at below US$100 and around US$80-90, respectively. China’s Leadcore Technology and Rockchip Electronics are quoting at US$80-90 and US$80-105, respectively. Even international players such as Qualcomm, ST-Ericsson and Broadcom have joined in the battle with solutions priced between US$100-120.
International chip providers are outsourcing their solution designs to handset designers and manufacturers. Qualcomm is working with Gsmart [Taiwan] and Thundersoft, [HQ in Beijing, branch in Tokyo, support centre in Seoul and Taipei], Marvell has partnered with Zoom Technologies [HQ in Beijing, mainly EMS for OEMs + ODM + own brand sales via Hong Kong, ownership via Delaware-BVI chain of holdings], Broadcom with Yuhua [rather Yuhua TelTech, an ODM in Shanghai, with ~$40M international ODM sales] and ST-Ericsson with Beijing Xuntong Antian (transliterated).
More background information:
– Cheap chips off the old block [China Daily, Oct 31, 2008]
– Decoding Shan Zhai Ji (Bandit cell phone) – the opposite side of brand chasing [Nov 17, 2008]
– The phenomenon of Shan Zhai products and culture [Noc 19, 2008]
– ‘Shanzhai’: Faking it for money or fun? [China Daily, Dec 9, 2008]
– MIIT: GSM Association Issues IMEI Numbers To Chinese Mobile Phones [Dec 25, 2008]
– Copycat “Shanzhai” culture takes on life of its own [Xinhua, Dec 30, 2008]
– Chinese Mobile Phones Lacking IMEI Numbers Face Death In India [April 7, 2009]
– Mountain village handsets storm market [China Economic Net, July 19, 2009]
– Experience the shanzhai market: video [Oct 6, 2009]
– China’s ‘Bandit’ Cell Phones – The High-Tech Golden Egg with ‘Taiwan Inside’ [Oct 6, 2009]
– India Starts To Block Chinese-made “Shanzai” Mobile Phones Without IMEI [Dec 3, 2009]
– Chinese Shanzhai Mobile Manufacturers Will Move Production To India [Feb 23, 2010]
– Egypt Will Ban Chinese Shanzai Mobile Phones [June 28, 2010]
– Shanzhai grew by 43.6% in 2010, production cycle also cut by 25% [Shanzai.com, Feb 3, 2011]
MediaTek as the catalyst of the white-board ecosystem
Update: MediaTek to Launch Ultra Cheap Handset Chip Against Spreadtrum Communications [March 21. 2011.] (emphasis is mine)
MedaiTek Inc. has recently announced plans to introduce an ultra low cost multimedia system-on-chip for mobile handsets in a bid to rival a competing solution Spreadtrum Communications Inc. of mainland China will roll out in April.
According to MediaTek, the upcoming handset solution, codenamed as MT6252, supports serial flash memory and is cost efficient for handset makers as it uses lesser passive devices and smaller printed circuit board than existing solutions. Also, the MediaTek solution supports four-SIM, four-standby mobile phones, convincing the mainland`s home-grown handset makers including Gionee Communications Equipment, Ragentek Communication Technology Co., Ltd. and Leatek Technologies International Co., Ltd. to support it.
MT6252 is also designed to replace MediaTek MT6251, a provisional low cost solution to 2.5G mobile phone. Industry executives pointed out that the SOC-based MT6252 is crucial to whether or not MediaTek can dominate the mainland`s market for 2G chips.
The mainland`s market for low-end handset chips had been controlled by Infineon Technologies AG of Germany with its ULC2/3 solutions until the end of last year, when Intel phased out of the low-end business after acquiring Infineon`s handset chip asset.
The low-priced solution Spreadtrum will launch in April is named SC6610, which incorporates embedded SRAM into it.
Here it is worth to start with a historical detour of Shanzhai. Quoting from MediaTek rides high in bandit territory [May 16, 2010] article (emphasis is mine):
MediaTek, which originally focused on making chips for DVD players [see: MediaTek Announces the MT1389S-DVD-Player single chip. To enable the best digital media experience [March 26, 2007]], switched to designing mobile-phone chips after recognizing that cheap locally made phones from China’s Ningbo Bird and DBTel of Taiwan could not match the functionality of Nokia and Motorola, which 10 years ago dominated the China mobile handset market.
MediaTek’s response was to create “complete solutions” for mobile phones – the so-called “system-on-a chip”. It integrated the handset’s motherboard with other major components and the software for practically any desired feature onto a single circuit board. Most important, the products were extremely cheap. According to industry insiders, a set of such systems sells for as little as 100 yuan (US$12.50) to 200 yuan.
Practically all that is then required to produce a mobile handset is the addition of a battery and a casing to hold MediaTek’s “semi-product”. The combination of innovative Taiwan technology and mainland China’s low-cost mass manufacturing makes such handsets available at less than a third of the price of branded rivals.
“MediaTek revolutionized how cell-phone handsets are made in China,” said Zhang, formerly a general manager of Motorola’s Mobile Software Solutions Group for Asia-Pacific and now president of Yostar.net. “It makes it possible for toy factories to manufacture mobile phones.”
Many of these phones are imitations of major branded products, with similar (or the exact) functionality and style. But a lot of innovative handsets are also produced – mobile phones with seven speakers, for students to reproduce dance floor or boom-box music environments; handsets with four bright LED lights to serve as a cell phone and a powerful flashlight. For senior citizens, devices have big displays, big keys and a loud sound. For people who work outside in the fields, there are handsets with longer battery life. There are handsets with two sim-card slots for people traveling between different cities – allowing use of, for example, both a Hong Kong number and a Beijing number. Some are even equipped with a reader to check whether cash is counterfeit. Others look like a pack of cigarettes, or have a built-in laser pointer, a global positioning system, or a TV signal receiver.
The adaptability of small manufacturers also means that whatever is the latest trend – a new iPhone design, for example – can be almost immediately matched by a bandit version.
Then what happened is that after purchasing Analog Devices’ cellular radio and baseband shipset operations [Sept 10, 2007], completed next January [Jan 11, 2008], and the company report that its approach to providing a total solution for customers resulted in a total shipment of mobile solution chipsets over 150 million in volume in 2007 [June 8, 2008] followed an even more effective step of introducing its first multimedia-rich GSM/GPRS single-chip [Feb 12, 2009] (emphasis is mine):
MediaTek, Inc., the leading fabless semiconductors company for wireless communications and digital multimedia solutions, today announced that its first GSM/GPRS single chip, the MT6253, has been adopted in mobile phones on the GSM/GPRS network. Integrating all essential electronic components, including DBB, ABB, power management unit and RF transceiver onto a single chip, the MT6253 can further reduce the materials costs of a complete mobile phone. Equipped with strong peripheral supports including camera, high speed USB and Class D audio AMP, MediaTek’s MT6253 is the most highly integrated chip in the market for mobile communication.
“Bringing together advanced multimedia technology, efficient manufacturing, system-level design tools and real-time support, MediaTek’s MT6253 sets a new standard for cellular SoCs ”, said JiChang Hsu, Executive Vice President of MediaTek. “To better address the needs of emerging market, where handset manufacturers care cost-performance ratio more than ultra low cost, MT6253 provides perceptual peripheral support to bring down costs and reduce space requirements greatly.”
In addition to MT6253, MediaTek also brings its multimedia expertise to its smart phone solutions. Supporting LCD resolution up to WVGA, MediaTek’s first smart phone solution – MT6516 is the first solution for smart phones in the market which is able to process MPEG-2 transport stream decoding without any co-processor. MediaTek’s MT6516 features multiple video codec to enable MDTV applications, including DVB-T, CMMB and DVB-H, all of which can be easily implemented without multimedia co-processor.
This was followed by the advanced single-chip all-in-one GPS solution, MT3329 [May 25, 2009], by three second generation IEEE 802.16e WiMAX chips, the MT7110 Series [June 1, 2009] which was found by an external benchmark to outperform its peer products [July 28, 2010] and thus laying a foundation towards IMT-Advanced (4G) via the WirelessMAN-Advanced route (see my earlier post: IMT-Advanced (4G) for the next-generations of interactive mobile services, China is triumphant [Oct 24, 2010]), as well as both types of LTE Advanced. It is said to be possible to base all these advanced protocols on the same chipset construction. Thus MediaTek has already all the foundations to continue its leadership as the Mobile Internet is going to be faster and faster every year, as well as well more and more accessible to everybody in this decade.
Then came the news that MediaTek to Obtain WCDMA License from Qualcomm [Oct 15, 2009] (emphasis is mine):
Taiwanese wireless semiconductor manufacturer MediaTek has announced that it will soon receive a license to produce Qualcomm’s WCDMA chipset.
Once the license agreement is finalized, MediaTek’s first WCDMA 3G chipset, the MT6268, is aiming for release late this year, with hopes of becoming a major earner for the Taiwanese manufacturer next year. Qualcomm will receive a 6% licensing fee on every 3G chipset produced by MediaTek [the arrangement obtained later was different, see below].
MediaTek says that its license agreement discussion with Qualcomm has entered its final stages. The broad framework and provisions are already agreed upon by both sides, with only minor technical issues still under discussion.
Because Qualcomm still holds the patent on WCDMA technology, any manufacturer that has a product involving WCDMA technology or wishes to produce WCDMA chips must first obtain a license from Qualcomm.
Although MediaTek has yet to officially obtain a license from Qualcomm, its MT6268 3G chipset has already entered small-scale test production by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC). The test production, which mainly utilizes a 65nm manufacturing process, has so far met with success, and full production can begin immediately upon receipt of the license agreement.
The agreement has been reached as per MediaTek and Qualcomm Enter Into Patent Arrangement [Nov 20, 2009]:
MediaTek’s customers do not receive rights to any of Qualcomm’s patents and such customers will need to obtain a separate license from Qualcomm in order to receive rights to any of Qualcomm’s patents. Qualcomm’s customers do not receive rights to any of MediaTek’s patents and such customers will need to obtain a separate license from MediaTek in order to receive rights to any of MediaTek\’s patents. The remainder of the terms of the arrangement are confidential.
This allowed MediaTek reaching out to 3G market with Multimedia Phone Solution MT6268 [Dec 10, 2010] as far as in India:
Grant Kuo, MD, MediaTek [India] said, “With MT6268 multimedia solution, MediaTek has started reaching out to 3G market. The 3G strategic layout of MediaTek will be significant for the industrialization and the future moment of the 3G market in India.”
With high level of integration, MT6268 which supports 3G is targeted for the feature-rich multimedia market. MT6268 offers key features such as support for Video Calling, 5Mpixel camera, High GPRS speed, integrated BT, Dual SIM and full html browser. In addition to it, MT6268 is intended to address the need of embedded devices for low power with its patented power saving technology. These chipset solutions are intended to revolutionalize the market and take the industry to the next level of mass market adoption.
On this year’s Mobile World Congress – quite naturally – MediaTek announced the MT6573 platform for mainstream 3G smartphones [Feb 11] (emphasis is mine):
The MT6573 platform incorporates a highly-integrated, core chipset, a full range of connectivity solutions and supports the latest versions of the popular AndroidTM operating system. The MT6573 platform supports a quad-band [i.e.: all 4 GSM bands, the 850 and 1900 MHz bands – used in Americas – and 900/1800, used elsewhere], 3G/HSPA modem with mobile broadband rates of 7.2Mbps in the downlink and 5.76 Mbps uplink, as well as quad-band EDGE. The integrated applications processing system combines a 650 MHz dedicated ARM®11subsystem for the Android operating system; support for advanced 3D graphics; multi-format video capture and playback up to FWVGA 30fps; high-resolution camera support to 8MP and a high-end FWVGA, touch-screen display. The platform chipset is completed with a full range of connectivity solutions for Bluetooth, WiFi, GPS, FM radio and Mobile TV from MediaTek.
The core chipset of the MT6573 integrates the modem, applications, multimedia subsystem and all necessary power management functions into a single SOC. Combined with a single-chip, multi-mode, multi-band transceiver, it enables extremely small footprints that allow for smaller, more innovative industrial designs and form-factors. Additionally, the integrated 3D graphics capability brings gaming and user interface capabilities that were previously available only to high-end smartphones. Finally, the platform provides advanced camera and multimedia features that include smile and face detection, panorama and burst shot, as well as high-resolution video capture and playback. The platform can be delivered as a full system solution consisting of hardware reference design and fully-tested, compliant software suite that can improve design efficiency and speed time to market for customers in the rapidly changing smartphone market.
… The MT6573 platform is currently sampling to lead customers and will be in mass-production by mid 2011.
Back to the MediaTek rides high in bandit territory [May 16, 2010] article (emphasis is mine):
Big-name Chinese phone-makers such as TCL, Lenovo and Konka are now using MediaTek chips for their products, followed more recently by foreign brands like Motorola and Sharp for their low-end products.
“The local Chinese phone-makers made huge losses in 2005-06 due to the rise of shanzhai ji,” said Knock of JPMorgan, to the extent that the top 20 local Chinese brands have used MediaTek chips for their phones. “The mobile phone companies have outsourced their R&D [research and development] to MediaTek and now focus on marketing and manufacturing only.”
In 2008-09, US giant Motorola restructured its global operation, significantly cutting back its R&D department. “That is when Motorola started to use MediaTek chips,” said Knock, “In this way, Motorola only needs to keep a research team for cutting-edge technology, leaving MediaTek to work on the more mature or mainstream technology research.”
MediaTek has now captured about 30-40% of the branded handset market in China, estimates Knock. Moreover, demand for affordable phones in places such as India and Latin America has made it one of the top five global suppliers of all handset chips. Last year, only about half of the 360 million phone mobile chips made by MediaTek were shipped to China, with the remainder going to the rest of the world.
Now MediaTek Aims to become the Best Mobile Chipset Partner of Indian Mobile Manufacturers [Jan 27] according to MediaTek India (emphasis is mine):
“We do believe that our latest single chipset solution- MT6253, and a customized Android platform for the India market that features many extremely popular applications will help sustain our leadership in the Indian market and the introduction of some of our new 3G solutions will help penetrate new segments”, says Mr. Grant Kuo, MD MediaTek India.
According to a recent Gartner survey, major handset manufacturers view India as a very attractive investment because it is projected to have the most rapid growth of mobile users worldwide: 660 million mobile users in India by end of 2010. This number is expected to cross the one billion mark by 2014 according to global consultancy firm PwC. Rural India is expected to drive this growth in mobile adoption including 3G handsets. PwC also predicts the 3G subscriber base to grow to around 107 million by 2015 out of which 24% will be rural subscribers.
At the forefront of this growth in rural India will be low cost mobile handsets. According to the Voice&Data100 Indian Telecom Survey, low cost Indian brands like Micromax, Spice and Karbonn strengthened their presence in the market in 2009-10, at the cost of well established MNC’s.
“India is a high potential market for our company. The consumers in semi urban and rural areas, who have been the traditional users of low cost handsets, now demand high end features at affordable rates. MediaTek has a proven track record worldwide and aims to leverage this to become the preferred chipset provider to indigenous Indian handset makers, thereby bringing high end applications within the reach of the Indian masses. We are planning to step up our marketing initiatives in India to create awareness about our products and enhance our brand value in the Indian market”, adds Mr. Arun Gupta, Business Development Director MediaTek India.
MediaTek’s technology and product innovation has also received a lot of recognition and awards from media and institutions around the world. In 2010, MediaTek is ranked top 10 among Asia’s 200 most-admired companies by “The Wall Street Journal” and ranked No. 12 among Global Top 100 High-Tech Companies by “Bloomberg Business Week. In addition, its highly integrated mobile single chip MT6253 has been honored with the EDN innovation award. In 2010 MediaTek also had five publications in the distinguished International Solid State Circuits Conference – highest record in the Taiwan semiconductor industry. MediaTek is also honored with the “Excellence in Corporate Social Responsibility Top 50” award every year since 2007 by Taiwan’s most prestigious Common Wealth Magazine.
And for this local manufacturers penetration strategy MediaTek has all the prerequisites via the earlier Shanzhai’s route.
Meanwhile International handset vendors align with Taiwan and China makers to take on local competition in emerging markets [June 24, 2010] (emphasis is mine) and by doing this they are essentially following Motorola’s route:
International handset brand vendors will likely step up cooperation with manufacturers in Taiwan and China to compete more effectively with local vendors in emerging markets that are sourcing white-box models and selling under their own brands.
India’s Micromax, Indonesia’s Nexian and i-Mobile of Thailand are some of the domestic brand vendors that have taken down global giants at home with current market share rankings at third, second and fourth, respectively, in their countries.
Their business models are sourcing handsets from white-box manufacturers to target the entry-level segment as well as niche opportunities that were neglected by larger international vendors, according to sources from Taiwan-based handset makers.
The low-end strategy is certainly effective since consumers in emerging regions are typically more price sensitive. For niche markets, Micromax introduced phones with long standby time of 30 days and models with dual-card, dual-band and dual-standby functionalities. Nexian heavily promoted devices with dual-card and dual-standby features and QWERTY keypads. i-Mobile launched dual-card and dual-standby phones and models with analog-TV features.
Besides entry-level products, local vendors have rolled out smartphones and begun to expand to markets overseas, the sources said.
Most of the local vendors are also well-known distributors with strong ties within domestic sales channels and are responsible for their own after-sale services, the sources pointed out. This solves two major issues white-box critics often bring up – low brand recognition and poor service. Combined with protectionism policies and consumer preferences for home-made brands, the local players still have plenty of room for growth.
Recently, several brand vendors ranked in the top-five globally have contacted manufacturers in Taiwan and China-based handset designers to outsource new models that are comparable in both features and price to those sold by local vendors, said the sources.
Taiwan handset manufacturers have previously produced for local players in emerging markets but gradually gave up orders to white-box makers, since those clients never provided long-term order commitment and often shopped around between seven to eight contract manufactures, the sources noted.
And just now came the news that MediaTek reportedly to secure new orders from Nokia and Samsung for 2011 [Feb 17] (emphasis is mine):
IC design house MediaTek will likely attract new orders for entry-level and mid-range handsets from Nokia and Samsung Electronics in 2011, in addition to its existing ones from Motorola and LG Electronics (LGE), according to market sources.
New contracts, as well as continued-strong demand from China’s white-box handset market, may assist MediaTek to fulfill its handset-chip shipment goal of 550 million units for 2011, the sources said.
Having grown its market share in China’s white-box handset market with 2.5G solutions, MediaTek finds it hard to gain a further larger presence in the white-box handset market. As a newcomer to the 3G and smartphone chip segment, MediaTek is facing strong competition from international chipset companies. Meanwhile, price cuts initiated by local China-based rivals have squeezed its 2.5G market share.
MediaTek now stands a chance of breaking into the supply chains of more brand-name handset companies in 2011, the sources pointed out. MediaTek is likely to grab orders mainly for entry-level and mid-range devices from four out of the global top-five handset vendors, the sources indicated. The orders could boost MediaTek’s handset-IC shipments to 600 million units in 2011, the sources said.
In addition, the sources pointed out that MediaTek is preparing the launch of its next-generation 2.5G single-chip solution, which will be built using 40nm process technology with more features integrated in the compact all-in-one package.
