TI demos OMAP5 . . . not bad

[destrekor]

Qualcomm has an ARM architecture license but builds their own custom processors. Similar to AMD having an X86 license

Krait is supposedly not quite as powerful as A15 but much more power efficient and overall smaller chip

And yes the last paragraph is basically what i meant. Apple might be a lead partner for Cortex A15 but has asked ARM not to announce it. IMG usually announces when Samsung, TI, Intel buy a Power VR license but never Apple, yet Apple still has the latest hardware from them

Krait will hold a decent fight with A15 chips, but I think A15 will have the higher potential as you increase cores and clockspeed.
Krait is a great architecture that does share a lot of the same features of the improvements found in the A15.
I have a feeling the SGX544MP2 is going to be a little outdated by the time we finally get our hands on the first OMAP5 devices, which will likely be the 2012 Holiday season.
But Qualcomm could definitely cook up some updates to the Krait architecture, so who knows. They are going to run the market though for pretty much the entire year if that's how long it takes TI, and Tegra3 won't be able to keep up I expect... where the hell is Samsung in all of this anyway? Haven't heard a thing about plans for a new chip.

 

[Fire&Blood]

Too bad we'll have to wait almost a year for a device featuring this chip.
28nm, A15, SGX543...

Qualcomm's S4 appears to be the 1st next gen chip to reach the market, sometime this summer but it also looks like we'll have to wait til fall for the better models. I'm not impressed with Adreno 225, the later models to feature the Adreno 320 should get it done.

Samsung's Exynos 5250 could hit the market before OMAP5 but I just don't see how a 2012 smartphone could feature it, most likely Samsung will launch a tablet with it sometime this fall.

Apple? They don't need latest hardware as much as Android does. At some point, they will switch to A15 as well but if they can squeeze out more out of A9 via a die shrink, they could ride out 2012 without a A15 part. I shudder to think what would happen if Apple brought out the A15 with a Power VR 6 series before 2012 is over.

We have been hearing about these next gen parts since for a while, none of them made it in 2011 and it looks like at least another 6 months before they start hitting the market.

Personally, I regret not jumping on the SGS2 boat as soon as it came out.
Since Android is my preferred platform, that would have been the best choice in terms of performance and value over time. SGS2 has been around for 7 months now, an ICS update is imminent which will even the ground vs. other phones. Yes, 720p is nice, but a next gen resolution should be accompanied by a next gen SoC pushing that resolution. Besides, software adjustments to 720p and new apps games native to it will take some time as well. SG3 will undoubtedly be better than SGS2 but it won't be quite the leap the SGS2 enjoyed over SGS1, to repeat that would take a Exynos 5250.

It looks like the Android summer belongs to S4/HTC, assuming a 50% higher clocked Mali can't beat the Adreno 225. Adreno has been anemic in the past but Adreno 225 spec sheet is identical to the SGX 543MP2 and we all know how that one fares. The A9 CPU on the Exynos 4xxx should fall behind the S4 as well. It costs Qualcomm significantly more time and money to create custom cores as opposed to simply adopting the ARM solution so if nothing else, they were motivated to do it well. S4 may not be a reference A15 part but on paper at least it should be just as good. The headroom gained from switching down to 28nm shouldn't be ignored as well.

 

[lothar]

Too bad we'll have to wait almost a year for a device featuring this chip.
28nm, A15, SGX543...

Qualcomm's S4 appears to be the 1st next gen chip to reach the market, sometime this summer but it also looks like we'll have to wait til fall for the better models. I'm not impressed with Adreno 225, the later models to feature the Adreno 320 should get it done.

Samsung's Exynos 5250 could hit the market before OMAP5 but I just don't see how a 2012 smartphone could feature it, most likely Samsung will launch a tablet with it sometime this fall.

Apple? They don't need latest hardware as much as Android does. At some point, they will switch to A15 as well but if they can squeeze out more out of A9 via a die shrink, they could ride out 2012 without a A15 part. I shudder to think what would happen if Apple brought out the A15 with a Power VR 6 series before 2012 is over.

