Posts tagged intel
Intel’s $126 YOLO phone matches quad-core Samsung Galaxy S III performance
Jan 26th
New benchmark results suggest Intel may have a bright future in smartphones after all– and the first phone to show that is, appropriately, named YOLO. (though sadly it’s spelled “Yolo,” not “#YOLO”)
Low-end Android handsets in developing markets sell in the $70-200 range (without carrier subsidies). They’re typically equipped with processors from Chinese manufacturers like MediaTek, Allwinner, or Rockchip — often with anemic ARM11 performance in tow. Buyers wanting a smooth Android experience have to step up to more expensive phones.
Into this void stepped Intel, which announced its new Atom Z2420 processor at CES a few weeks ago. Formerly codenamed “Lexington,” the mobile platform features a single-core 1.2 GHz CPU with HyperThreading (a lower-clocked version of the 1.6 GHz Z2460 Medfield / Penwell chip in the Xolo X900), PowerVR SGX540 graphics, Intel XMM 6265 HSPA+ 3G radio (a variant of the XMM 6260 adding dual-SIM support– important for developing markets), MicroSD support, FM radio, and even Intel’s Wireless Display (WiDi) technology, which can stream 1080p HD video to Wifi-connected TVs. The chip supports up to 1.3 MP front and 5 MP rear cameras and can record and play back 1080p video.
As with Intel’s first smartphone processor, the new Lexington platform was accompanied by a “shipping quality” reference smartphone (“FFRD,” or Form Factor Reference Design) to help manufacturers get off the ground with its chip. Safaricom of Kenya and Lava Mobile of India are bringing variants of this design to market, as is Acer.
Today we have the first benchmark results from the Safaricom phone, dubbed “Yolo,” and they’re quite surprising. The 3.5″ HVGA (320×480) phone includes 512MB RAM, 4GB storage, 5 MP rear camera (no flash), MicroSD slot, and Android 4.0.4, and sells for 10,999 KES ($126).
Juuchini put the Yolo up against Samsung’s flagship Android phone, the Galaxy S III GT-I9300, packing an Eynos 4412 processor (quad-core 1.4 GHz ARM Cortex A9 with Mali-400MP graphics) and 1GB of RAM. As the results show, Intel’s phone comes pretty close to matching the almost 5x more expensive S III:
|
Phone |
Specs |
Antutu Benchmark (higher = better) |
Vellamo (Metal) |
Vellamo (HTML 5) |
Vellamo (Extras) |
|
Samsung Galaxy S III (GT-i9300) |
Samsung Exynos 4412, quad-core ARM Cortex A9 @ 1.4 GHz, 1 GB RAM, 1280×720 resolution |
12986 |
403 |
1360 |
110 |
|
Intel Safaricom Yolo |
Intel Atom Z2420, single-core Atom @ 1.2 GHz with HyperThreading, 512 MB RAM, 480×320 resolution |
12961 |
423 |
1009 |
49 |
Note: some versions of the Galaxy S3 (e.g. most of the U.S. versions) have a dual-core Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 processor instead of the quad-core Exynos and will thus produce different benchmark results.
See here for a review of the Yolo. The phone will hit India shortly as the Lava Xolo X500, retailing for Rs. 8,999 ($167).
Intel doesn’t appear to be targeting the U.S. market with this, which is unfortunate, as we think a Yolo with a higher-resolution (e.g. 800×480) screen could do well as an entry-level smartphone (think free-on-contract). And maybe it’d sell even better if branded “#YOLO.”
Still, the Lexington platform’s performance in such a low-priced handset bodes well for Intel’s future in the smartphone industry.
Lava announces Intel Medfield-powered Xolo X900 Android smartphone for India
Feb 28th
Lava, a player in the Indian budget smartphone market, unveiled the Xolo X900, the first handset powered by Intel’s Medfield x86 chipset (formerly codenamed Penwell). The Xolo runs Android 2.3.7 Gingerbread on top of a 1.6 GHz single-core Intel Atom Z2460 (Medfield) chip. Screen size is 4″, with 1024×600 resolution, 8-megapixel rear camera with flash, VGA front-facing camera, NFC support, HDMI output, and a 1640 mAh battery.
The phone is based on Intel’s Medfield reference design, which UK carrier Orange is also using for its upcoming phone, codenamed Santa Clara.
Pricing is unknown as of yet, but Lava says the Xolo X900 should hit the market — only in India — in April.
Hands-on videos with the X900 after the break.