Note that in 4Q10 at least one mainland China rival started to use heavily MediaTek’s major foundry – albeit at 65nm not the 40nm MediaTek is aiming for – as reported by TSMC to get 60% more orders from Spreadtrum in 4Q10 [Oct 15, 2010]. In fact MediaTek had two make two pricecuts in the second half of 2010 and smartphone chipsets MT6516 and MT6268 now down to under US$10 [Dec 3, 2010] (that price is without the WCDMA license which should be additionally paid to Qualcomm, see above). There is more information about that came in MediaTek to take on MStar with 40nm single-chip 2.5G solutions [Feb 17]:
MediaTek will take on rival MStar Semiconductor in the 2.5G handset chipset segment with single-chip solutions built using 40nm process technology soon, according to industry sources.
MediaTek aims to take back the service privilege in the 2.5G chipset sector with advanced manufacturing processes after MStar managed to boost its share in the segment in the China market from the original 5-10% to almost 30% in the second half of 2010, the sources noted.
MediaTek’s next-generation 40nm parts will integrate baseband, RF, Bluetooth, power amplifier and power management ICs into an all-in-one package, said the sources. In comparison, MStar’s 40nm chips, which are still in development, will come with only baseband and RF chips.
Having cut its chip prices drastically in the past few months to stop MStar from further denting its share in the 2.5G segment, MediaTek’s strategy to launch parts made with advanced technology will also force MStar to channel its newly earned profits into a technology race, the sources asserted.
Note: MStar is a Taiwan-based competitor of MediaTek as per MediaTek to see challenges in China market [Sept 9, 2009]
In this way the white-board ecosystem will expand not only outside mainlad China but also to the international brand vendors, and MediaTek will likely remain the major catalyst of that peculiar ecosystem for the years to come.
ZTE et al.
@ MWC: ZTE Goes For The High End With The Skate [Feb 14, 2011]:
ZTE, the Chinese handset and wireless equipment maker, epitomises a certain kind of new entrant in the mobile industry: very determined, very cheap, and very much on the rise. At an overheated stand crowded with competitors, partners and non-partisan observers checking out ZTE’s newest devices — led by the Skate Android-based smartphone—I retreated to a quiet, air-conditioned room with Zhang Xiaohong, ZTE’s VP for handsets, to talk cannibalization, me-too Android competitors and more.
North America is our fastest-growing market. ZTE’s home market of China, where it ships devices with the three major operators China Unicom, China Mobile and China Telecom, is the company’s single largest market. But North America, shays Zhang is growing the fastest. Shipments in that region went up four-fold in the last year, with ZTE signing distribution deals with the U.S.‘s four major operators (selling both handsets and data cards for mobile broadband). Europe also grew—by a rate of 100 percent, with notable increases also in Japan, Australia, Russia and Latin America.
ZTE has already made a crucial shift in the last year to exporting more devices than it sells domestically. Zhang says the current rate is 35:65. If you take IDC’s recent number that indicates that ZTE shipped 60 million units in 2010, that works out to 21 million in China and another 39 million everywhere else.
Is it all about the cheapest price? No, she says. ZTE has disrupted the market with devices like the Blade (which sold for under $200), but it looks like it is now trying to leverage that market share to expand into the more premium segment against higher-end competitors like HTC and Apple:
“We will continue to focus on low-cost solutions for developing and developed markets, especially developing markets” she says. “But it’s also about new devices like the Skate.” No prices have yet been revealed for the Skate, which features a 4.3-inch screen and runs using Android 2.3—but the device, when I tried it out, seemed a little slow and jerky in its graphics. The specs say it runs on a 800MHz processor, compared to some of the newer devices from other Android OEMs built on 1GHz chips. The device is set to debut in May 2011.
Who is your biggest competitor? No straight answer on this one. Zhang says ZTE splits their competitors into two segments: “established” companies like Nokia (NYSE: NOK) and Samsung and “new ones” like HTC and Apple (NSDQ: AAPL). “ZTE can produce devices that compete with both,” she says.
What makes you different from other Android device makers? Ultimately a lot of these devices start looking more or less the same as each other, I say.
“We are good at customisation, according to different cultures and customs. We can differentiate.” ZTE says that it can and has developed devices for specific operators, making them unique in the marketplace. It also looks like ZTE is looking to take customisation to the software level, too: the company launched a new app store this week, to deliver services that complement those in the Android Market.
One other key area, says Zhang, is that, unlike a lot of the other Android OEMs, ZTE also sells network equipment: this means that ZTE can sell “total solutions”—at very competitive prices. She says that ZTE has such agreements with 28 of the top 30 operators worldwide.
What do you think of the Nokia/Microsoft (NSDQ: MSFT) deal, and do you have any plans for MeeGo? For now, Nokia’s choice to work on Windows Mobile phones “means the future does not look good for MeeGo,” she says. “Last week’s news may have been the last straw or it, and we have no plans to develop on it for now. But whether going with Microsoft will give Nokia advantages over the long term remains to be seen.”
http://www.shanzai.com/ remark on that article is that ZTE is still singing tried and true Shanzhai tune: “We are good at customisation” [Feb 11, 2011]
ZTE is a Shanzhai success story. Starting out small and then big in China, ZTE is now doing well in North America and is expected to increase market share there even more this year. When their VP was asked this week, why they have been so successful, their Shanzhai their Shanzhai roots showed through.
According to IDC, ZTE shipped 60 million products in 2010. Their exports were mainly to North America and also to Japan, Australia and Latin America.
Now what we have seen, time and time again, is that the successful Shanzhai make handsets that fulfill a local (rather than generalized global) market need. Sometimes that can lead to quirky products, like exchangeable solar batteries, cigarette lighters, or more practical factors like dual SIM support, etc. It turns out that even in “mainstream” North America, catering to the local audience is the key.
Zhang Xiaohong, ZTE’s VP for handsets at the Mobile World Congress said that ZTE’s success is because “We are good at customisation, according to different cultures and customs. We can differentiate”.
It’s ironic that the Shanzhai are often seen as strangers to differentiation because of the high profile of clone models, when actually it’s the Shanzhai’s adaptability that keeps their business strong.
But ZTE and Huawei are not alone. Here is another example, G’Five so far known only in India but expanding rapidly both in India and into the other parts of the world:
India Mobile Handset shipments grow 6.7%, to 101 million units in 12 Months ending June 2009 [IDC India, Oct 9, 2009]
Market intelligence firm, IDC’s India Quarterly Mobile Handsets Tracker, 2Q 2009, September 2009 release issued today states that in terms of units shipped Nokia had the largest share of 56.8%, followed by Samsung with a 7.7% share while LG stood third with a 5.4% share in the 12-month period ended June 2009.
…
New Vendors Make a Mark
A number of new vendors entered the India mobile handsets market in the last 12 to 18 months to carve a niche for themselves by offering feature-rich (dual SIM card, full QWERTY keyboard) and application-rich (IM enabled) mobile handsets at attractive price points. They also introduced entry-level models for the ‘price sensitive’ Indian consumer.Figure 1: India Quarterly Mobile Handsets Market: New Vendor Shipments Growth
Source: IDC’s India Quarterly Mobile Handsets Tracker, 2Q 2009, September 2009 releasee
This development shows that even in a crowded market there is room for vendors to enter with the right product-feature-price mix.
IDC’s India quarterly mobile handsets tracker 2Q 2010 [Sept 28, 2010] (some emphasis is mine):
According to Mr. Anirban Banerjee, Associate Vice President-Research, IDC India, “In the recent quarters several new players successfully launched their own devices at significantly lower Average Selling Values (ASVs) in the price sensitive India market. Such handsets found ready acceptance amongst first time buyers, especially from small towns and villages.”
This influx of new brands led to a spurt in overall market and saw ‘emerging vendors’ corner as much as 33.2% of total India mobile handset shipments in 2Q 2010. The Finnish handset maker Nokia retained its No.1 spot with a market share of 36.3% in terms of units shipped. The Korean electronic giant Samsung retained the No. 2 position, while Chinese brand G’Five emerged as the No. 3 player.
…
According to IDC’s India Quarterly Mobile Handsets Tracker, 2Q 2010, September 2010 release, the number of emerging vendors in India’s burgeoning mobile handsets market grew to 35 in 2Q 2010 and they together garnered 33.2% of total shipments for the first time during the April-June 2010 quarter. This represented a manifold increase from five (5) new vendors representing a 0.9% combined share of units shipped in the January-March 2008 quarter.
During the last 6 months (January-June 2010) the top five mobile handset vendors in India were Nokia, Samsung, G’Five, Micromax and Spice.
Figure 1: India Mobile Handsets Market: New Vendor Contribution to Shipments, Q1 2008 to Q2 2010
Source: IDC India, 2010
July-September 2010 mobile phone shipments (sales) log 3.6% quarter-on-quarter growth to
cross 40 million units: ‘Emerging Vendors’ capture 41.2% combined share [IDC India, Dec 29, 2010] (emphasis is mine):
… the Finnish handset maker Nokia had the largest share of 31.5%* in terms of units shipped during 3Q 2010.
The Chinese brand G’Five emerged as No. 2 player in terms of unit shipments market share and Korean handset manufacturer Samsung stood at No. 3 in 3Q 2010.The India mobile handsets market continued to grow in 3Q 2010 as well to record a quarter-on-quarter (3Q 2010 over 2Q 2010) growth of 3.6%* to touch 40.08 million units in the quarter, according to IDC India. The year is expected to end with total mobile handset sales of 155.9 million units.
The number of emerging vendors in India’s burgeoning mobile handsets market grew to 68 and they together garnered 41.2%* of total shipments (sales) for the first time during the July-Sep 2010 quarter.
…
Smartphone prices continued to drop through the year and as competition increased, devices were made available by vendors at successively lower price points. So, while 80%* of total India smartphone sales were below the ASV (Average Sales Value) of Rs. 18,000 in 2Q 2010, this proportion increased to 90%* in 3Q 2010.
Top G’Five mobile phones in India [Jan 13, 2011] (emphasis is mine)
Which are the top two cell phone brands today in India in terms of shipment volumes? Nokia and Samsung, many of us would like to think, right? Or maybe Sony…or LG…or Micromax which has been advertising quite a bit.
Not quite, folks. A recent report from leading market intelligence firm IDC India reaffirms the Finnish telecom giant’s status as the leading cell-phone player in the country, with Nokia accounting for 31.5% of the domestic cell-phone market during the July-September period last year. But, surprisingly, a little known Chinese brand called G’Five has made it to the second spot by capturing a 10.6% market share–with Samsung coming in third at 8.2%!
Sounds shocking, right? How can a Chinese player, without any big-ticket advertising campaign or any celebrity as its brand ambassador, manage to create such a big impact in the cut-throat Indian cell phone industry–without any fanfare? Well, the answer lies in G’Five’s strategy of rolling out a bevy of feature-rich phones at competitive prices (in the Rs.1,400-Rs.7,000 range), targeted exclusively at urban first-time buyers and those in semi-urban and rural areas looking to upgrade from basic phones.
So if you are looking to buy a G’Five mobile phone, here is a list of eight affordable (costing not more than Rs.5,000) models from around 26 G’Five phones currently available in India (in the order of ascending prices)– with each of them having their own USPs.
G’Five D10 Price: Rs.1,820 [US$40.4] … G’Five X5 Price: Rs.1,899 [US$42.1] … G’Five N92 Price: Rs.2,249 [US$49.9] … G’Five i310 Price: Rs. 2,400 [US$53.2] … G’Five M33 Price: Rs.2,499 [US$55.4] … G’Five L600 Price: Rs 2,700 [US$59.9] … G’Five X33+ Price: Rs.3,786 [US$83.9] … G’Five V60 Price: Rs. 4,490 [US$99.6] …
And these phones are not crap as you can even see from their pictures (for features info it is worth to go into the article).
Note that to target the upper part of this range Social networking is Nokia’s latest mobile strategy [Feb 17, 2010] (which the above phones do not have):
The company’s latest launch on Nokia X2-01 mobile, at Rs 4,459 [US$99.2] is one such product. “QWERTY is one of the fastest growing mobile phone category in the world due to the rise in messaging and social networking. The Nokia X2-01 makes it easy to set up chat and email direct from the mobile phone,” said Nokia India General Manager-South T S Sridhar. “This means superfast access to your favourite Ovi Mail, Ovi Chat or other popular accounts.”
As young users want to stay connected with friends on the move, instant messaging is rapidly on the rise. With messaging devices like Nokia X2- 01, we are empowering the youth, he said. The handset also provides live updates from social networks such as Facebook, Orkut and Twitter directly from home screen. The Nokia X2-01 is Series 40 2G phone with VGA camera and FM radio. It has one click access the music player and has 3.5mm AV connector ideal for headphones or speakers. It also has Bluetooth and can support up to an 8GB micro SD memory card and has a standby battery time of up to 20 days, he claimed. For affordable access to internet, Nokia has also tied up with country’s largest mobile service provider Airtel which allows 100 mb of free data download per month for 12 months to its subscribers on this phone. Under this scheme one can access Face Book, and OVI Chat and Ovi Mail free of charges.
Gfive Mobile Phones (by Devika Rajpali)
The company of GFive is from China. The investors of the company are a syndicate named Zerone group that of the most esteemed OEM factories that boost of producing around 100 million mobile phones. The GFive mobile phones are the hottest running brand in indisputable imei china mobiles. The company has now established itself completely in the field of tech support, repairing and software installation. You will find the GFive mobile phone to be very stylish with large number of mobile phones to offer to its consumers. The company claims to have experience, confidence and data along with the in-depth insight of their Chinese mobile phones.
The KingTech Telecom (Shenzhen) Co Ltd. is behind the brand with KingTech Telecom (HK) Limited behind the export activities. As far as India is concerned the arrangement will be developed into a stronger local representation as Victor Infotech ties up with King Tech Telecom [Nov 11, 2010] (emphasis is mine):
Victor Infotech Ltd has tied up with King Tech Telecom Ltd (a Hong Kong-based telecom company) to form a joint venture company — Asian Telecom Ltd. The majority stake of 51% in the new company will be held by King Tech Telecom Ltd and the balance 49% equity will be held by Victor Infotech Ltd.
Asian Telecom Ltd., the new joint venture company, will come into being with immediate effect to launch the G’Five brand of mobile phones in the Indian market. The company plans to take the G’Five brand of mobiles to new heights in India and achieve 20% of the market share in the next two years.
As part of the collaboration, Kingtech Telecom shall manufacture the mobile phones and Victor Infotech will be responsible for distribution and marketing of the phone in India. Initially Kingtech Telecom will manufacture the Indian specific mobile phones in Hong Kong [rather in Shenzen] and gradually the same shall be manufactured in India.
The Indian mobile phone market is growing very fast. The company expects the sales of the mobile phones to grow 5 times in the next two years and plans to take advantage of this growth to gain the maximum market share. To achieve this, the company shall introduce many variations in its mobile phones, which shall be specific to the needs of the Indian consumer.
Meanwhile for other parts of the world a new sales and marketing operation has been set up: GLX mobile – G’FIVE Mobile’s Brother Company [Dec 14, 2010] (emphasis is mine)
A new member of Zerone Group called GLX mobile has been founded. With its full name as GLX International Limited, GLX mobile is dedicated in global distribution of GLX mobile phone.
Since G’FIVE is a member of Zerone Group, G’FIVE and GLX are brother companies. The new-founded GLX focuses on international markets, especially emerging markets. GLX mobile covers the whole range of mobile phone user market, from low-end to high-end with stylish and unique handsets.
GLX is aiming to create golden life for worldwide consumers with all ranges of mobile phones.
And the GLX company’s website indicates that it has taken over (almost all) the rest of the existing G’Five business network:
Marvell to capitalize on BRIC market with the Moby tablet
Follow-up: First real chances for Marvell on the tablet and smartphone fronts [Aug 21 – Sept 25, 2011]
Brazil, Russia (sort of), India, and China (BRIC) are the current leading lights for most of the businesses looking for high growth markets in 2011. This is not different for the ICT industry either. See more about that in the “Analysts about the BRIC market potential” part of this post far below. This will also be showing how promising is the new BRIC-oriented end-customer strategy of Marvell.
If one knows very little or nothing about Marvell it is recommended first to read my preceding post Marvell ARMADA beats Qualcomm Snapdragon, NVIDIA Tegra and Samsung/Apple Hummingbird in the SoC market [again] [Sept 23, 2010 with updates upto Jan 17, 2011].
Follow-up: High expectations on Marvell’s opportunities with China Mobile [May 28, 2011]
No wonder that Marvell has started to implement one of its long-range end-customer strategies, the so called Moby (see above and/or click) first in India then in other parts of the BRIC. As PC World (IDG News) reported in its Tablets Using Marvell’s Moby Design in India Soon [Jan 27] article (emphasis is mine):
Tablet computers built to Marvell’s Moby reference design should launch in India in the first half of this year, an executive of the company said on Thursday.
The chip company is partnering in India with consumer electronics vendors, mobile handset makers, and mobile service providers who will be offering the product under their own brands, said Anand Ramamoorthy, Marvell’s country head of sales and marketing in India, on Thursday. He did not disclose the names of the partners.
Marvell announced in March last year a US$99 prototype for a multimedia tablet targeted at education.
The basic configuration in India is likely to be priced closer to 10,000 rupees ($216) because of the high import duties and the cost of distribution in the country, Ramamoorthy said. In emerging markets, there isn’t a model whereby hardware costs are subsidized by service contracts, he added.
India and China will be the first among emerging markets where the tablets will ship, with plans to also introduce the products in Latin America and Eastern Europe.
As emerging markets are price-sensitive, Marvell’s strategy is to position a low-cost configuration as a volume product.
In India, the company is expecting its partners to deliver for 10,000 rupees a 7-inch tablet with a capacitive LCD screen, that will be built around the Armada 168 processor at 800 MHz, and offer 720p video and Wi-Fi connectivity. It will run the Android operating system and other open source software, Ramamoorthy said.
The actual price in these markets will depend on partners and their business and margin models, Ramamoorthy said. Some partners may decide to offer high-end, more expensive devices as well, he added.
Marvell will have two primary manufacturers globally, including Foxconn. Partners selling the tablets will however be free to choose manufacturers from a pool of Marvell’s manufacturing partners, Ramamoorthy said.
Follow-up: Kinoma is now the marvellous software owned by Marvell [Feb 15]
Marvell’s current on-line press kit [Jan 9] contains the following documentation and images related to the Moby design:
– Mobylize Prototype – It’s Time to Mobylize for America’s Students! [Fast Facts, Jan 3]
– Marvell Showcases Moby Tablet and Extensive Line of Other Advanced Connected Devices for the Always-On Lifestyle at International CTIA Wireless 2010 [CTIA Press Release, March 23, 2010]
– Marvell Drives Education Revolution with $99 All-in-One Mobile Tablet Designed for the World’s Students [Press Release, March 18, 2010]
Marvell Moby White Vertical: students screen
In the latest Jan 3 Fast Facts (linked above) the following prototype features and technical specifications are given:
Moby Prototype Features
• Future-Proof Learning: Mobylize leverages the powerful and open Android OS platform to ensure an open and growing ecosystem of learning technologies
• Multi-Sensory Interaction: Mobylize’s touchscreen interface, as well as video and audio capabilities, creates a highly interactive and engaging learning experience.
• Always-On Technology: With 802.11 b/g wireless connectivity and web browsing with Adobe® Flash® Lite 3.1, students can learn seamlessly with online and offline technologies in today’s always-on environment.
• Multimedia Education: Integrated multi-media player, photo viewer, instant messaging and more drive learning potential exponentially beyond the classic textbook.