We have been hearing about these next gen parts since for a while, none of them made it in 2011 and it looks like at least another 6 months before they start hitting the market.

Personally, I regret not jumping on the SGS2 boat as soon as it came out.
Since Android is my preferred platform, that would have been the best choice in terms of performance and value over time. SGS2 has been around for 7 months now, an ICS update is imminent which will even the ground vs. other phones. Yes, 720p is nice, but a next gen resolution should be accompanied by a next gen SoC pushing that resolution. Besides, software adjustments to 720p and new apps games native to it will take some time as well. SG3 will undoubtedly be better than SGS2 but it won't be quite the leap the SGS2 enjoyed over SGS1, to repeat that would take a Exynos 5250.

It looks like the Android summer belongs to S4/HTC, assuming a 50% higher clocked Mali can't beat the Adreno 225. Adreno has been anemic in the past but Adreno 225 spec sheet is identical to the SGX 543MP2 and we all know how that one fares. The A9 CPU on the Exynos 4xxx should fall behind the S4 as well. It costs Qualcomm significantly more time and money to create custom cores as opposed to simply adopting the ARM solution so if nothing else, they were motivated to do it well. S4 may not be a reference A15 part but on paper at least it should be just as good. The headroom gained from switching down to 28nm shouldn't be ignored as well.

Won't happen.
Apple will bring out a quad core version of current iPhone 4S/iPad 2 chip. If it requires a die shrink for them to do that, they will.

 

[ITHURTSWHENIP]

This doesn't matter because unless Apple plans on actually getting into the chip design industry (they wouldn't be the fabricators, it would be one of the well-established fabs), they will not even be on ARM's radar; their only business is with chip designers. The big chip companies would be the one who holds business with Apple, and they would be the one from which Apple demands everything they've got for a few months.
It can basically be surmised Samsung will not be the provider of the "A6" SoC, so that leaves TI or Qualcomm. I highly, highly doubt Apple will source from nVidia, because a Tegra with Cortex A15 (Tegra 4?) will be in manufacturers' hands long after the rest of the industry has released product to consumers with an A15 SoC of some variety. And having what is essentially an outdated SoC, or at the least, considered last-gen half a year after you have it in a device, is not Apple's way.

Im sorry but you dont know what you are talking about. Apple has been in the chip design industry since 2008. They own two semiconductor companies. P.A Semi and Intrinsity, one of these are doing the A6 designs and the past A series SOCs. So they dont have any need for TI, Nvidia or Samsung for their chip designs. They do have business with Qualcomm for their LTE radios though

 

[Bateluer]

Im sorry but you dont know what you are talking about. Apple has been in the chip design industry since 2008. They own two semiconductor companies. P.A Semi and Intrinsity, one of these are doing the A6 designs and the past A series SOCs. So they dont have any need for TI, Nvidia or Samsung for their chip designs. They do have business with Qualcomm for their LTE radios though

I believe destrekor was referring to manufacturing the chip. Apple has been modifying existing designs for a few years now, but they've been having Samsung actually make the silicon. Apple doesn't own any fabs, AFAIK.

I don't see them contracting to Samsung for fab space after suing them for making black rectangular devices. Plenty of other semiconductor companies to contract out to.

 

[ITHURTSWHENIP]

I believe destrekor was referring to manufacturing the chip. Apple has been modifying existing designs for a few years now, but they've been having Samsung actually make the silicon. Apple doesn't own any fabs, AFAIK.

I don't see them contracting to Samsung for fab space after suing them for making black rectangular devices. Plenty of other semiconductor companies to contract out to.

No his first paragraph was "if Apple wants to get in the chip design industry"

And he specifically mentioned TI or Qualcomm as potential providers for their future chips. But none of these two have fabs either, they pay TSMC for that

And they will most likely use Samsung for fabbing the A6. Sammy just built a new plant in Texas just for Apple. You have to realize Samsung is a massive corporation with multiple divisions. Apple has beef with their mobile division, not their fab division.

Samsung is stable at 32 nm, TSMC can be hit or miss

 

[destrekor]

Indeed, apparently I was wrong.