• Drives Green Classroom: Marvell technology provides high energy-efficiency that energizes hours of learning.TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS
• ARMADA 168 (1 GHz), WMMXTM multi-media acceleration engine
• 256MB DDR2 RAM
• Android OS
• 2D graphics engine, WMMX, QdeoTM intelligent color, remapping technology
• 10.1” TFT LCD display, 1024 x 600 resolution, Capacitive touch panel
• 4GB NAND flash, Micro-SD up to 16GB
• Two stereo speakers (1W each), built-in microphone
• USB 2.0 (x1 host, 1x device) • Micro SD card, MIC and Ear phone jack, 12V DC-in
• 802.11 b/g connectivity
• 2800mAh; 7.4 volts battery
Note however that in the press release of last March (also linked above in PDF form) the higher ARMADA™ 600 class processor has been indicated:
About Marvell Moby Tablet
Powered by high-performance, highly scalable, and low-power Marvell® ARMADA™ 600 series of application processors, the Moby tablet features gigahertz-class processor speed, 1080p full-HD encode and decode, intelligent power management, power-efficient Wi-Fi/Bluetooth/FM/GPS connectivity, high performance 3D graphics capability and support for multiple software standards including full Adobe Flash, Android™ and Windows Mobile. The ultra low power Moby tablet is designed for long-battery life.
as well as for the Moby MED reference design announced in another press release Marvell Drives ‘Telehealth” Revolution with Moby MED Always-On Medical Tablet [Apr 21, 2010]. Note that Moby MED devices are quite different since (as per the press release):
Healthcare-focused Tablets With Multiple Simultaneous Viewing Screens Including Video Conferencing and Live TV Allow Consumers to Manage Medical Records, Conduct Live Physician Consultations, View 3D Images and Sonograms, Collect Real-Time Data From Personal Monitoring Devices, Access Information From Online Sources, and More.
which is currently looking much more suitable for the developed markets.
The remark, that “Some partners may decide to offer high-end, more expensive devices as well” could — however — point to the fact that even for the education market Marvell partners could use a higher end tablet offering as well, at least as an alternative. This could also explain why a Moby2 prototype design is already existing as evidenced by the image gallery shown above.
On CES 2011 the ARMADA 168 based Moby prototype has also been called Marvell 100 series tablet [Jan 6, 2011].
[CES 2011] Marvell’s foray into the tablet market sees this rather cute and well designed model, the 100 series. Unlike other tablets that are in the market, this one comes with Android 2.2 (instead of 2.1), while sporting a rather young, all-white design with all the lines in the right places. A microSD memory card slot is there for expansion purposes, and you won’t get multi-touch support on the 10” display which is a bummer, so forget about zooming in or out in Angry Birds. There is 1GB of internal memory inside, while Wi-Fi connectivity is supported although 3G will not be present when it hits the market sometime this year for $199 a pop [with $99 manufacturing cost — see in the below video]. Of course, as with Marvell’s OLPC project, the 100 series will target the educational environment more. It is pretty heavy, but it won’t weigh a ton like most textbooks. Looks hardy enough to stand up to the rigors of restless kids, too! Interestingly enough, being an Android-powered device, it has more than the usual 4 buttons of Home, Menu, Back and Search, but will include the “Up” and “Down” buttons, too.
while the more performant one which is based on ARMADA 600 is also called 600 series accordingly. More information:
– Marvell 600 series tablet has interesting implications [6 Jan]
– Marvell 600 Tablet Series Graphics Performance Demo at CES 2011 [Jan 24]
– and the video Mobylize Tablet on ABC News: Good to Know [Jan 10, 2011]
Note while watching the video that the LCD screen used in the tablet has wide viewing angle.
The title of the above is mentioning “Mobylize” instead of “Moby”. This is a typical confusion. The truth is that Mobylize is:
a campaign aimed at improving technology adoption in America’s classrooms
which was announced with the One Laptop per Child and Marvell Join Forces to Redefine Tablet Computing for Students Around the World [May 27, 2010] by which:
Marvell and OLPC Empower Education Industry to Revolutionize the Classroom Experience through Advanced, Affordably-Priced Tablets
and which was extensively discussed in my post Marvell ARMADA with sun readable and unbreakable Pixel Qi screen, and target [mass] manufacturing cost of $75 [Nov 4, 2010].
The campaign (http://www.mobylize.org/) has a Tablet Demos page which absolutely clarifies the education tablet offering as:
7″ Tablet with a 7″ TFT LCD display of 800 x 480 resolution, Bluetooth 2.1 and with form, size and weight as shown below:
Marvell Moby 7 inch tablet
10″ Tablet with a 10.1″ TFT LCD display of 1024 x 600 resolution and with form, size and weight as shown below:
Marvell Moby 10 inch tablet
with the rest of the specifications the same, i.e.
– Processor: ARMADA 168 (1 GHz), WMMX™ multi-media acceleration engine
– Memory: 256MB DDR2 RAM
– OS: Android
– Graphics/Video: 2D graphics engine, Various format video decode up to 720p through S/W, Qdeo™ intelligent color remapping technology
– Display: with resistive touch panel
– Storage: 4GB NAND flash, Micro-SD up to 16GB
– Audio: Built-in microphone, Two stereo speakers
– Sensors: Accelerometer [s ?for 10″ one?]
– Ports: USB 2.0 (x1 host, 1x device), 2-in-1 card reader, MIC and Ear phone jack, 12V DC-in
– Connectivity: 802.11 b/g
– Battery: 2200mAh; ~8 hour use
– Example Features: Complete web browsing experience with Adobe® Flash® Lite 3.1, Multi-media player, Photo viewer, Instant messaging
Currently the Mobylize Development Kit with the 10″ version is available for pre-order from Aluratek for $299. Till Feb 28 there is CES Promotion with 20% off. It is shipping April 15th. Aluratek will introduce a similar 10″ product of its own in February, called Cinepad, which is ensuring Moby tablets availability in the US as well:
– CES 2011: Aluratek Announces Libre Air eBook Reader with Wi-Fi and
New Cinepad Android Tablet [Jan 6]
– Aluratek Cinepad & Libre Coming In April [VIDEO] [Jan 13]
– CES 2011 – Aluratek Cinepad [Jan 10]
– The Year of the Tablet [Jan 18]
Within Mobilize there was also an app competition (see: Marvell to Fund Next Generation Education Apps [Sept 27, 2010]) with recent results as per Marvell Announces Winners of Its ‘$100K Challenge’ Tablet App Competition [Jan 6]:
The winner of the $50,000 top prize is the application Battleship Numberline, a multitouch educational game that helps strengthen math skills. “Improving your ability to estimate along a number line correlates with math performance all the way up to 6th grade,” said lead developer Derek Lomas, a 29-year-old Ph.D. student at the Human-Computer Interaction Institute at Carnegie Mellon University. “Marvell is doing great things for the future of education by seeding a development community for educational apps.”
The winner of the second-place prize of $30,000 is the application Imagine Mathematics, which illuminates math disciplines like algebra, trigonometry and calculus by taking students behind the scenes and showing them how these disciplines are used in the creation of animated movies from studios like Disney and Pixar. The creator of the app is 36-year-old Seth Piezas, a former technical director at Pixar Animation Studios who now runs his own interactive agency, Colabi.
“I want high school students to see the practical applications of math and the cool things they can create,” said Piezas. “The tablet computer really is an amazing platform for the classroom. I just wish I had something like it when I was a kid.”
The third-place prize of $20,000 goes to Homework Management System, an application that allows students to create quiz questions based on what they have learned in the classroom, which teachers then can distribute to other students for quiz-show style gaming or for homework assignments.
More information:
Marvell ARMADA beats Qualcomm Snapdragon, NVIDIA Tegra and Samsung/Apple Hummingbird in the SoC market [again] [Sept 23, 2010 with updates up to Jan 17, 2011] with all SoC product information including background
Marvell ARMADA with sun readable and unbreakable Pixel Qi screen, and target [mass] manufacturing cost of $75 [Nov 4, 2010]
Marvell beaten by Chinese chipmakers in sub 1,000 yuan handset procurement tender of China Mobile [Nov 15, 2010]
Analysts about the BRIC market potential
In recent Forrester report (see the Forrester: Global Tech Economy Will Substantially Outgrow The Overall GDP In 2011 [Feb 2] press release copy since on the Forrester’ site it is not more available) the #1 prediction is that:
The Tech economy will substantially outgrow the overall GDP.
with the following details:
The global technology industry is in a multiyear up-cycle of industry innovation and growth, during which tech investment grows faster than overall economic growth. This cycle, which is already under way in the US and other developed countries, is based on adoption of a new generation of Smart Computing and Cloud Computing technologies. We expect this cycle to ensure 7.5% growth in US IT purchases, and 7.1% growth globally (measured in USD), despite economic worries in Europe, uncertainties about the strength of economic recovery in the US, and the potential for slowing growth in China.
… in 2011, Brazil, Russia (sort of), India, and China (BRIC) will see some of the fastest (11%) growth in IT purchases in 2011, with other emerging markets such as South Africa, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, Chile, and Mexico seeing similarly strong growth.
The 2011 Accenture Consumer Electronics Products and Services Usage Report which came out under the title “Finding Growth: The Emergence of a New Consumer Computing Paradigm” [Jan 3] has some very significant survey results regarding the BRIC market (in text empasis is mine):
[p. 4, Executive Summary part] A widening enthusiasm gap
The urban consumers in Brazil, Russia, India and China (the BRIC markets) have leapfrogged the average mature market consumer in their use of technology. They have a much greater appetite for consumer technology from many measures, including the devices they own, their purchase plans and their use of applications. Counter to common misperceptions, a large segment of BRIC consumers are more interested in the newest and most innovative technologies than in the lower price point technologies with less functionality. BRIC market consumers have a higher rate of adoption of the newest technologies and a greater willingness to pay premiums for features and enhancements. For instance, a full 84 percent of Indian respondents say they will pay a premium for enhanced smartphone capabilities. That translates into roughly 148 million consumers.
In the BRIC markets, in particular, prospects are bullish for spending on consumer electronics in 2011. This is especially true in China, where this year’s purchasing plans for technologies such as smartphones and high-definition TVs are staggering. Assuming China has an estimated 167 million urban households and an estimated urban population of 434 million people in the consuming age, 38 million high-definition TVs and 63 million smartphones will be purchased there in 2011.
In contrast, mature markets are more conservative and price sensitive. Consumers in the US, Japan, Germany and France have less ambitious plans to purchase new devices in 2011, use fewer applications overall, and are far less willing to pay premiums for new features and enhancements. And, while consumers 55 years or older in mature markets tend to have higher disposable income (and therefore greater ability to spend on technology), they more often wish to spend as little as possible to keep up on the technology adoption curve. In contrast, younger consumers in BRIC markets demonstrate a huge appetite for electronics, but like millennials around the globe, they are often harder to please, less loyal and have less disposable income to spend.
…
A new consumer technology paradigm
…
Another benchmark of the new technology paradigm is that as new technologies emerge, consumers are increasingly quick to stop using particular devices if they feel they have the same functionality in another device that performs the same function better—especially in BRIC markets. Twelve percent of consumers surveyed in the BRIC markets stopped using mobile phones in 2010 because they had another device with the same functionality. This compares with only five percent of consumers in mature markets who jettisoned their mobile phones. And, in both mature and emerging markets, younger people appear to be far more willing to let go of duplicative devices.
…
[p. 5] In summary, in the fast-changing consumer electronics industry, exploiting big growth opportunities is becoming increasingly difficult. Our research helps consumer tech companies with this challenge by offering information on the hottest current and emerging geographic, product and application markets for consumer technology. For instance, the highest spending in 2011 (and we believe for years to come) is projected to be in urban and semiurban BRIC markets. Demand for mobile applications such as banking continues on a strong growth trajectory. And new technologies (such as tablet PCs and e-book readers) and next-generation technologies (such as smartphones, 3-D and Internet-capable TVs) are projecting substantial growth.
…
[p. 13] Interestingly, one-quarter of respondents globally don’t plan to purchase any consumer technologies in 2011. More than one-third (37 percent) of those 55 and older don’t plan any purchases, compared with only 15 percent of those between 18 and 24 years of age. And a stark contrast in purchasing plans exists between mature and BRIC markets: 40 percent of respondents in mature markets don’t plan to purchase any consumer electronics in 2011, compared with only 9 percent of those in the BRIC markets.
…
[p. 16] Our study shows that BRIC markets have far greater enthusiasm for technologies and appetite for purchasing them than non-BRIC countries, especially the latest devices such as tablet PCs. One could infer that the lower use of computers in BRIC countries is an indication that these consumers are finding alternate devices to do those activities formerly done on the computer—and may, in fact, have simply leapfrogged the step of owning a computer that those in mature markets had to take because at the time there were no other options.
…
[p. 24] When reviewing information on “heavy users” of activities—those who do the activity at least five hours per week—interesting patterns emerge. For instance, among millennials in the BRIC markets who are heavy watchers of shows and videos, a larger share (44 percent) watch them on a PC or laptop than on a television (chosen by 30 percent).
… Of those who don’t own an e-book reader, more than half said that it is because they prefer paper books. But 20 percent said they preferred other electronic devices than an e-book reader
for reading books, such as a phone, PC or tablet PC. In emerging markets, the percentage of respondents who prefer other electronic media for e-book reading is much higher: 34 percent in BRIC markets versus 7 percent for mature-market countries.…
[p. 34] The tablet PC: The hot consumer electronic
The tablet PC is gaining market momentum. One need only look at the millions of sales of iPads and Galaxy Tab tablet computers since they were each launched in 2010 to know that this device is rapidly becoming popular among consumers.
According to Accenture’s research, 8 percent of consumers surveyed now own a tablet PC and about one-third of those individuals (3 percent total) purchased their tablet PC in 2010 (Figure 21). Eight percent of respondents globally plan to purchase a tablet PC in 2011—a purchase rate that would double tablet PC ownership globally in just one year.
BRIC market consumers are more enthusiastic purchasers of tablet PCs than are mature-market consumers. More than double the percentage of BRIC consumers currently own one, and double the consumers plan to buy one in 2011, than consumers in mature markets. But what is most astounding about tablet PC consumption is that nearly one-quarter of Chinese respondents (across ages within urban areas) currently own one. That is nearly three times the global average. The purchase rate in China was more than double the global average in 2010. And looking forward, China is potentially the strongest market for tablet PCs this year, with 18 percent of Chinese respondents planning to purchase one in 2011. If one does the math, tablet PC ownership would reach almost 40 percent of the urban adult population of China by 2012.
Although far behind China in consumption, India has the second-highest penetration of tablet PCs globally, with 10 percent of consumers owning one. Future growth for tablet PCs in India also looks strong: 10 percent of Indian respondents plan to purchase a tablet PC in 2011. Interestingly, Indian consumers seem less committed to the new technology than other countries. Five percent of those owning a tablet PC quit using it last year because they had the same functionality in another device (globally, the defection rate for tablet PCs was 2 percent).
CES 2011 presence with Microsoft moving to SoC & screen level slot management that is not understood by analysts/observers at all
Microsoft’s CES 2011 presence is summarized in two detailed parts below, one for the System on a Chip (SoC) support announcement and the other based on the Steve Ballmer’s CES 2011 opening keynote. The first one has, however, been a source of great confusion among the company watchers, analysts and observers, therefore before we start the detailed overview in these two parts we should look into that situation first.
Update: Microsoft’s next step in SoC level slot management [May 27, 2011]
While the company has clearly stated that Microsoft Announces Support of System on a Chip Architectures From Intel, AMD, and ARM for Next Version of Windows [Jan 5] even such an ardent Microsoft watcher as Mary-Jo Foles interpreted this as a simple message that CES: Microsoft shows off Windows 8 on ARM [Jan 5]. No wonder that Computerworld has written an article that an Analyst ‘baffled’ by Microsoft talk of Windows 8 on ARM [Jan 6]:
Microsoft’s announcement yesterday at CES that its next version of Windows will run on the ARM chip architecture was the wrong message at the wrong place, said an industry analyst.
“I’m baffled,” said Michael Cherry, the analyst at Kirkland, Wash.-based Directions on Microsoft whose specialty is Microsoft’s operating systems. “I just don’t get what they get from this.”
…
“This is the Consumer Electronics Show, right?” said Cherry, emphasizing the first word of the monster trade show’s name. “It’s not COMDEX,” he added, referring to the long-defunct computer show that Las Vegas last hosted in 2003. “And it’s not the Professional Developers Conference.”
Microsoft picked the wrong stage to talk up Windows and chips, Cherry contended.
“CES is like a car show,” Cherry said. “When I go to the auto show, I don’t mind seeing a couple of concept cars, but what I really want to know is what can I buy at the dealership now? This is a consumer electronics show. It’s not about processors, it’s about features. And I didn’t hear anything about that.”
…
“I think they can do it,” he said, confident that Microsoft could pull off porting Windows to the ARM architecture, and in time for next upgrade. … But he’s mystified why Microsoft would want to migrate the entire operating system to a tablet platform.
“Do you really gain anything by taking the entire client OS of today and porting it across?” he asked. “Why do they think that the power consumption [of Windows] will be any better on ARM? It’s still going to be running a lot of processes.”
In an accompanying analysis article IDG News Services has even up the ante by declaring that Microsoft must get ISVs onto ARM bandwagon, Microsoft has a lot of work to do moving Windows to ARM chips [Jan 6]:
When Microsoft announced plans to release a version of Windows for ARM processors, it created a lot of work not only for itself, but for all the independent software vendors who sell Windows software as well.
Microsoft will need the support of these ISVs to make the ARM version of Windows a success, warned Dan Olds, principal analyst of the Gabriel Consulting Group.
…
Microsoft engineers have a lot of work ahead of them, Olds predicts. The ARM instruction set is very different from the x86 instruction set that Windows now runs on. And because ARM processors are not as powerful as x86 ones, the engineers will have to be more careful as to how the operating system consumes resources.
But crafting a version of Windows for ARM is only the first challenge facing Microsoft. Another one is getting ISVs to rewrite their Windows applications to run on ARM. “For ISVs, it will not be trivial to port applications to a new platform,” Olds said.
Yet ISV support will be essential for Microsoft’s success. The success of any operating system depends on the number of applications that have been written for it. The applications were what made Windows a success in the first place, Olds said.
…
Apple itself faced a similar challenge in 2005 when it announced it was switching to the Intel processors for its Macintosh computers. Apple was successful in moving its own ISVs over to the new architecture, and it has been one of only a few companies ever to survive a switch of platforms. … Microsoft’s task of getting its ISVs interested in porting their software to ARM will be an order of magnitude larger than Apple’s. There are many more Windows software vendors that could supply software. “How do you get them to switch and get them to do it right?” Olds said.
That’s the challenge that awaits Microsoft.
This is all absolutely wrong. The truth is that Microsoft made a strategic decision of moving its core slot management approach to the key System on a Chip (SoC) vendors. It is a decision of enormous significance because up to now the company was managing the slots created by the PC vendors. That is Microsoft had been trying to ensure all along that the client PCs shipped to the market, the “slots” in terms of Microsoft internal way of thinking:
- Are best when they are running Microsoft system software.
- Have that software already installed when the devices are out of the factory floor (with OEM versions)
From now on Microsoft will do a kind of similar thing on the SoC level (and on the screen level as well), this is my conclusion as I carefully compiled all the available information in the two parts available below. This became absolutely obvious to me as I compared the below details with the radically new “slot situation” represented in my previous post Changing purchasing attitudes for consumer computing are leading to a new ICT paradigm [Jan 5].
Look for example how PC vendors were underrepresented in the keynote compared to what had been before (see my earlier posts: Windows slates in the coming months? Not much seen yet [July 13 – Oct 6, 2010] and Windows 7 tablets/slates with Oak Trail Atom SoC in December [Nov 1 – 24, 2010]) as well as how on the electronics industry level things had been changed recently (see my earlier posts: Marvell ARMADA beats Qualcomm Snapdragon, NVIDIA Tegra and Samsung/Apple Hummingbird in the SoC market [again] [Sept 23 –Nov 4, 2010,] and Intel’s industry position and prospects for years ahead [Dec 9, 2010]).
Notes:
– Mary-Jo Foley started to discover some, but only some real motives in her latest With Windows coming to ARM, what happens to Windows Embedded Compact? [Jan 7]. There she mused about the really significant fact of the cancellation of Microsoft OEM chief’s planned appearance at the J.P. Morgan Tech Forum at CES (see the final agenda where Microsoft is missing) which was much anticipated by the investor community.
– Although for me that sign is important as well, the fact that HTML5 related announcements (as was anticipated in my previous post of Windows 7 slates with a personal cloud based layered interface for touch-first HTML5 applications on the CES 2011 [Dec 14, 2010] post) were postponed has even much bigger significance. Whatever will come regarding that upto the MIX 2011 of April 12-14 will be equally important to clarify the rest of the new strategic Microsoft picture. Particularly I am expecting that Silverlight technologies will nicely join the already known IE9/HTML5 push in a new platform technology setup.
Part I. The SoC support announcement
Microsoft Announces Support of System on a Chip Architectures From Intel, AMD, and ARM for Next Version of Windows [Jan 5], (emphasis is mine):
Microsoft Corp. today announced at 2011 International CES that the next version of Windows will support System on a Chip (SoC) architectures, including ARM-based systems from partners NVIDIA Corp. [Tegra platform], Qualcomm Inc. [Snapdragon platform] and Texas Instruments Inc [OMAP platform]. On the x86 architecture, Intel Corporation and AMD continue their work on low-power SoC designs that fully support Windows, including support for native x86 applications. SoC architectures will fuel significant innovation across the hardware spectrum when coupled with the depth and breadth of the Windows platform.
At today’s announcement, Microsoft demonstrated the next version of Windows running on new SoC platforms from Intel running on x86 architecture and from NVIDIA, Qualcomm and Texas Instruments on ARM architecture. The technology demonstration included Windows client support across a range of scenarios, such as hardware-accelerated graphics and media playback, hardware-accelerated Web browsing with the latest Microsoft Internet Explorer, USB device support, printing and other features customers have come to expect from their computing experience. Microsoft Office running natively on ARM was also shown as a demonstration of the potential of Windows platform capabilities on ARM architecture.
…SoC architectures consolidate the major components of a computing device onto a single package of silicon. This consolidation enables smaller, thinner devices while reducing the amount of power required for the device, increasing battery life and making possible always-on and always-connected functionality. With support of SoC in the next version of the Windows client, Microsoft is enabling industry partners to design and deliver the widest range of hardware ever.
Next Version of Windows Will Run on System on a Chip (SoC) Architectures from Intel, AMD and ARM [Jan 5]
(emphasis is mine) Q&A: In a technology preview at CES, Microsoft demonstrates Windows running on new SoC x86 and ARM-based systems.
The Microsoft News Center team talked with Steven Sinofsky, president of the Windows and Windows Live Division, in advance of the announcement.
Microsoft News Center: Can you give us an overview of what led you to make this announcement today and what the specific news is?
Sinofsky: We are making this announcement now to allow greater collaboration across our expanded partner ecosystem so we can bring to market the widest possible set of PCs and devices, from tablets on up, with the next generation of Windows. We’re at a point in engineering the next release of Windows where we are demonstrating our progress and bringing together an even broader set of partners required to deliver solutions to customers.
We’ve reached a point in technology where everyone really does want everything from their computing experience — the power and breadth of software for today’s laptop, the long battery life and always-on promise of a mobile phone, and the possibilities from a new generation of tablets. Bringing these capabilities together to meet customer demand requires innovation in hardware as well as a flexible, evolving software platform to bring it to life.
…
Microsoft News Center: Tell us about your partners on ARM-based systems. How were they selected and what do they bring to the table?
Sinofsky: It takes experienced partners to help deliver Windows to a whole new set of devices and we’re pleased NVIDIA, Qualcomm and Texas Instruments have joined us in this technology demonstration. We look forward to even more robust collaboration between silicon partners and a broader set of partners as we work together to bring new PCs and devices – from tablets on up – to market with the next version of Windows.
Microsoft News Center: You’ve talked about these new systems being ready for the next version of Windows. What does this mean for future hardware innovation on Windows 7?
Sinofsky: Windows 7 continues to be extraordinarily well-received by customers – consumers and businesses – using a broad selection of PCs for a wide variety of usage scenarios. There is no better place to see this array of choice and innovation than at a show like CES. At the Windows 7 launch, we saw a terrific line-up of new offerings from partners, and this CES brings another wave of great Windows 7 PCs across a wide range of form factors and capabilities, including new designs on Intel’s 2nd Generation Intel® Core™ Processor Family and AMD’s Fusion APUs. OEMs are delivering great designs and personalized selection across the wide range of PCs including convertibles, gaming rigs, all-in-ones, ultraportables, everyday laptops, and tablet PCs. We know we’ll see additional waves of hardware innovation over the next several seasons as well and we look forward to continuing to work closely with our partners.
…
Microsoft News Center: What exactly are you demonstrating today as part of this announcement with respect to Windows on ARM?
Sinofsky: Today’s demonstrations will highlight the work we have done on the architecture of Windows to enable the richness of the Windows platform to run natively on the ARM platform. That includes support across a full range of scenarios like hardware accelerated media playback, hardware accelerated Web browsing with the latest Internet Explorer, USB device support, printing, and other features customers have come to expect from their computing experience.
The underlying architecture and engineering work includes a significant set of capabilities to run natively on ARM across the low-level subsystems of Windows as we bring Windows together with this new hardware platform.
Today’s demonstration represents the first showing of the next release of Windows. We know many of our most enthusiastic supporters are interested in learning more about the user interface, programming APIs, and other new features to come in Windows. The announcement today is just the start of our dialog with a broad community around Windows and, as with Windows 7, we will be engaging in the broadest pre-release program of any operating system. So there is a lot more to come.
Microsoft News Center: What can you tell us about Office on ARM?
Sinofsky: We’re committed to making sure that Windows on SoC architectures is a rich Windows experience. Microsoft Office is an important part of customers’ PC experience and ensuring it runs natively on ARM is a natural extension of our Windows commitment to SoC architectures.
Microsoft News Center: What else can you say about the next version of Windows?
Sinofsky: What we showed today was a technology preview of how Windows can adapt to run on SoC architectures. We are making this announcement now to enable our silicon partners, including new ARM partners, to collaborate across the ecosystem to bring innovation to market with the next version of Windows. We’re hard at work on all the aspects of the next version of Windows and we’ll share more information when the time is right.
Update: Intel CEO Paul Otellini addresses Microsoft’s ARM move in the wake of record earnings announcement [Jan 13] (emphasis is mine)
The plus for Intel is that as they unify their operating systems we now have the ability for the first time, one, to have a designed-from-scratch, touch-enabled operating system for tablets that runs on Intel that we don’t have today; and, secondly, we have the ability to put our lowest-power Intel processors, running Windows 8 or the next generation of Windows, into phones, because it’s the same OS stack. And I look at that as an upside opportunity for us.
On the downside, there’s the potential, given that Office runs on these products, for some creep-up coming into the PC space. I am skeptical of that for two reasons: one, that space has a different set of power and performance requirements where Intel is exceptionally good; and secondly, users of those machines expect legacy support for software and peripherals that has to all be enabled from scratch for those devices.
Part II. The Steve Ballmer CES 2011 opening keynote and all other Microsoft related
– Footage from the Microsoft keynote with some relevant keynote transcript excerpts included
– New Windows Laptops, Tablets and Slates Showcased
– The Next Generation of Microsoft Surface – LCDs That Can ‘See’
– New Xbox Avatar Capabilities on Display
– Copy-and-Paste Coming to Windows Phone 7
– Additional details for the three PCs demonstrated in the keynote
– Other new PCs
– Hardware acceleration for cloud clients (browsers etc.): AMD Fusion APUs, NVIDIA GeForce 500M [Jan 14]
– Xbox and Surface 2 additional information
– Windows Embedded Standard 7: the first wave of OEM partners exploiting the included Windows Media Center
While the above press release and the accompanying feature story (the Sinofsky Q&A) was prepared for a press conference held by Steve Sinofsky a few hours before the opening CES 2011 keynote by CEO Steve Ballmer in the evening, it is certainly that keynote which provided the same SoC related information for the more general CES public. Unfortunately this was just understood as a simple platform extension for the next version of Windows client.
Here is an – otherwise absolutely excellent – edited report from the almost hour long keynote, summarized into less than 8 minutes of video record:
[CES 2011] Footage from the Microsoft keynote [1-5-2011] by gumballtech (I’ve included some relevant keynote transcript excerpts as well to make the video more immediately usable):
Today was Microsoft’s annual keynote presentation, which was led by CEO Steve Ballmer. They’ve announced a number of new things, such as:
– Zune/Netflix/Hulu Plus/ESPN integration with Kinect
– avatarkinect
– Copy and paste for Windows Phone 7
– New laptops using Intel’s Sandy Bridge processors
– Windows 8 [?] running on SoC chips (such as ARM)
– Microsoft Surface 2.0
Check out my blog posting that contains this video and over 90 pictures from the event: http://bit.ly/hoZfBU
Here’s a timeline of what this video contains:00:05 – Panning around…
00:10 – CEO of the CEA is up…
00:45 – CEO of Microsoft is up (Steve Ballmer)…
Good evening, and welcome. 2010 was a very, very exciting year for our customer. [ We launched Windows Phone 7, Office 2010, and Kinect, and we introduced Internet Explorer 9 and Office 365. We saw great growth in our Bing and Azure Services. And with the amazing success of Windows 7, it’s truly been a year like no other. For more see: 2010: A Year Filled with New Experiences for Consumers]
01:15 – Xbox 360 updates… [Ron Forbes, Program Manager on Kinect for Xbox 360 till November 2011, see also on LinkedIn; he could have a bigger role now within the Interactive Entertainment Business whose president is Don Matrick from Oct 1, 2010]
No waiting, no need to download. Today, our Zune Video Marketplace is available in 20 countries. So, let me show you other websites. As you can see here, all I have to do is wave and Kinect knows that I’m ready to get started. Now, there are several things for me to choose from on this menu, and I could use my hand to choose one. But, you know, there’s nothing easier than just using your voice. All I have to say is, Xbox, and Kinect is listening. So, when I say, suggest some movies. It takes me to previews of this week’s featured movies. So, here I can browse full screen trailers of movies that I can watch, like this first one, “Inception.” Awesome, awesome film. And I can easily swipe my hand to move it on to the next one.02:00 – avatarkinect… [with Steve Ballmer’s avatar speaking]
… what about your facial expressions? As you can see, now Kinect can track features like your smile, your laugh, and even the raise of your eyebrows. Here’s just a little taste of what’s next on Kinect. We call it Avatar Kinect.
02:25 – avatarkinect video…
02:40 – Upcoming games for Windows Phone 7 (video)…
[= Xbox Live games only on Windows Phone 7]03:22 – Some great WP7 features… [Liz Sloan, Senior Marketing Manager with Microsoft’s Mobile Communications Business whose president is Andy Lees from Oct 1, 2010]
I can also see things like the weather in the city of my choice. And I can also see if they have mission critical information like apps like this one, five and a half months until Summer Solstice begins. And when you’re a Hawaiian native that lives in Seattle, you count every single day until summer arrives. We also surface simple things …
03:45 – Copy and paste on WP7 [Liz Sloan]
… copy this up on stage with all of you and I’m going to go to one of my favorite shopping apps and do a little bit of research on this Xbox. As Steve mentioned, we have over 5,500 new apps in marketplace, which brings me to point No. 6, our fantastic apps, big name apps, like Bank of America, Travelocity, Fandango, and in this case Amazon.com. If you remember a few seconds ago I copied the Xbox that I was interested in. And since it’s a little bit long I’m going to paste it in and then I’m going to search …
04:25 – Steve’s back…
When I get a chance to show people a Windows Phone, the feedback that I hear is very, very gratifying. People tell me how snappy it is, easy to use, how personal it really feels. And perhaps as importantly, all in, simply how beautiful it really looks.
Acer Iconia the Winner of Last Gadget Standing at CES 1011 in the 2 Screen Web Browsing Mode
05:00 – A cool dual-screen computer… [Mike Angiulo, Corporate Vice President Windows Planning, Hardware & PC Ecosystem whose role has very recently been greatly upgraded to include responsibility for Surface Computing, PC Hardware, and a variety of partner engagement programs such as WinHEC, the Logo programs for hardware and systems, and direct engineering engagements with OEMs, IHVs and ISVs as well]
… [here’s an example, this one is from Acer, and this is a dual-screen PC. So, you can see I have two 14-inch touch screens here. I can –] is that cool? Do you like that one? (Cheers, applause.) It looks really cool from here, too. And what’s neat is you not only have a lot of room for browsing, but I can take 10 fingers, put 10 fingers down on the screen, and immediately get a software keyboard that comes built-in. (Applause.) Go ahead, let it out. So, I can launch Word here. I have a track pad. I can do productivity scenarios.
05:20 – A nice Windows 7 tablet… [Mike Angiulo]
[This is the new Tablet PC from ASUS, and this is a full-power Windows PC. So,] this PC has a Core i5 processor in it. It ships with this wireless keyboard. It makes a great productivity workstation for maybe a small area like on an airplane or a student’s desk. And what you can see is that it responds well to Windows Touch, because it has a capacitive touch screen. But because it’s a Tablet PC, I can also take out the pen and use ink. And what ink lets me do is stuff like I’m highlighting here in Excel. I can take a pen and say, “This is great.” I can take an eraser, I can erase.
[And one of the cool things about ink and Tablet PC is a Tablet PC has handwriting recognition in 26 languages, and you can see this: When I have the pen down on the screen, can you see how my hand is not moving the spreadsheet around? This is one of the reasons that it’s hard to do ink on touch-only devices, and why Tablet PCs are so good for ink, is because it’s implementing palm rejection here. It actually knows what my hand is and knows what the pen is, and doesn’t get the two confused.]
… [But what I want to show you here is the screen itself. This screen is really bright. And] what we did with ASUS was we worked really hard with them to make sure that this screen would have off-axis viewing of almost a full 180 degrees. So, as I move it around here on the camera, you can see that from almost any angle this screen is really, really bright, and the colors don’t shift. And we did that by working together on a process to optically bond all the components of the screen. So, the Gorilla glass on the surface, the underlying LCD, the touch sensor, even the electromagnetic digitizer for the ink are all bonded together as a single unit. And that process eliminates the air gap that’s usually underneath the screen, so the screen is not only brighter, it uses 20 percent less power [to actually get that same level of brightness.
You can order these PCs starting right now. The page just went live on Amazon.com in the Microsoft Store. And I think they’re going to be pretty popular.]
06:27 – Microsoft Surface 2.0…[Mike Angiulo]
So, those first-generation Surface PCs needed cameras underneath that would look up to try to see what was going on. But what we have here is called PixelSense. PixelSense is new technology we’ve invented where there’s infrared sensors all across this screen. Every single pixel is actually acting as a camera. The PC, the Surface here, can actually see. So, I’m holding up a piece of paper that says “I can see,” and when I set it down, what you see on this debug monitor, and what you can see on this split screen above is that the PC can actually see that paper. So, this is even beyond touch. And PixelSense is more than just vision, it’s actually the processing inside …
07:05 – Steve’s done…
07:23 – A “spy” video of Joshua Topolsky and Paul Miller of Engadget…
More information:
Steve Ballmer’s full keynote at CES 2011 — almost 60 minutes of recorded video on demand [Jan 5]
A transcript of Steve Ballmer’s full keynote at CES 2011 [Jan 5]
Microsoft at 2011 International Consumer Electronics Show (CES): Press Materials
— Feature Stories, Press Releases, Speech Transcripts and Fact Sheets
CES Wrap Up: Microsoft Makes Mark with New Windows Devices, Surface and Xbox [Jan 7] with additional (to the feature story) information related to the keynote excerpted here:
The new and revamped products “resulted from big technology bets that we’ve made,” Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer said during his keynote speech on Wednesday. “Bets on the cloud, natural user interface, new smart client technology, machine learning.”
…
New Windows Laptops, Tablets and Slates Showcased
Several Windows 7 PCs set CES abuzz, including a laptop, tablet and slate showcased by Ballmer and Mike Angiulo in Wednesday’s keynote. Angiulo, corporate vice president of Windows Planning, Hardware and PC Ecosystem, was interrupted with applause by an enthusiastic audience several times during his demo. “Go ahead, let it out,” he told them, eliciting cheers and applause.
The Acer ICONIA laptop …
Acer ICONIA – Two Multi-Touch Displays
The Acer ICONIA [=> Acer site with the details, said to be there “the world’s most advanced touchbook”], expands the content consumption experience with its two multi-touch displays, enabling users to set the best scenario for what they’re doing. This 64-bit, Windows 7 Home Premium touchbook will ship with Intel Core i5 chip and is optimized for the Dolby Home Theater v3.
[Price and availability was not given except at Nov 23 global announcement press briefing as reported by PCWorld: “Acer says the Iconia may be available in the United States by Christmas, or January at the latest. The device will go on sale in Europe sooner, where it’ll be priced at 1500 euros or 1500 pounds. The U.S. price is still to be determined”. More details are available in laptopmag.com’s Dual-Screen Acer Iconia Aims To Make You Love Windows 7 On A Tablet [Nov 23, 2010] article where 2.8 kg (6.18 lbs.) and battery life of 3 hours is indicated with 4-cell battery. According to techradar.com’s Acer Iconia dual touchscreen tablet announced [Nov 23, 2010] article: “The Acer Iconia dual touchscreen tablet has a UK release date of 16 January and will cost £1,500.”]
Angiulo also showed an engineering prototype of the Samsung Sliding PC 7 Series, coming in March. At first glance, the Samsung is an ultra-slim, light PC that looks like a multi-touch tablet. However, sliding the display into place reveals a physical keyboard so users can enjoy the best of both worlds – a touch tablet, as well as a more familiar PC keyboard.
Samsung Sliding PC 7 Series: Freedom of Intuitive Touch
The Samsung Sliding PC 7 Series [=> general Samsung site] is an ultra slim and light tablet with multi-touch applications — and a physical keyboard once the display slides back, giving users the freedom of an intuitive touch environment and a familiar keyboard/mouse interface. [It has Intel® ATOM™ Oak Trail Z670 @ 1.66GHz CPU as you could see below in the Samsung press release.]Also shown, a new ASUS Tablet PC …
ASUS Eee Slate EP121 – Ultimate Portability
The ASUS Eee Slate EP121 [=> pre-order on Microsoft Store for $1,099, however on Amazon a smaller version is also available dor $999, see much below] is a performance-driven, 12-inch slate providing ultimate portability and smooth computing power anytime and anywhere. This 64-bit, Windows 7 Home Premium device will ship with the Intel Core i5 chip and the coveted solid state drive, enhancing productivity and mobility.All three devices are available to order now in the Microsoft store on Amazon.com [not true, as of Jan 7 only the Eee Slate EP121 is available], Angiulo said. “I think they’re going to be pretty popular,” he added.
The Next Generation of Microsoft Surface – LCDs That Can ‘See’
Ballmer unveiled and demoed the new Microsoft Surface on stage, showing a thinner device that enables thin LCD screens to “see” without the use of cameras.
Created in partnership with Samsung, the Samsung SUR40 incorporates all the key features of the original Surface product – a massive multi-touch experience, the ability to recognize fingers, hands, and objects – as well as a new technology that has enabled a more flexible form factor.
“What we’ve done is taken Surface technology and embedded it into an LCD [liquid crystal display],” said Panos Panay, general manager of Microsoft Surface. “Essentially we’ve created LCDs that can see.”
Microsoft did that through its new PixelSense™ technology, which enables the pixels in the LCD screen to sense what’s touching it and instantly process that information, said Somanna Palacanda, director of Microsoft Surface. “That means we’ve taken the power of the camera and put it right into the pixels themselves,” he said. “Now with a screen that’s four inches thick, customers have the option to use it as a table, hang it on the wall, or embed it into furniture.”
New Xbox Avatar Capabilities on Display
Ballmer appeared on screen during his keynote as his avatar when he introduced Avatar Kinect, which uses Kinect’s facial recognition technology to let a person not only control their avatar’s movements but also to project their expressions onto their avatar; when they smile, frown, nod and speak, the avatar will do the same.
This spring, Xbox LIVE Gold subscribers will be able to use Kinect to control their Netflix experience. Viewers will be able to pause, rewind and fast-forward their streaming movies with only their voice or gestures.
Also this spring, Hulu Plus will come to Xbox LIVE as a Kinect-enabled experience. As with Netflix, subscribers will be able to use controller-free motion and voice capabilities to instantly watch full screen popular TV shows anytime in HD.
“You’re going to continue to see more fun, more entertainment, and more innovation from our Xbox team in 2011,” Ballmer said. “Xbox today is going where no gaming system has ever gone. Your Xbox is becoming the hub of your living room. It is your gaming system, but it’s your movies, it’s your TV shows, and it’s your sporting events. It’s your social interactions, all delivered directly to the biggest screen in your house.”
Copy-and-Paste Coming to Windows Phone 7
A series of Windows Phone 7 updates are coming over the next few months, including adding the copy-and-paste feature and improving the phone’s performance when loading or switching between applications.
Microsoft also is working to make Windows Phone 7 available from Sprint and Verizon in the first half of 2011, and more languages will become available later this year.
“Windows Phone 7 is the best new phone out there,” Ballmer said. “As people try it, and discover its new features and beautiful hardware, they see the difference. They see how it makes everything from gaming to social networking to productivity better than on any other phone.”
Additional details for the three PCs demonstrated in the keynote:
Acer Iconia Named Winner of Last Gadget Standing; DriveSafe.ly 2.0 Named Winner of Mobile Apps Showdown Contests [Jan 8]
Last Gadget Standing: The Results Are In! [Jan 9]
The Last Gadget Standing–as determined by applause-o-meter at the event is Acer’s Iconia, a notebook with two 14-inch screens and a touchscreen interface. And the People’s Choice winner–determined by an online poll–is Barnes & Noble’s Nookcolor “reader’s tablet.”
Last Gadget Standing: The Ten Finalists [Dec 28]
Acer’s Iconia voted One of Ten Favorite ‘Last Gadgets Standing’ at Annual CES Competition [Dec 30, 2011]
Acer announced today that their brand new Iconia Touchbook has been voted as one of the top ten products in The Ten Favorites at the CES annual Last Gadgets Standing competition. The Iconia is a dual all-point multi-touch notebook that gives consumers the best features of a laptop and tablet device. The Last Gadget Standing Competition is due to take place on January 8th, 2011 at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.
Acer’s Iconia offers an enhanced content consumption experience and brings the interaction with the tablet to a new level.
Comes complete with Windows© 7 and offering a unique visual experience, the Iconia allows multimedia, entertainment, communication and even web pages to flow seamlessly across its 14-inch dual screens. A virtual keyboard is as close as the user’s fingertips and features a full-sized QWERTY layout, while something Acer calls the “Gesture Editor” enables users to create customized gestures that will instantly open applications or favorite websites with, literally, a wave of their hand.
All these features, and more, are just some of the reasons the Acer Iconia has become such a fan favorite at this year’s CES, and is certainly why the judges of the Last Gadget Standing competition have now made it one of the top ten finalists.
Products represented in this competition have been nominated by the writers of prominent news/blogger sites. These writers petition their readers to submit choices for those products they consider the most innovative, useful, and able to stand the test of time.
Acer ICONIA [Nov 23, 2010]
Not so long ago mobile computing devices with touch screens were only found in science fiction. Now Acer presents ICONIA, a new concept device set to add a brand new tablet experience, combining the versatility of a conventional 14” form factor with a unique dual-screen layout and highly intuitive all-point multi-touch functionality, which means you can use all the fingers of your hands to navigate ICONIA.
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Multimedia, entertainment, communication, web browsing and office productivity seamlessly flow across the dual screen, allowing users to set the best scenario for what they are doing. To improve readability of web sites or documents, the window can be spread across both screens. But the dual screen also means you can do one thing in one screen and something else entirely on the other: you can browse a website on the top screen and view the contents of your favourite folder on the bottom one or you can watch a video on the top screen and check out your multimedia library in the other.
“We took this insight and created a range of easy to use devices with touch technology including Smartphones, Notebooks, AIO PCs, Tablet and our latest addition, the ICONIA Touchbook: this level of commitment to touch technology is something no other PC vendor can compete with.” states Jim Wong Acer Inc. Vice President and ITGO President. “The Intel® Core™ i5 processor together with our experience with touch technology has allowed us to completely remap the user experience to create a far more natural interaction with our devices.
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Both 14-inch displays have HD 1366×768 resolution, high-brightness Acer CineCrystal™ LED-backlit TFT LCDs and take advantage of cutting-edge technologies supporting all-point multi-touch for precise on-screen input. Protected by the ultra-thin yet durable Gorilla® Glass, the displays are scratch and fingerprint resistant, easier to clean and offer the same touch functionality.
ICONIA is designed to provide the optimal all-point multi-touch experience on a dual-display tablet. This is why Acer equipped it with a full range of intuitive and easy to use features and applications that fully exploit the countless possibilities of multi-touch technology. The starting point to launch ICONIA’s touch features and controls as well as applications is the Acer Ring.
The Acer Ring appears simply by placing five fingers on the screen and making a grab gesture. The Acer Ring allows you to start touch applications by scrolling through the App cards and tapping on the one you choose. The Ring also provides fast access to: Virtual Keyboard, Gesture Editor, Window Manager, and Device Control Console.
The Virtual Keyboard can be launched from the Acer Ring or by placing both palms on the bottom display. The intelligent design senses the position of the user’s palms and launches the keyboard. It comes with a full-size QWERTY layout with international language support to give users the same experience of a traditional physical keyboard and features predictive text input for natural-speed typing while avoiding mistakes. The Virtual Keyboard also includes a touchpad and a numeric keypad and can be easily switched to handwriting mode. With all these functionalities you won’t miss the traditional physical keyboard!
With the Gesture Editor you can set customized gestures to launch specific applications, open websites, view your desktop or lock your computer. The Gesture Editor offers you a simple and intuitive way to personalize ICONIA to best suit your needs.
http://www.acer.com/iconia/: Acer introduces ICONIA: the world’s most advanced touchbook. Dual screens. Full touch interface. A truly unique experience.
Window Manager allows users to organize the various application windows on the double touch screen. Windows and applications can be moved across displays, so you can always have what you need where you need it. Plus, you can browse through a list of running application, and resize, dock or close windows.
A wealth of built-in touch applications designed to easily manage content provides a seamless experience. Besides those already implemented on Acer’s touch devices, such as TouchBrowser, TouchPhoto, TouchMusic and TouchVideo, allowing an enhanced browsing experience with on-screen gestures to zoom, rotate, flip and scroll and to access and enjoy your multimedia from an integrated touch-optimized interface, ICONIA includes three new ones: SocialJogger, My Journal and Scrapbook.
SocialJogger lets you gather and check updates from Facebook, YouTube and Flickr in all in the same place, taking advantage of the dual screens to check posts and updates on the bottom display and use the second display for exploring and viewing more content.
You can use MyJournal to collect web clippings on your preferred topics. Web clippings are dynamically updated to display all the latest information and can be categorized and displayed according to your needs. Simply tab on a collected Web Clip to display the full webpage on the top screen for a complete access.
Scrapbook lets you easily store clippings, posts and just about anything else from different sources in the same place. You can capture screen shots from the web or an application, edit them and add notes. You can create photo collections with notes and comments. You can also add your scraps to presentations, and documents. Scrapbook helps you keep track of anything you find interesting, funny or valuable and share it!
Samsung Creates a New Category of Mobile PC with the Samsung Sliding PC 7 Series [Jan 5]
Combining the Benefits of a Laptop and Tablet PC, the PC 7 Series is Ideal for Creating and Consuming Content
Pioneering Design
Weighing just 2.2 pounds, the Samsung Sliding PC 7 Series is easily packed into a briefcase and can be used for making presentations or for recording data on the fly. The 7 Series is suited for both indoor and outdoor use with 340-nit brightness 10.1-inch display supported by an enhanced HD resolution (1366 x 768). With its slim and light weight design, the 7 Series allows for mobility without compromising functionality in personal or professional settings.Everyone from students to mobile professionals can enjoy the convenience of Samsung’s Sliding PC 7 Series. The form factor is ideal for personal computing activities like watching movies or social networking, and can quickly adapt the needs of professional users presenting to clients or taking notes at a meeting. The device is also perfect for students, thanks to its handy, portable nature and focus on content. For those who prefer physical keyboards over a touch screen for quickly typing up notes or browsing the Web, the 7 Series features a full, 80/81-key keyboard sleekly tucked away under the display. At the user’s convenience, the keyboard slides out completely, creating a laptop-like interface coupled with the touch capabilities on the display.
The six-cell lithium-polymer battery and innovative Eco Light Sensor, which conserves energy and adjusts screen brightness based on available ambient light, allows the 7 Series to last for up to 9 hours.
Innovative Mobile Computing
The ultra-light Samsung Sliding PC 7 Series is engineered with convenience and responsiveness in mind. Available in either 32GB or 64GB models, the 7 Series features expandable storage with the 4-in-1 memory card reader. The solid-state hard drive and Samsung’s Fast Start feature powers the 7 Series in as little as 15 seconds, or restores from Hibernate and Sleep modes in a mere 3 seconds. The SSD also fully supports multi-tasking not only in the Windows® mode, but also in touch mode, so users never have to slow down.Equipped with Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium, the Samsung 7 Series provides familiarity and comfort to users while enhancing their overall experience. Users with entertainment in mind will benefit from high-resolution graphics and an HDMI port for sharing content on an HDTV. Additionally, the built-in webcam and audio speaker make the 7 Series ideal for video communication with family, friends and coworkers across the globe.
Optional 3G connectivity takes the 7 Series to new levels, with Internet connectivity anywhere, anytime. Moreover, the built-in accelerometer enables portrait or landscape viewing, making the 7 Series perfect for reading daily news articles, or sharing photos with family and friends.
Application Ecosystem
The Sliding PC 7 Series comes with several pre-loaded applications that are optimized for the touch screen display. This includes Samsung’s applications for music, video, photos, note taking, weather, clock, compass and many more. In addition, Microsoft Bing™ Maps provides powerful tools that help get more out of search, including the intuitive Bing voice search, which enables users to type with their voice to find what they’re looking for. More robust touch applications will be available via the Samsung App Manager and Windows Product Scout.The Samsung 7 Series acts as a connective hub with other devices to improve the entertainment experience thanks to Samsung’s device-to-device connection solutions. Samsung AllShare™ enables users to control, search, swap and play videos, photos, and music across a full range of DLNA® (Digital Living Network Alliance) certified Samsung devices, ranging from cameras and smart phones to TVs and PCs.
The Samsung 7 Series is scheduled to be available in March 2011, with a starting price of $699 MSRP. All Samsung mobile PC products are available through Samsung resellers and distribution channels, which can be located by calling 1-800-SAMSUNG or by visiting www.samsung.com.
Key Specs:
• CPU: Intel® ATOM™ Oak Trail Z670 @ 1.66GHz
• Operating System: Genuine Windows® 7 Home Premium
• Samsung Touch Launcher
• Memory: 2GB DDR2
• Hard Drive (max): 32GB or 64GB (mSATA SSD)
• Screen: 10.1-inch touchscreen HD LCD display (340 nit)
• Resolution: 1366 x 768
• Graphics: Intel Integrated Graphics
• Audio Technology: Integrated speaker (0.8W x 2)
• I/O:
• USB 2.0
• 4-in-1 memory card reader
• HMDI out
• Webcam: 1.3MP
• Battery: Lithium Polymer; up to 9 hours
• Wireless: 802.11b/g/n; WiMax; 3G
• Dimensions: 10.47 x 6.88 x 0.78 inches (W x D x H)
• Weight: Starting at 2.18 lbs.
CES 2011 — ASUS Tablet Computers — Providing Choice through Innovation at CES 2011 [Jan 4, 2010]:
ASUS Eee Slate EP121
The Eee Slate EP121 is designed for users who require a highly portable handheld device that can also run standard office software while multitasking with other applications. Powered with an Intel® Core™ i5 dual-core processor, the Eee Slate features a 12.1” LED-backlit display with a 1280 x 800 resolution and a wide 178° viewing angle, making it perfectly suited for both productivity applications and multimedia entertainment.
ASUS Eee Slate EP121-1A010M 12.1-Inch Tablet PC demonstrated by company rep Gary Key at CES 2011.
[See also: ASUS Eee Slate EP121: First demo at CES 2011 [Jan 5] for a complete scenario of “Running on Windows 7 Home Premium, it has no issues multitasking as we could witness during ASUS’ presentation: while a video was running in the background, the presenter edited an image of his ‘daughter’ with Photoshop Elements. Afterwards he sent it wirelessly over to another Slate after using the capacitive stylus to write the e-mail address which the built-in text recognition transfered into legible letters.”]
Windows® 7 Home Premium ensures full compatibility with a wide range of popular applications controlled by flexible input options thanks to the Eee Slate. The capacitive touch-screen responds instantly to fingertip control for day-to-day use, while the capacitive stylus offers fine precision input and control. An on-screen keyboard is also complimented by support for an external Bluetooth keyboard for traditional desktop use.
The Eee Slate is available with 32GB or 64GB of SSD storage (expandable via SDXC), and up to 4GB of DDR3 RAM. All models have 802.11n Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 3.0, a 2-megapixel camera, plus two USB 2.0 ports that provide full support for a wide range of standard PC peripherals, along with a mini-HDMI port that is ideal for connecting to external displays.
ASUS is excited to announce that the ASUS Eee Slate EP121 is one of their eight products to be selected for a CES 2011 Innovations Award.
See also the Entertaining meets enterprising with the most powerful tablet [Jan 4] promo page in the US which is curiously showing the following view of the product where the screen is actually that of Windows Media Center. While this functionality is coming with the Windows 7 Home Premium included in the product it is obviously very useful for touch only functionality as well. Nevertheless all the demos available are showing the Eee Slate EP121 with pen based touch manipulation (except this one recorded on January 6, 2011 using a Flip Video camcorder, where from 0:28 to 0:45 you could see this interface in action). Could some additional Microsoft software come later on (with shipment) to exloit that?
This page is also leading to the pre-order pages on the Amazon where the 2GB RAM and 32GB SSD version is available for $999 and the 4GB RAM and 64GB SSD one for $1,099 (the wireless keyboard is an option for both). On both pages it is stated that:
- Battery Pack: 4 cell polymer battery (up to 3 hours)
- Dimensions: 12.28 x 8.15 x .66 –inches (W x D x H)
- Weight: 2.53 lbs
Other new PCs:
Innovative New Windows-Based PCs at CES 2011 [Jan 7] which in addition to the three devices from Acer (ICONIA), Samsung (Sliding PC 7 Series) and ASUS (Eee Slate EP121) showcased at the keynote currently provides information on there are 7 other devices as well – 5 laptops, one very thin all-in-one home PC and a complete home entertainment center set-top box:
Dell XPS 17 3D – As Unique As You Are
The Dell XPS 17 [=> Dell site with the details for this laptop, from $950] 3D PC extends the XPS quality we know and love to also offer 3D experiences with full 1080p HD resolution. This PC ships with Windows 7 Home Premium and wireless active shutter glasses, and is customizable with the Dell Design Studio, making your PC as unique as you are.HP Pavilion dm1z – For the Road Warrior
Extremely thin and light, the HP Pavilion dm1z [=> HP site with the details for this laptop, from $525] keeps you connected on the go and is priced to fit your budget. Ideal for the road warrior, this PC ships with Windows 7 Home Premium and the AMD Neo mobile processor with dual-core options — all the power and productivity you need.Lenovo A320 – Iconic Ultra-Slim Design
The IdeaCentre A320 [=> Lenovo site with the details, from $525] redefines home computing with its iconic ultra-slim design, premium sound and 8 GB RAM. This Windows 7 Home Premium PC ships with Intel Core i5 with Turbo Boost Technology.
[“At 18.5 inches deep, the Lenovo IdeaCentre A320 is the thinnest all-in-one PC in the world. Lenovo’s held that distinction three years running — but this year’s model packs in performance to match.”
-Gizmodo]MSI GT680 – For Gaming Enthusiasts
The MSI GT680 [=> MSI news site with the details for all the new G Series laptops] is a great choice for gaming enthusiasts. This 64-bit PC features the exclusive Turbo Drive Engine Plus (TDE+) technology and dual turbo power for exceptional performance and efficiency. It ships with Windows 7 Home Premium and the Intel Core i7 processor.Reycom Entertainment Center – Complete Home Entertainment Experience
The Reycom Entertainment Center [=> Reycom site for the family, the separate press release in the attached PDF version is stating “Reycom will launch The REC United States retail version in Q1 2011 (estimated price around $499) followed by dedicated versions for US cable operators and US telecom operators by mid 2011.”] is a complete home entertainment experience, with live TV in HD with time-shift, and access to a wide range of films, TV shows, gaming, music, and more. This Windows Embedded Standard 7 set-top box ships with Intel Atom and NVIDIA ION technologies.Sony VAIO F 3D – Full 1080p HD
The Sony VAIO F series [=> Sony site with the details, from $999] 3D laptop in full 1080p HD creates an immersive viewing experience with images so realistic you’ll feel like you’re part of the action. It’s loaded for all-out performance with a quad core Intel Core i7 processor, dedicated NVIDIA GeForce graphics, and up to 6GB RAM.Toshiba Satellite A665-3DV – All-Purpose Entertainment PC
The Toshiba Satellite A665 3D Edition [=> Toshiba site with the details, from $1.699] laptop is an all-purpose entertainment PC offering premium performance, superior productivity and ultimate creativity. This Windows 7 Home Premium PC also offers true stereoscopic 3D multimedia enjoyment and ships with the Intel Core i7 processor.
CES 2011 was a whirlwind of incredible new PC technology. There was a lot to take in, so to help you get a quick overview of the show’s PC highlights I’m re-posting all fourteen videos I shot at the event, as well as a line or two about the highlights for each partner.
Thanks to Acer, Asus, Dell, HP, Lenovo, Origin, Samsung, Sony and Toshiba for taking the time to show me their newest, most innovative PCs, and to AMD, Intel and NVIDIA for walking me through their latest CPU, APU and GPU technology.
And of course, a HUGE thank you to everyone who submitted questions & comments through Twitter and the blog!
All of the partner videos are below, but if you’re short on time and want to get a really quick overview of what was new and cool at the show, check out my booth walkthrough with Microsoft’s “Roving Reporter” Jessica Corbin, and the technical snapshot of new PC technology I did with Larry Larsen from Channel 9.
ACER: I was really impressed by Acer’s totally unique – and surprisingly practical – ICONIA dual-touchscreen laptop, and by the ultra-slim Revo mini desktop.AMD: AMD’s new Fusion APU has the potential to be a game-changer. Check out the video to see what it’s all about.
ASUS: Clearly the star of the show for Asus was the EP121 Slate PC. I reviewed it on the blog, but don’t miss it in action in the video:DELL: I’m a sucker for power, and Dell’s brand-new Alienware M17x with wireless HD technology didn’t disappoint.
HP: The Pavilion dm1 was the most impressive PC I saw from HP this year. $450 gets you 9+ hours of battery life, HD capable graphics and built in 3G wireless.INTEL: One industry expert told me that “The new Core processors might be the biggest thing since the original Pentium”. Watch what they can do, and you’ll see why.
LENOVO: I was blown away by Lenovo Enhanced Experience 2.0, which powers PCs that boot Windows 7 in under 10 seconds. Watch the video to see my custom t410 get humiliated in the fast-boot challenge:NVIDIA: These guys are bringing 3D to the masses. And they have the only computer I’ve ever seen that has rock-show gaming power and can pour a frosty pint of beer at the same time.
ORIGIN: They just might be the new kings of power gaming. Watch the video to see where they’re taking the category next.SAMSUNG: Samsung continues to impress me with their striking industrial designs. The Sliding PC 7 is a practical take on the tablet concept, and the Notebook 9 Series is so thin and light it makes you laugh the first time you pick it up.
SONY: Sony’s new VAIO L all-in-one with a touch-sensitive bezel is beautiful and smart; having the controls on the edges keep fingerprints off the screen.
TOSHIBA: Toshiba showed off a complete lineup of new PCs, from inexpensive netbooks to 3D gaming PCs. It’s really great to see them making something for everyone.
Live at CES 2011: Final thoughts as the show wraps up [Jan 10] (emphasis is mine)
Of course, there was a ton of great trends that I noticed that were really catching on this year:
→ 3D might finally be ready for prime time. That’s largely due to the affordable availability of 3D on new desktops, laptops, and all-in-ones (and of course, TVs)
→ Consumers are really digging form factors that bring together the best of touch and type. Designs like the Acer ICONIA, the Dell Inspiron duo and the Samsung Sliding PC 7 Series took a lot of people from “I don’t like touch” to “I need one of these RIGHT NOW!”
→ There’s really a PC for everyone. I was very happy to see our partners introducing new form factors that embraced touch, 3D, and other new technology like wireless media streaming, and that came in a huge variety of sizes, specs, colors, and prices. The ecosystem continues to be as diverse as our 1,000,000,000+ customer base.
Live at CES 2011: You can tell its Dell (because the PCs are fast, beautiful, and customizable) [Jan 9]: “we got a look at their new premium XPS laptops [Intel Core i5], and got a first look at the just-announced Alienware M17x power gaming laptop.”
Live at CES 2011: The mad geniuses at ORIGIN show the world what’s next in power gaming [Jan 9]: “If you haven’t heard of them, ORIGIN makes some of the world’s most powerful gaming PCs, all custom designed & hand-built.”
Live at CES 2011: Intel gives the inside scoop on its new Core and Atom processors [Jan 9]
Live at CES 2011: AMD explains the new Fusion APU and what it means for next-gen PCs [Jan 8]
Live at CES 2011: A cozy fireside chat with the HP Pavilion dm1 and ENVY 17 3D [Jan 8]: the HP Pavilion dm1z with AMD Fusion E-350 starting from $450
Live at CES 2011: Sony impresses with new all-in-ones, ultraportables and 3D laptops [Jan 8]: “In addition to the brand new ultralight Sony Y (powered by AMD’s new processors) that starts at $549, I got to check out Sony’s new VAIO F 3D laptop, which packs a new second-generation Intel i7 quad-core processor and Blu-Ray, and the impressively designed refresh of the multi-touch VAIO L all-in-one. ”
Live at CES 2011: Beer, gaming rigs, and 3D everything with NVIDIA [Jan 8]
Live at CES 2011: Geeking out on the show’s new PCs with Channel 9 [Jan 8]: “If you caught my roundup video with Jessica Corbin you’ll find several of these PCs familiar, but Larry and I get more technical here, so it’s a good way to get a deeper look at the new tech on the show floor. Check it out!”
Live at CES 2011: I get shellacked by Lenovo Enhanced Experience 2.0 in their fast boot challenge (but beat everyone else!) [Jan 8]: “wicked thin U260, which boasts a Core i7 processor in a chassis … beautiful B520, Lenovo’s new 3D all-in-one” but the E-350 based ThinkPad X120e (available in February) and IdeaPad S205 (not available in the US) netbooks, as well as the Essential C205 All-In-One are not mentioned at all
Live at CES 2011: A roundup of some of the show’s hottest new PCs with Microsoft’s “Roving Reporter” [Jan 7]: “Check it out for some new views and more hands on time with the convertible Dell Inspiron duo, the ASUS EP121 slate PC, the Samsung Notebook 9 Series ultrathin, and the dual-touchscreen Acer ICONIA.”
Live at CES 2011: Samsung cranks up the industrial design with Sliding PC 7 Series and Notebook 9 Series laptops [Jan 7]
Live at CES 2011: Toshiba shows off innovation across it’s entire laptop line [Jan 6]
Live at CES 2011: Acer’s new dual touchscreen ICONIA, Revo mini desktop, and Aspire entertainment PC [Jan 6]
Live at CES 2011: Video demo of the Windows 7-powered ASUS EP121 Slate PC [Jan 6]
Hands-on with the ASUS EP121 Slate PC [Jan 4]
Motion Announces its First Ultra-Light, Rugged Tablet PC with Versatile Flexibility [Jan 5]
The new Motion CL900 is built based on customer demand for a mobile and integrated device that offers the capabilities to support mobile workflows. Architected for future expansion, the CL900 will feature a peripheral module that will enable simple device expansion. Tightly secured and integrated into the device, the peripheral module will incorporate key documentation tools without compromising durability. Peripheral modules will be released later in 2011.
… Advanced durability, connectivity and mobility features include:
- Up to eight hours of battery life for all-day, uninterrupted productivity
- Lightweight and rugged design that offers the protection of the MIL-STD-810G specification (four foot drop test) at only 2.1 pounds and less than 16mm thick
- IP-52 rated exterior to protect against dust, moisture and other elements
- Optional integrated Gobi™ 3000 mobile broadband with GPS, 802.11 a/b/g/n WLAN, Bluetooth® 3.0, and a wireless SIM port for advanced communications
- Display with Corning® Gorilla® Glass display for added durability and scratch resistance and incorporated DuPont Vertak™ to improve visibility in various lighting conditions
[See Dupont Vertak Overview Video:]
… Running Microsoft® Windows® 7 and powered by the upcoming Intel® Atom™ processor currently codenamed “Oak Trail”, the CL900 balances power, performance and battery life. Additionally, IT serviceability and enterprise support options help ensure uptime and reduce IT resource drain. Business benefits include:
- The ability to run existing applications, lowering the cost of deployment
- The performance needed to simultaneously run multiple enterprise applications
- Bright display that offers the convenience of both touch and stylus input
Note from PDF overview: Delivers clear visibility even in bright sunlight
- 30GB or 62GB solid state drive (SSD), and up to 2GB of RAM
The new Intel Atom processor is specifically designed for tablet PCs and mobile workflows that require a balance of productivity and battery life. An enhanced version of the Atom line of processors, “Oak Trail” will offer the responsiveness, security and manageability required for mobile users in business environments.
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With a planned starting MSRP of less than U.S. $1000 the CL900 offers a competitive entry price point to other tablet PCs with a unique, rugged design that supports a lower total cost of ownership over non-rugged devices. The CL900 will be available to ship early in the second quarter of 2011 while the optional peripheral module will be available later in the first half of the year. For more information on the CL900 or to register for product updates, please visit the CL900 Product Page. To access high resolution product photos please visit the CL900 Images Page.
Hardware acceleration for cloud clients (browsers etc.): AMD Fusion APUs, NVIDIA GeForce 500M
Accelerated Processing Unit = APU
AMD Details a Vivid Future of Computing at Annual Financial Analyst Day [Nov 9, 2010] (emphasis is mine)
AMD Fusion APUs mark a significant leap forward in technology innovation to address evolving workloads and users’ needs for smaller, more power-efficient form factors that enable richer visual computing experiences such as:
- Outstanding Web browsing experiences in terms of speed of response, quality of graphics, quality of animations;
- Smooth video playback of HD and 3D content in even the most portable form factors;
- Optimized experience in popular GPU-accelerated productivity applications such as Microsoft PowerPoint where AMD Fusion enables smooth transitions, better animations, easier video editing;
- Better content management capabilities to organize the millions of digital media files created and stored by consumers everyday;
- User interface innovations designed to rapidly evolve as new technologies such as gesture recognition and voice command take advantage of the massive parallel processing capability of GPUs as evidenced by the hundreds of gigaflops of compute power in the AMD Fusion APU codenamed “Llano”.
AMD Public Roadmap Updates
AMD also announced several notable updates to its 2012 roadmaps including:
- “Krishna” and “Wichita”: Two and four-core 28nm APUs based on the next-generation sub-one watt “Bobcat” CPU cores and a DirectX 11-capable GPU, designed for the tablet, notebook, HD netbook, and desktop form-factors;
- “Trinity”: a 32nm APU based on AMD’s next-generation “Bulldozer” CPU cores and a DirectX 11-capable GPU, designed for mainstream and high-performance desktops and notebooks;
- “Komodo”: a 32nm CPU featuring up to 10 AMD “Bulldozer” CPU cores designed for high-performance and enthusiast desktops;
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Simply put, it’s all about Velocity [Nov 9, 2010] (emphasis is mine)
Velocity goal: the best APUs every year
Velocity is the term Rick Bergman [senior VP for product development from May 2009, before with ATI part] introduced last year to signal the new AMD Fusion APU design metho
dology and product introduction cadence. AMD Velocity builds on AMD’s already established annual GPU design cycle to achieve a faster pace of innovation than AMD previously achieved with a CPU-only development focus. This quicker pace is in keeping with an overall faster pace of consumer innovation, where new features and new use cases abound. The goal of Velocity is clear, compelling platform differentiation for AMD, and the delivery of the best APU on the market every year.
Below are our client roadmaps for 2011 and 2012. To summarize, here’s what’s new for 2012:
- We’ll bring our “Bulldozer” CPU cores into APUs with “Trinity,” targeted for both the mainstream and performance notebook markets. We will also offer a “Trinity” APU for mainstream desktop;
- For the essential, netbook and tablet markets we introduce our “Krishna” and “Wichita” APUs with enhanced “Bobcat” CPU cores. These will be our first APUs based on 28nm process technology. “Krishna” APUs are scheduled to be available for small form-factor and all-in-One (AIO) desktop platforms in 2012;
- Also in 2012, we plan to continue offering high-performance desktop CPUs for the enthusiast market with the “Bulldozer” core-based “Komodo” CPU.
AMD Fusion™ Family of APUs Technology Overview: Enabling a Superior, Immersive PC Experience [May 4, 2010]
At the most basic level, AMD’s new Accelerated Processing Units combine general-purpose x86 CPU cores with programmable vector processing engines on a single silicon die. AMD’s APUs also include a variety of critical system elements, including memory controllers, I/O controllers, specialized video decoders, display outputs, and bus interfaces, but real appeal of these chips stems from the inclusion of both scalar and vector hardware as full-fledged processing elements.
Others have lashed a CPU and a basic graphics unit together in a single package, but none have attempted this feat with truly programmable GPUs like those in the AMD Fusion designs, let alone GPUs that can be programmed using high-level industry-standard tools like DirectCompute and OpenCL.
AMD is best situated to address this engineering challenge, as it is currently the only company which has access to extensive IP resources (e.g. patents and engineering expertise) in both x86 processor technology and industry-leading GPU technology. In fact, AMD’s recognition that it needed proven GPU technology for future converged products drove its 2006 acquisition of ATI Technologies.
Will 2011 Be a Breakthrough Year for Parallel Computing? [Dec 22, 2010] (emphasis is mine)
With power consumption of computers a major concern, parallel computing has become the dominant paradigm in computer architecture with many low power cores displacing the traditional approach of frequency scaling. And we are now entering the world of heterogeneous computing as we introduce AMD APU processor technology, where CPU and GPU cores live on the same piece of silicon.
If you are a software programmer these changes can be overwhelming. You can’t necessarily make these transitions on your own. A recent report published by the National Research Council provides a sobering look at the problem, and points out that many sectors of the U.S. economy could stall unless the nation aggressively pursues fundamental research and development of parallel computing.
AMD is doing its part to help the Information Technology sector address this issue. We have a community of world class software engineers focused on driving:
- The development of tools like OpenCLTM a parallel programming framework designed to work with both CPUs and GPUs
- tResearch efforts around handling Big Data in the Cloud
- Efforts to make it more seamless for Java developers to offload computing to the GPU
- Ongoing optimization of the Open64 compiler.
Fusion Family of APU News
A Brief History of General Purpose (GPGPU) Computing
ATI Stream Technology
GPU and CPU Technology for Accelerated Computing
ATI Stream technology is a set of advanced hardware and software technologies that enable AMD graphics processors (GPUs), working in concert with the system’s central processors (CPUs), to accelerate enabled applications beyond traditional graphics and video processing. This enables balanced platforms to run computationally-intensive tasks more efficiently, providing a better application experience to the end user.
Along with leading third party industry partners and academic institutions worldwide, AMD is building a complete ATI Stream computing ecosystem, one that delivers the performance, applications, software and tools necessary to turn AMD’s low-cost application acceleration vision into reality.
Characteristics of GPU acceleration:
- Enable new applications on new architectures
- Parallel problems other than graphics that map well on GPU architecture
- Transition from fixed function to programmable pipelines
- Various proof points in research and industry under the name GPGPU
Q: What is stream computing?
A: Stream computing (or stream processing) refers to a class of compute problems, applications or tasks that can be broken down into parallel, identical operations and run simultaneously on a single processor device. These parallel data streams entering the processor device, computations taking place and the output from the device define stream computing.
Today, stream computing is primarily the realm of the graphics processor unit (GPU) where the parallel processes used to produce graphics imagery are used instead to perform arithmetic calculations.
Characteristics of stream computing:
* Enable new applications on new architectures
* Parallel problems other than graphics that map well on GPU architecture
* Transition from fixed function to programmable pipelines
* Various proof points in research and industry under the name GPGPU
Q: How does stream computing differ from computation on the CPU?
A: Stream computing takes advantage of a SIMD methodology (single instruction, multiple data) whereas a CPU is a modified SISD methodology (single instruction, single data); modifications taking various parallelism techniques into account.
The benefit of stream computing stems from the highly parallel architecture of the GPU whereby tens to hundreds of parallel operations are performed with each clock cycle whereas the CPU can at best work only a small handful of parallel operations per clock cycle.
Q: Which applications are best suited to Stream Computing?
A: Applications best suited to stream computing possess two fundamental characteristics:
1. A high degree of arithmetic computation per system memory fetch
2. Computational independence – arithmetic occurs on each processing unit without needing to be checked or verified by or with arithmetic occurring on any other processing unit.Examples include:
* Engineering – fluid dynamics
* Mathematics – linear equations, matrix calculations
* Simulations – Monte Carlo, molecular modeling, etc.
* Financial – options pricing
* Biological – protein structure calculations
* Imaging – medical image processing
CPU Performance: Better than Atom, 90% of K8 but Slower than Pentium DC [Nov 16, 2010] (emphasis is mine)
AMD’s performance target for Bobcat was 90% of the performance of K8 at the same clock speed and our Photoshop CS4 benchmark shows that AMD can definitely say that it has met that goal. At 1.6GHz the E-350 manages to outperform a pair of K8s running at 1.5GHz in the Athlon X2 3250e [delivered as the most “energy efficient” K8 in Q4 2008 with 22 W TDP in a 65 nm process]. Unfortunately for AMD, Intel’s Pentium dual-core running at 2.2GHz is much quicker. Most notebooks in the $400+ range have at least a 2.2GHz Pentium. Even the Atom D510 isn’t far behind.
AMD tells me that in general purpose integer tasks, the E-350 should do well and it may even exceed AMD’s 90% design target. However in higher IPC workloads, for example many floating point workloads, the E-350 is constrained by its dual issue front end. In these situations, the out of order engine is starved for instructions and much of Bobcat’s advantage goes away.
Desktop IGP Comparison: Faster than Clarkdale [Nov 16, 2010] (emphasis is mine)
For the desktop section I compared the E-350 to the latest Clarkdale chips [the best GPU performing Intel Core i5 661 with $196 1Ku boxed pricing and entry level Core i5 530 with $113 1Ku boxed pricing all launched on Jan 7, 2010 as the first 32 nm processors with Intel’s new HD Graphics integrated on the same die], AMD’s own 890GX and a discrete Radeon HD 5450 graphics card. While the Radeon HD 5450 has the same number of shader processors as the E-350 (80), they run faster and it has a dedicated 1.6GHz memory bus to feed it. The E-350 has to share memory bandwidth between the two Bobcat cores and the 80 SPs, severely limiting its performance potential.
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The E-350 does extremely well compared to its desktop brethren. In our Modern Warfare 2 and BioShock tests its easily faster than the Core i3/i5 and in the case of BioShock 2 it’s even faster than AMD’s 890GX. Dragon Age Origins is another story however as the benchmark is primarily CPU limited, giving the desktop parts a huge advantage. In GPU bound scenarios, it’s clear that our initial Zacate benchmarking was accurate: the E-350’s Radeon HD 6310 is quicker than Intel’s HD Graphics.
Compared to the Radeon HD 5450 the 6310 offers between 66 – 69% of its performance in our GPU bound tests. The performance reduction is entirely due to the 6310’s limited memory bandwidth being shared with the dual Bobcat cores on-die.
AMD Space Game HTML5 demo in IE9: AMD E-350 Fusion APU runs more than 10 Frames per second faster than Intel i5 520M with HD Graphic
See theAMD “Zacate” APU Will Accelerate HTML5 Games in Internet Explorer 9 demo video (YouTube).
CES 2011: Using a browser to demonstrate the power of hardware [Jan 14]
AMD announced their new Fusion line of Accelerated Processing Units (or APUs) as we detailed in another post (check out the small size of the chip in the video!). At CES, Gabe Gravning from the AMD team walked us through how they used IE9 in their booth to demonstrate the power of Fusion.
In the latest in our series from CES 2011, Gabe Gravning from AMD takes us through two demos they used to showcase their new Fusion line of APUs (Accelerated Processing Units). The demos highlight the great performance Internet Explorer 9 beta delivers through its full hardware acceleration, using both the dual core CPU and integrated GPU on the Fusion chips.
Nvidia showed off some impressive graphics power at their booth as well. Besides showing some incredible 3-D gaming, and their one-of-a-kind “keg-puter”, Nvidia used IE9 to show off some of their new graphics chips. Dave Ragones from the Nvidia team gave us a demo.
In this video from CES 2011, we talked with Dave Ragones, director of product marketing at Nvidia, about the reasons they use IE9 to show off the power of some of their new graphics chips, the GForce 500-M series.
NVIDIA GeForce 500M Series GPUs Power Top Notebooks of 2011 [press release, Jan 4] (emphasis is mine)
NVIDIA today announced the GeForce® 500M series of notebook graphics processing units (GPUs), designed to power laptops featuring next-generation Intel Core CPUs (Sandy Bridge).
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The new GPUs being introduced today include:
- For performance users: GeForce GT 540M, GeForce GT 550M, and GeForce GT 555M with over four times the performance of integrated graphics and twice the DirectX 11 performance of the competition.
- For mainstream users: GeForce GT 520M and GeForce GT 525M offering over twice the performance of integrated graphics.
New GeForce 500M Series GPUs Power Top Notebooks of 2011 [Jan 5] (emphasis is mine)
Today at CES, we announced our new lineup of GeForce 500M Series notebook GPUs that will be featured in the top notebooks of 2011 from your favorite OEMs including Acer, Asus, Dell, Fujitsu, Lenovo, Samsung, Sony, Toshiba, and more.
If you’re planning on buying a new notebook in 2011, look for one packing a GeForce GPU, which will deliver:
- NVIDIA Optimus Technology: Optimus transparently switches between high-performance GeForce graphics and battery-sipping integrated graphics depending on the application. With Optimus, you get the best of both worlds: great graphics performance with GeForce GPUs and great CPU performance, without sacrificing battery life.
- Great GPU Performance: Whatever your performance demands, GeForce GPUs deliver. From the new GeForce GT 520M with 2X the performance of integrated graphics (aka “Sandy Bridge”), GeForce GT 540M with 4X performance, to GeForce GTX GPUs for the best experience on the latest DX11 gaming titles.
- Best HD Video, High-Res Photo, Web, and 3D experience: Beyond gaming, choose GeForce to accelerate your digital life. Whether you’re editing HD videos or high-res photos, accelerating new HTML5 websites, or watching your favorite Blu-Ray 3D title, GeForce GPUs add a powerful second processor to your notebook for media rich tasks.
In our booth (Las Vegas Convention Center, South Hall 3, Booth # 31431), we are showcasing a number of top notebooks from leading OEMs including:
- Acer Aspire 4750G with GeForce GT 540M
- Asus N53SV notebook with GeForce GT 540M
- Dell XPS 17 3DVision notebook with GeForce GT 555M
- Lenovo IdeaPad Y470 with GeForce GT 550M
- And more…
Browser + hardware working together to deliver a richer web [Jan 4]
Today AMD launched Fusion, their new family of Accelerated Processing Units (APUs) – combination CPU/GPU chips used to power the PC, and they are using Internet Explorer 9 to showcase their new hardware innovation. So what does the launch of Fusion have to do with web browsing and how are they using Internet Explorer 9 to demonstrate this new innovation in hardware? We sat down to talk with John Taylor, Director of Client Product Marketing for AMD to find out.
Increasingly web applications today are becoming more interactive, graphically rich and video intensive. Most browsers today don’t take advantage of the modern hardware that comes in today’s PCs like multicore central processing units (CPU) or graphic processor units (GPU). Internet Explorer 9 uses the full power of the PC to deliver hardware accelerated video, text and graphics to bring you web experiences that are richer and more immersive.
In efforts complimentary to our approach in the browser, AMD’s Fusion chip integrates the CPU and GPU into a single chip that they call an accelerated processor unit or APU. By combining the two, AMD is able to deliver better performance for things like video and graphics on the web, in addition to decreased power consumption resulting in longer battery life. The new Fusion chips will be launched in a broad range of PCs from high-end desktops to ultra-mobile netbooks, some of which we’ll be using to demo Internet Explorer 9 this week at the 2011 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. And AMD created a set of rich web applications to showcase the graphic performance capability of Fusion through Internet Explorer 9.
We are thrilled to see this complimentary hardware innovation and even more thrilled to see AMD using Internet Explorer 9 to showcase the performance of AMD Fusion. Just seven months ago it’s unlikely you would have seen a hardware manufacturer use a browser to demonstrate a chip’s performance – the web has evolved!
Software and Hardware Ecosystem to Unleash the Power of AMD Fusion Technology [Jan 4]
“Personal computing is undergoing a significant evolution, fueled by the explosion of digital and multimedia content to enable a truly immersive web experience,” said Tami Reller, corporate vice president of Windows marketing, Microsoft. “We think the work AMD has done with Fusion to combine x86 CPU architecture and discrete-level graphics performance creates opportunities for Windows 7 and Internet Explorer 9 to deliver real-world customer benefits including accelerated browsing, HD video and 3D gaming.”
Graphics Acceleration is not just for Games Anymore [June 24, 2010]
This week in San Francisco, Microsoft released the Internet Explorer 9 (IE9) Platform Preview 3. IE9 is revolutionary in that it will use the graphics processor to assist in the number # 1 activity of all computer users – surfing the web.
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As 3D games for the PC continued to use Microsoft’s DirectX, APIs, hardware and games evolved in realism and complexity. The current generation of DirectX is DirectX 11 (DX11). AMD is the only company that currently offers a DX11 top-to-bottom stack of GPUs and in the near future, DX11 Accelerated Processing Units (APUs). DirectX features many different companies and the relevant graphics component is called Direct3D (D3D). D3D is almost exclusively used for 3D Graphics for gaming today.
Here is where the divergence really happened…
As 3D games continued to push the envelope on the DirectX and the GPUs, mundane graphics tasks such as rendering the Windows desktop continued to use the CPU. Applications like Internet Explorer, Microsoft Word and Microsoft Excel used the CPU to render text, lines, shapes and other graphics through a CPU based API called Graphics Device Interface (GDI).
One of the many reasons that simple graphics most often used the CPU and GDI for graphics was that it was a very simple API to use and the graphics load wasn’t anywhere near intensive as a 3D game. As web surfing evolved, it followed in the tradition of CPU + GDI, utilizing an API that essentially remained unchanged since its definition in the 1980s.
Recognition of the 3D Power…
Smart people at Microsoft and other companies started realizing that the graphics power of the GPU can be used in applications beyond 3D Gaming. As we saw with Windows Vista, the introduction of a 3D desktop with Aero Glass led to the use of the GPU for things like alpha-blending.
While Windows Vista did away with GDI, the revolution really happened with Windows 7. Windows 7 introduced a new API called Direct2D (D2D). D2D is essentially a wrapper around D3D. With D2D, any application can call on the GPU to accelerate the rendering of things like lines, curves, text, graphics and any graphics primitives. The effect of using a GPU means potentially orders of magnitude improvement in performance over the antiquated CPU + GDI.
Microsoft’s Internet Explorer 9 is one of the first applications to use D2D. The net result is a much faster rendering of webpages and graphics. With IE9, the GPU is used extensively to accelerate the number 1 use of PCs today, web surfing.
Cynics may argue that there is no perceivable difference between CPU and GPU based rendering on webpages today. However this is extremely myopic. Today, webpages are designed for the “least common denominator,” with simple graphics to ensure that all end users have a good experience with load and render times. In short, webpage graphics today are arcane and primitive versus modern 3D video graphics—by design.
As both GPU power and a great new API in D2D become available, web designers can be expected to greatly improve the end users’ visual experience by harvesting this power and designing much richer and complex webpages. History proves this to be true. As we saw with 3D Gaming in the 1990s, once a common API was established, the complexity and realism of 3D gaming greatly improved in a very short period of time.
At AMD we are very excited about D2D and applications like Microsoft’s IE9. We are excited because end users have an opportunity to use our GPU and AMD Fusion APUs in support of fantastic new APIs to greatly accelerate their web surfing experience. Look for more updates from us on this area in the future.
Part the Clouds II: Cloudy with a chance of High Definition [Sept 27, 2010] (emphasis is mine)
On Sept. 13th I posted “Part the Clouds: AMD Fusion APUs Ideal for Cloud Clients.” I asserted that AMD Fusion APUs codenamed “Zacate” and “Ontario” are poised to be ideal cloud computing client platforms. Today, I’d like to delve a little more into why, breaking my point of view into four main categories: Browsing, Video, Gaming and Internet Applications.
Browsing
… Today consumers increasingly expect HD content, web pages and internet apps with rich media and interactivity. With those trends in mind, it makes sense that today’s lighter weight PCs are starting to struggle a bit with web browsing. HD media and web browsing are outstripping the horsepower that traditional CPU cores in netbooks and thin and light notebooks can offer.
… “Zacate” is engineered to provide an even richer, faster internet experience to mainstream clients and ultrathins, while “Ontario” is designed to bring this experience to netbooks and ultra-small form factors.
Video
… The continued march towards ubiquity of Internet video, along with the shift to HD, has put the hardware industry in jeopardy of revisiting those early days of internet video when the experience was reliably unreliable. Today’s lighter-weight machines struggle with online video – think Hulu HD and similar services – and some consumer devices forgo the chore of processing whole categories of video on the Internet. Even more powerful mainstream machines aren’t quite ready for the next phase of the video revolution: very fast “coding”, enhancing the quality of non-HD video, and real time analytics.
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Gaming
Did you know that 3 in 4 teens and 1 in 3 adults play computer-based games? If you didn’t know that stat, surely you’ve seen your Facebook newsfeed filled with updates from Farmville, Mafia Wars and other social games, or heard the buzz about new streaming gaming services like OnLive. It all points to the fact that PC gaming isn’t going away due to the popularity of consoles; it’s evolving and becoming more popular than ever. And while many of these games aren’t nearly as taxing as the latest titles like Battlefield Bad Company 2, they are increasingly sophisticated and graphically intense, even if being played in the browser.
An easy way to help reduce the strain these games cause PCs is to write software utilizing the latest standards, and build hardware that can accelerate the experience through those standards, which effectively “removes middleware” from the equation. Our 2011 AMD Fusion APUs are designed to be ideal for online gaming, because they are engineered to support the latest in graphics and GPU compute standards, including DirectX 11, Direct 2D and DirectCompute. “Zacate” has been designed to enable both a good traditional PC gaming and online gaming experience, and the even lower-power “Ontario” was designed as an ideal platform for these emerging online gaming usage models.
Applications
Finally, the most interesting reason that “Ontario” and “Zacate” will be great for emerging cloud computing usage models: rich media application-like experiences are winning. The iPhone and Android have taught millions of consumers to expect application-like experiences when using the internet. Until now, these types of experiences weren’t easily replicated – or exceeded — within the PC browser.
But in the last couple years, there’s been an avalanche of innovation in this space. “Tear off” applications like Tweet Deck, which take internet browser experiences and turn them into stand-alone applications, have taken off, and browsers haven’t stood still, with all of them offering their own levels of interactivity. A great example is the recent interactive music video for Arcade Fire’s new single “We Used to Wait”. (Note: you need to be using the Chrome browser to experience this).
With more and more consumers downloading millions of these applications on a daily basis, internet apps are only going to continue to evolve and become more innovative and resource intensive than ever. With the increased processing power that “Ontario” and “Zacate” offer to netbooks, ultrathins and mainstream clients, respectively, AMD-powered PCs are incredibly well positioned to help consumers enjoy these new application-like experiences with excellent battery life and visual quality.
AMD Launches AMD Fusion Family of APU Processors at CES [Jan 4]
This week at CES, AMD is launching their AMD Fusion family of Accelerated Processing Units (APUs). What’s an APU? An APU is the combination of the CPU and GPU into a single die. What AMD has done with their Fusion family of APU processors is to combine multi-core CPU (x86) technology with discrete-level graphics.
Update: The above image is a scan of a AMD CPU (top), a mobile laptop CPU (middle) and a AMD Fusion APU (bottom) compared to a U.S. Quarter.
The graphics side of the Fusion APU is powered with what AMD is calling the VISION Engine. The VISION Engine consists of DirectX 11 capable graphics capabilities, a UVD3 video acceleration block (like the one found in the new AMD Radeon HD 6800 Series GPUs) for native mpeg-4, mpeg-2, h264, DivX decoding, and parallel processing designed to help speed up application performance. A PC with an AMD Fusion APU can take full advantage of hardware-accelerated web browsing with Internet Explorer 9 and Windows 7.
AMD Fusion APUs also come with AMD’s AllDay Power feature for about 10 hours (or more) of battery life. Fusion APUs are also virtualization-capable as well.
The 2011 low-power AMD Fusion APU platform (codenamed “Brazos”), designed for everyday computing for PCs like netbooks and other small form factor PCs, will come in 2 flavors: the E-Series and C-Series. These APUs come with AMD’s new x86 CPU core codenamed “Bobcat”. Later in 2011, the A-Series will hit designed for mainstream laptops and desktop PCs (codenamed “Llano”) which will have up to 4 x86 cores.
At CES, AMD expects many of the major PC OEMs to announce PCs with AMD Fusion APUs. Ben Rudolph will be stopping by to visit AMD to check out Fusion first-hand later this week. Ben will be behind-the-scenes at CES all week this week.
For more information on the AMD Fusion family of APUs, click here. You can also check out their press release here and quotes from their partners here.
Canadian Contributions Power Revolutionary AMD Fusion Processors [Jan 13] (emphasis is mine)
Today at the Ontario Science Centre, AMD (NYSE: AMD) celebrated the launch of a new class of accelerated processor that combines more compute capabilities than any processor in the history of computing. Featuring major technology contributions from AMD’s Markham, Ontario R&D facility, the AMD Fusion Family of Accelerated Processing Units (APUs) incorporate multi-core CPU (x86) technology, and a powerful DirectX(R) 11-capable graphics and parallel processing engine within the design.
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AMD Fusion APU-based Systems
— The AMD Fusion chip delivers an unprecedented experience starting with thin and light notebooks, as well as small form factor desktops: stutter-free HD video playback, breakthroughs in computational horsepower to handle the most demanding applications(ii), and all-day battery life(iii).
— New desktop, notebook and HD netbooks based on AMD Fusion processors are now available at affordable price points from Acer, Asus, Dell, Fujitsu, HP, Lenovo, MSI, Samsung, Sony and Toshiba.
— Tablets and embedded designs based on AMD Fusion APUs are expected be available later in Q1 2011.
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(ii) Based on performance per watt comparisons between AMD Fusion APUs and the AMD Athlon(TM) II P320 CPU combined with the AMD Mobility Radeon(TM) HD 4250 GPU. In testing conducted by AMD performance labs, AMD Fusion APUs demonstrated the following: A-Series — up to approximately 500 GFLOPS; E-Series/C-Series — up to approximately 90 GFLOPS at 18/9 W. In comparison, the AMD Athlon(TM) II P320 CPU and AMD Mobility Radeon HD 4250 GPU deliver a combined total of 74 GLOPS at 38 W.
(iii) In testing conducted by AMD performance labs the 2011 Low Power platform reference design “Zacate” E-350 demonstrated up to 658 minutes or 10.96 hours “all-day” battery life while idle and up to 258 minutes or 4.34 hours as an “active” metric using 3DMark ’06. The reference design consisted of an AMD Dual-Core Processor E-350, 1.6Ghz 2C, 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3-1066 system memory 11.6″ display @ 1366×768, Windows 7 Ultimate 64-bit, 62Whr Li-Ion battery. The 2011 AMD C-50 Dual-Core Accelerated Processor demonstrated up to 735 minutes or 12.15 hours “all-day” battery life while idle and up to 378 minutes or 6.18 hours as an “active” metric using 3DMark ’06. The reference design consisted of a an AMD Dual-Core processor C-50 1.0Ghz 9W, 2GB (1x2GB) DDR3-1066 system memory, AMD Radeon(TM) HD 6250 Graphics with 10.1″ @ 1024×600, 6-cell Li-Ion, 62.2 Whr battery. LED Backlight Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit. All testing performed using a 6-cell Li-Ion, 62.2 Whr battery. AMD defines “all day” battery life as 8+ hours of idle time.
AMD Fusion APU Era Begins [Jan 4, AMD press release]
New generations of desktop, notebook and HD netbooks are now available based on AMD Fusion APUs at affordable price points. Tablets and embedded designs based on AMD Fusion APUs are expected be available later in Q1 2011. The new range of products features include stutter-free HD video playback, breakthroughs in computational horsepower to handle the most demanding applications2, DirectX 11-capable graphics and all-day battery life.1
AMD expects leading manufacturers Acer, Asus, Dell, Fujitsu, HP, Lenovo, MSI, Samsung, Sony and Toshiba to announce plans to deliver AMD Fusion APU-based systems at very compelling value and mainstream price points.
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HD 2.0 Everywhere
High definition (HD) content is ubiquitous today. From YouTube videos to DirectX 11 games to Blu-ray, the world is tapping into various ways to enjoy this content with the computer serving as the hub. And thanks to the VISION Engine from AMD, a set of capabilities unique to all AMD Fusion APU-powered PCs, the visual side of computing never looked more vivid and realistic. The VISION Engine is an unmatched combination of:
- DirectX 11-capable graphics
- Massive parallel processing to speed application performance3
- The UVD3 video acceleration block found in the new AMD Radeon™ HD 6800 Series GPUs
- Unique graphics driver capabilities updated on a monthly basis to continuously improve visual performance
Selecting a PC equipped with the VISION Engine and software from AMD partners means Internet browsing is a faster, application-like experience; 1080p HD video playback is gorgeous, smooth and quiet; standard definition video looks high-definition; 2D content can be converted into stereoscopic 3D; even the most graphics-intensive websites load quickly; manipulating HD content is fast and easy; and 3D gaming at HD resolutions is fast and life-like.4
Personal Supercomputing
Much of a computing experience is linked to software and, until now, software developers have been held back by the independent nature in which CPUs and GPUs process information. However, AMD Fusion APUs remove this obstacle and allow developers to take full advantage of the parallel processing power of a GPU – more than 500 GFLOPs for the upcoming A-Series “Llano” APU – thus bringing supercomputer-like performance to every day computing tasks. More applications can run simultaneously and they can do so faster than previous designs in the same class.2
AMD AllDay™ Power
Additionally, AMD Fusion technology enables all-day battery life – 10 hours or more.1 The new power-saving features present in the single-chip design greatly extend the time between plug-ins, even when enjoying HD content.
AMD Accelerated Processors for Ultrathin Notebook PCs, Product Specs:
– E350 and E240 (former codename: “Zacate”) with 18W TDP, designed for mainstream notebooks, All-in-Ones, and small form factor desktops
– C50 and C30 (former codename: “Ontario”) with 9W TDP, designed for HD netbooks and other emerging form factors
– each with 80 Radeon shader cores on die
AMD Accelerated Processors for All-In-One Desktop PCs, Features and Benefits: currently only the E-350
Entertainment
Enjoy and share full HD content effortlessly
- Smooth and vivid HD video playback
- Quick Web browsing and media playback1
- Super-sharp photos and crystal-clear images
- Good everyday gaming experiences
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1In testing conducted by AMD Performance Labs, the AMD Fusion Processor E-350 showed up to 3 times faster performance, with hardware acceleration on, Microsoft Internet Explorer 9. (29 FPS vs 7) and Firefox 4 using Direct X 9 and Direct2D as compared to hardware acceleration off.
AMD Meetings: APUs Make a Big Splash [AnandTech, Jan 7] (emphasis is mine)
We also had a visit with AMD at their meeting rooms, which were filled with product demonstrations. Brazos laptops and netbooks occupied a large area just inside the door—we counted at least 20 different laptops of varying sizes and capabilities. The vast majority of there were running an AMD APU, in this case Brazos. There were 10” E-350 netbooks, 11.6” E350 ultraportables, and even 14” to 15.6” solutions all using the power friendly APU. A few of the systems also had K10.5 CPUs with the new 6000M GPUs (we’ll get to those next). Browsing around the show floor, though, Brazos looks to be making some real waves, providing a compelling alternative to Atom in the sub-$500 netbook market. In the next couple of months, we should see a lot of Brazos systems, from small nettop/desktop systems to netbooks… and yes, tablets as well. AMD reports battery life of up to 12 hours on some of their test netbooks; the reason they’re able to get such long battery life is pretty simple:
Intel’s Atom is a fairly tiny chip, but even though it manages to sip power, it’s not a very attractive performer. Brazos is even smaller than Atom, in part thanks to the use of 40nm (Brazos) vs. 45nm (Atom), and while raw CPU performance may not be that much higher than the current Atom options, the DX11 GPU is an order of magnitude more powerful than the GMA 3150 found in Pine Trail. AMD mentioned at one point that the Brazos APU is rated at up to 90GFLOPS of compute performance; to put that in perspective, the new quad-core Sandy Bridge CPU (no word on the GPU in SNB) provides a similar 87GLOPS of compute potential. GFLOPS isn’t the most useful of measurements, but it does help to put things in perspective: similar compute potential in a package that has an 18W TDP (E-350), where i7-2600K is specced at 95W.
AMD is aiming the new E-series Zacate parts at Intel’s P6000 processor, while the C-series is gunning for Atom.
… Sadly, not a single netbook or laptop stands out as being clearly superior to anything else out there. Performance looks good, aesthetics vary from okay to great depending on your point of view, but the LCDs are all same-old, same-old. It would be awesome to see ASUS or HP or some other manufacturer step up to the plate and deliver a Zacate ultraportable with a beautiful screen—you know, like the IPS stuff they’re putting into $400 tablets? After all, the APU is now able to provide all the multimedia prowess you could ask for; why not give us a display that can make the content shine?
AMD promises all day battery life with Fusion chips [Jan 4] (emphasis is mine)
Bob Grim, director of AMD product marketing told TechEye: “What’s really different is that for the first time there is a product that brings both X86 and 3D graphics together on a die. “
Semiconductor companies normally bring in CPUs at the high end and normally they fall in price over a period of time. AMD is bringing Zacate and Ontario for the volume market for machines between $200 and $500. Ontario will be between $200-$300, Zacate $399-$499. Perhaps this is because the Llano chip, manufactured by GlobalFoundries, was delayed somewhat.
Application developers can code their apps to OpenCL and optimise code to get the best out of the hardware, said Grim.
When the Llano (A-Series) comes out, it will deliver 500 GFLOPs. AMD claims that’s 33 times more than a single CPU had two years ago. The Intel P6000 only provides 6h24m, while AMD’s E-350 will give 10h40m of battery life. Ontario, the C-Series, will give over 12 hours of battery life – that’s a resting battery life number. It has a 60 percent better performance than the Intel Atom CPU, AMD claims.
AMD will hold its first software developer summit on June 14-16, 2011 – in Bellevue WA, said Grim.
Xbox and Surface 2 additional information
Xbox Momentum Rolls On: Xbox, Kinect Help Microsoft Connect with Consumers [Jan 6]
The sales figures released at the 2011 Consumer Electronics Show made it official: Kinect has connected with consumers.
Over the past two months consumers have snatched up Kinect almost as quickly as retailers have stocked the shelves, according to sales figures Microsoft reported Wednesday at 2011 CES. Since its release on Nov. 4, more than eight million Kinect sensors have been sold. That figure easily outdistances the five million unit forecast the company had predicted to sell during the sensor’s first 60 days.
Kinect for Xbox 360 was a big hit with consumers over the 2010 holiday season, with eight million sensors sold over a 60-day period.
The wild ride to close out 2010 capped the “biggest year ever” for Xbox, said David Dennis, group public relations manager for Xbox. Over the holiday season, console sales for the Xbox 360 hit 50 million. It also was the No. 1-selling console in North America over the past six months. Meanwhile, the Xbox LIVE community continued to grow strongly overall in 2010, adding a new member every two seconds. Xbox LIVE now has more than 30 million active members.
Dennis said the announcements made at CES, including new Kinect-enabled entertainment experiences and new Xbox LIVE gaming titles, signal that the momentum behind Xbox should continue through 2011.
“It used to be you would go buy this piece of plastic and put it under your TV, and five years later it’s the exact same thing that you bought at the store,” he said. “I think Microsoft has shown the ability to innovate and bring new experiences like Kinect as well as Netflix, Hulu, and ESPN, all leveraging Xbox LIVE, to continue to reinvent what you think of as the Xbox. You turn it on, and we continue to update it, keep it fresh, and bring new features.”
Kinect Transforms Entertainment in the Living Room
Kinect is a prime example of how natural user interface (NUI) is transforming gaming by making it more social and approachable than anyone ever thought was possible, but it’s just the beginning, Dennis said. Several CES announcements showed how Microsoft will take Kinect’s controller-free experience beyond gaming and into entertainment throughout the year. This spring, for example, Xbox LIVE Gold subscribers will be able to use Kinect to control Netflix on Xbox LIVE. Viewers will be able to pause, rewind, and fast-forward streaming movies with only their voice or gestures.
The company also announced that Hulu Plus will be coming to Xbox LIVE as a Kinect-enabled experience this spring. As with Netflix, subscribers will be able to use controller-free motion and voice capabilities to instantly watch full-screen popular TV shows anytime in HD.
Also at CES, the Xbox team introduced a new social experience called Avatar Kinect that will use Kinect’s camera and sensor to bring a player’s avatar to life. It leverages Kinect’s facial recognition technology to let a person control their avatar’s movements and expressions; when they smile, frown, nod and speak, the avatar will do the same, Dennis said.
With Avatar Kinect, a player can invite up to seven friends to join them in one of 15 imaginative virtual environments. One of those worlds is a performance stage, where friends can record their performance and share with friends.
New Gaming Experiences Span Platforms
Microsoft’s Interactive Entertainment Business (IEB) team’s focus at CES wasn’t limited to Kinect. It also highlighted its ongoing efforts at developing a strong portfolio of games across all its platforms, including the PC and Windows Phone 7.
Avatar Kinect uses Kinect’s camera and sensor to bring a player’s avatar to life. With Avatar Kinect, a player can invite up to seven friends to join them in one of 15 imaginative virtual environments, including a stage or a tailgate party.
CES 2011 Press Kits – Xbox.com — Xbox, 2010 Year in Review; Kinect Entertainment Experiences; Kinect; Kinect for Xbox 360 Games; Xbox 360 and Xbox LIVE Arcade Games; Xbox 360 Games for Windows; Windows Mobile Games
Microsoft and Samsung Unveil the Next Generation of Surface [Jan 6]
Samsung SUR40 for Microsoft Surface uses new technology that gives large displays the power to see.
At the 2011 International CES in Las Vegas, Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. and Microsoft Corp. unveiled the next generation of the Microsoft Surface experience featuring PixelSense technology, which gives LCD panels the power to see without the use of cameras. Building from the innovation of the first version of Microsoft Surface and Samsung’s leading display technology, it is now possible for people to share, collaborate and explore together using a large, thin display that recognizes fingers, hands and other objects placed on the screen. This experience will come to life in the Samsung SUR40 for Microsoft Surface for business customers later in 2011 in 23 countries. Dassault Aviation, Fujifilm Corp., Red Bull GmbH, Royal Bank of Canada and Sheraton Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc. announced that they will deploy the new product.
“Microsoft continues to innovate in vision-based interaction and software designed for touch. With the introduction of the next generation of Surface, using PixelSense technology, we’ll bring more tables and walls to life with amazing natural experiences for people to enjoy together,” said Panos Panay, general manager, Microsoft Surface. “We partnered with Samsung because of its strengths in LCD technology, hardware design and manufacturing, and worldwide marketing and sales of large-format displays. The companies have built an incredibly successful collaboration that moved from invention to development to manufacturing and sales of a high-quality, industrialized commercial product.”
“Samsung collaborated with Microsoft to bring the Surface experience to a new, thin design with powerful vision-based capabilities in the LCD market. The Samsung SUR40 for Microsoft Surface delivers an interactive experience not available anywhere else and will change the way companies engage with their customers,” said Jeong-Hwan Kim, senior vice president of Display Sales & Marketing team at Samsung Electronics.
Learn more about the next generation of Surface, Samsung SUR40 for Microsoft Surface, featuring new technology that gives LCD panels the power to see without the use of cameras. Samsung SUR40 also features key hardware and software advancements that were largely informed by feedback from users around the world.
Product Details
Samsung SUR40 will bring companies around the world new ways to help drive sales, showcase their brand, and increase customer satisfaction and loyalty. The product features include these:
• PixelSense. PixelSense gives an LCD display the power to recognize fingers, hands and objects placed on the screen, including more than 50 simultaneous touch points. With PixelSense, pixels in the display see what’s touching the screen and that information is immediately processed and interpreted.
• Microsoft Surface software. Microsoft Surface software provides business customers with a premier touch-first experience for their end users, built on the principles of direct interaction and together computing, with a new look and feel. It also allows commercial application developers to use a new version of the Microsoft Surface SDK and familiar Microsoft development tools to take full advantage of the massive multitouch and object recognition capabilities of PixelSense and deliver experiences not possible on any other platform.
• Designed for commercial environments. The product is designed to meet the challenges of active usage in demanding locations such as retail, hospitality and education.
• Thin form factor with multiple configuration options. The product is four inches thin, which makes it easy to use horizontally, hang vertically with the VESA mount, or embed in walls or custom enclosures. Standard legs are available or customers can design and attach their own.
• Forty-inch full high-definition (HD) 1080p screen. The 40-inch screen enables unparalleled multi-user experiences in full HD 1080p, with a 16:9 aspect ratio and 1920×1080 resolution.
• Powerful embedded system. The product uses the embedded AMD Athlon™ II X2 Dual-Core Processor 2.9GHz paired with the AMD Radeon HD 6700M Series GPU featuring DirectX 11 support to deliver significant processing horsepower and outstanding graphics capability.
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Pricing and Availability
The manufacturer’s suggested price for Samsung SUR40 starts at $7,600 (U.S.). Samsung SUR40 will be available later in 2011 in 23 countries: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Hong Kong, India, Ireland, Italy, Korea, the Netherlands, Norway, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom and the United States.
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Windows Embedded Standard 7: the first wave of OEM partners exploiting the included Windows Media Center
Microsoft Showcases OEM Partners Shipping Connected Media Devices at CES [Jan 6] (emphasis is mine)
At the show, Windows Embedded will use a walk-through “connected living room” environment to feature innovative products from several of its global partners including Haier, Reycom, Prime Time, Acer Gateway and Evolve. These devices work with Microsoft technology such as Windows Phone 7 and Windows Home Server to create a media experience that delivers more than the sum of its parts. By using connected media devices built on Microsoft products together, consumers will be able to merge multimedia content from various sources and locations such as the Internet and broadcast TV, social media portals, and personal libraries of photos, music and videos. All of this content comes together in a centralized entertainment hub that’s accessible by other Windows powered devices throughout the networked home.
Evolve Media, a custom media server manufacturer from the United Kingdom, is announcing all-new embedded software media servers designed for integration into the connected home. The new software platform, dubbed “PRIME,” brings Windows Embedded Standard 7 technologies to Evolve’s award-winning “life” range of products, including the lifeStation, the lifeStream, the lifeStream Mini and the lifeStore home server.
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Reycom is presenting the REC®100, its next-generation hybrid set-top box based on Windows Embedded Standard 7 using high-performance components from Intel® and NVIDIA®. Users can enjoy live TV in HD with time-shift, and access to the Internet providing a wide range of films, TV shows, gaming, Internet TV, music, and apps such as weather and YouTube.
Much of this content can be stored and played with the REC 100’s integrated hard disk and DVD or Blu-ray player. The REC‘s multiroom features allow users to transfer videos, music and pictures between the REC and their personal computers, home server, and Windows Phone 7 — plus, they can use Xbox 360 as a Media Center Extender. The REC can be controlled by the supplied remote control or through a Windows Phone 7 handset. Reycom will launch REC’s U.S. retail version in the first quarter of 2011, followed by dedicated versions for U.S. cable operators and U.S. telecom company operators by mid-2011.
Windows Embedded Fact Sheet [Jan 5]
Windows Embedded Standard 7 brings the technology and rich user experiences of Windows 7 to Enterprise and media centric devices. Its enhanced features and familiar tools help OEMs make the journey from concept to creation faster than ever. Visit www.windowsembedded.com/standard.
CES brings wave of connected media devices thanks to Windows Media Center in Windows Embedded 7 [Jan 13] (emphasis is mine)
Most consumers may not know what Windows Embedded is, although many of you have interacted with it somewhere along the line. Windows Embedded is a componentized version of the OS that we offer to manufacturers who can then optimize it for use in specialized devices. It runs everything from automotive systems to retail point of sale machines, digital signage and industrial equipment.
So last April, when it was announced that the latest version – Window Embedded Standard 7 – included the Windows Media Center feature, not too many consumers took notice. Over on TheGreenButton.com, however, our enthusiast community certainly did.
With Windows Media Center as a key feature of Windows Embedded, manufacturers can now design set-top boxes and other fit-for-purpose devices that provide the Windows Media Center experience directly out of the box. A product like that has the potential to bring all sorts of content together into one crisp, living room friendly experience. For consumers this means that with one box, you can access Internet-based content, social media, broadcast TV, as well your own pictures, music and movies, but without the set-up, planning and system building that has marked Windows Media Center adoption to date.
Sure enough, last week at CES we saw the first wave of such products from the likes of Haier, Reycom, Prime Time, Acer Gateway and Evolve, all of whom are using WES7 to do innovative things with connected media devices and set-top boxes, creating a centralized hub for your entertainment experiences.
The first box we can anticipate seeing in the US may well come from Swiss company Reycom, which plans to bring its REC 100 set-top box to the US in the first quarter of this year. The unit sports dual ATSC tuners for HD over-the-air TV, and has a BluRay player option. (Pricing and availability details are still being determined.)
Above: A new set-top box: Reycom’s REC100 is expected to arrive in the US in Q1, 2011.
I was also excited to see the embedded offerings from the UK’s Evolve Media, in part because I had a chance to check out their media servers and take in a presentation by Evolve’s David Simpson on best practices for building a great HTPC this past June at the UK Windows Media Center-Windows Home Server Meet up. Evolve makes absolutely beautiful machines, so I’m excited to see them now working with Embedded.
Haier also piqued enthusiasts’ interest with a TV that has Windows Media Center built in. Michael “Mikinho” Welter, one of our Windows Entertainment and Connected Home MVPs, checked it out for Missing Remote. Missing Remote’s Mike Garcen (also an MVP!) provided this summary of HTPC-news from CES, here.
A preview of a unit from Acer Gateway got a lot of attention because it was rocking a CableCARD™ tuner from Ceton that supports up to six streams of HD broadcast content. Ian Dixon, another Windows Entertainment and Connected Home MVP, checked it out on video, here, and got a good look at some other embedded devices, here. Ian’s CES coverage is always must-see, must-read for an enthusiast.
And speaking of CableCARD™, CES was also the first time we saw folks get hands-on with the forthcoming HDHomeRun Prime, a networked CableCARD tuner from Silicondust that supports three streams of channel tuning goodness.
So while many of you may not have heard of Windows Embedded before, the coming year looks to offer some great connected media products for you to check out. One last note for those of you who are aspiring system builders – you can check out the preview version of Windows Embedded 7 SP1, here.
The home theater PC is dead, long live Windows Media Center [Jan 14]
There has been a lot of discussion in the Windows Media Center community about the product’s death. The theory is that Microsoft is throwing in the towel, focusing on the Xbox 360 and intends to let the best DVR software available become stale — or worse, eliminate it from future versions of Windows altogether. After watching the Ballmer keynote at CES last week, it was hard not to get on this train as we all watched the 360, Windows Phone 7, and Windows highlighted on stage. But then something happened when the show floor opened: Windows embedded products were highlighted in private meetings and elsewhere. There was a buzz around Media Center embedded and even a price and ship date; meanwhile, home theater PCs got no love. So after years of trying, it appears that all hopes that HTPCs will ever emerge from their niche status are gone, but the same can not be said for Windows Media Center.
The demise of HTPCs is not for a lack of effort
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Microsoft has tried as hard as anyone to make this geek dream come true, with multiple versions of Media Center and money dumped into R&D trying to entice programming providers in the US and the rest of the world to bring their programming to Windows. … the problem is there’s no mainstream market for an HTPC, so realistically-speaking, another few billion dumped into marketing wouldn’t have changed a thing (c.f. Kin). Consumer electronics have to be like an appliance, they just need to work.
Why an embedded Media Center just makes sense
… What’s new is that Microsoft ported its Media Center software to the latest embedded version of Windows and is giving hardware partners the chance to build a DVR without spending all the big bucks on developing software. This means that some entrepreneurial electronics manufacturer can grab off the shelf parts, add in a little of Redmond’s software and deliver a dependable DVR to mainstream America — in theory.
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Extenders vs set-top-boxes
Now, this is where things get interesting. Microsoft tried a few times to proxy the PC into the living room via Extenders and suffice to say the attempts all failed pretty miserably — same goes for embedded devices, by the way. Maybe the hardware wasn’t ready, who knows, but what we do know is that two Media Center PCs don’t play well together with DRM’d content and if more than one Media Center in the house has a tuner, things can messy real quick. There have been a few recent changes in the content world that could really impact success here though. …
What does Microsoft, Comcast, Timer Warner Cable, CableLabs, and just about every major movie studio have in common? They are all a member of the Digital Entertainment Content Ecosystem and have vowed their support to UltraViolet. We know that joining a group and actually participating are two different things, but it isn’t out of the question that UltraViolet’s new DRM could be added to the CableLabs spec. This would mean that “each household will be able to create an account for up to six members who can access the household’s UltraViolet Movies, TV… Consumers will also be able to register up to 12 devices.” This new tech won’t be ready until later this year, but it does offer hope that DRM might not always be this bad, some day.
Wrap-up
It’s going to take more than Reycom, Acer / Gateway, and Haier to make this thing take off, but it isn’t hard to let your imagination wonder on where this all could go. It would also be hard to argue that this isn’t Microsoft’s strongest position in the DVR market yet, and while anything could happen, we say long live Media Center with confidence. Who knows, if things go well, all the other previous promising developments for Media Center that never were, might find their way to market too. Then again, we’ve been wrong before.