Nokia CEO responds to Google VP’s “two turkeys” tweet, clarifies WP7 strategy
Feb 11th
Two days before the Nokia-Microsoft alliance was announced, Google’s Vic Gundotra attacked the two companies by tweeting that “two turkeys do not make an Eagle.” Now Nokia’s CEO Stephen Elop has responded with a tweet saying “two bicycle makers from Dayton Ohio, one day decided to fly”– referencing the Wright brothers.
Separately, Elop and Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer provided some more details on the deal. The arrangement is not exclusive– Microsoft will continue to work with other phone manufacturers on Windows Phone 7, though Nokia will get some “unique” benefits out of the deal. When asked if Nokia would be able to customize “everything” on Windows Phone 7 (unlike current WP7 licensees), Elop said yes, but clarified that Nokia was unlikely to do so, as it preferred maintaining full compatibility across the Windows Phone platform.
Read on for more details.
Project Denver: Windows 8 on Nvidia CPUs, Intel in the Crosshairs
Jan 5th
In the course of just a few hours, the seeds have been planted for a major upheaval in personal computing. Hot on the heels of Microsoft’s announcement that Windows 8 will support ARM processors, graphics chip maker Nvidia has revealed that it is developing a full lineup of ARM processors. ”Project Denver” will include CPUs for desktops, laptops, servers, and supercomputers and is an all-out assault on Intel’s PC market dominance.
In the past, Nvidia has licensed ARM cores for its Tegra and Tegra 2 smartphone/tablet chipsets (see here for more info), but with this announcement, Nvidia aims to turn itself into a full-fledged System-on-a-Chip (SoC) architecture designer– a major upgrade. The firm will integrate graphics chipsets into its CPUs, as Intel and AMD have done recently. The single most important factor that makes Project Denver significant, however, is Microsoft’s announcement: no longer being limited to just x86 chips (which Nvidia could never get a license from Intel to produce), Windows 8 PCs will be able to run on Nvidia’s processors without issue.
Read on for more about Nvidia’s new CPU project.
AMD kills ATI brand
Aug 30th
Alas, the day has come when the world of computer graphics cards will no longer be a race between red (ATI) and green (Nvidia). Instead it’ll be green all over, as AMD just announced that it will be shuttering the ATI brand. ATI’s product brands — Radeon, FirePro, Eyefinity, and the like — will still remain and will be colored red, but they’ll all now be AMD-branded.
The decision is based on the company’s upcoming Fusion hybrid APUs, which will combine an AMD CPU and ATI graphics chip into one core. Branding everything as AMD makes things simpler, but we have to question the company’s judgement in the graphics space. Whereas AMD is still largely seen as a value-oriented second-choice to Intel in the processor space, ATI has a market-leading brand image in graphics.
Only time will tell whether AMD will end up diluting its strength in graphics by associating Radeon with Phenom. Interestingly, the change would mean that Intel-powered computers with ATI graphics would now have both Intel and AMD stickers on them, so AMD will be offering stickers that say just “Radeon graphics,” without AMD — which seemingly defeats the purpose of killing the ATI brand.
Read on for more about AMD’s decision.
HP Slate detailed: $549, 1.6 GHz Atom, 5 hour battery, dual cameras
Apr 7th
A leaked HP internal slide details the the company’s upcoming Windows 7-powered iPad competitor, dubbed the HP Slate. The base model will cost $549 and sports an 8.9″ 1024×600 capacitive multitouch display with pen support, a 1.6 GHz Intel Atom Z530 CPU, Intel integrated graphics, a video accelerator for 1080p playback, 32 GB storage, and 1 GB RAM. The Slate includes a five-hour, 2-cell battery, an SDXC slot, front- (1.3 MP) and rear-facing (3 MP) cameras, a USB 2.0 slot, a SIM card slot for 3G wireless, and a dock connector (with HDMI video, audio, and power connections). For $599, HP will offer a 64 GB version of the tablet.
While the Slate’s specs suggest it’ll get half of the iPad’s 10-hour rated battery life, it’s a very different device. The iPad uses a smartphone processor and the simplified iPhone OS, while the Slate runs full-blown Windows 7, with an HP TouchSmart interface on top, on a netbook-style Intel Atom platform.
McLaren Unveils MP4-12C: 600 HP V8, 1.6 GHz Intel Atom, Runs Windows
Mar 19th
Earlier today, McLaren Automotive unveiled its new supercar, the MP4-12C, and as expected, it’s a performance monster, powered by McLaren’s own (not BMW- or Mercedes-designed, as in the company’s earlier cars) 3.8L V8 mid-engine developing 600 horsepower and 443 pound-feet of torque with an 8,000-rpm redline. Most impressively, at least 369 lb-ft of torque is available at all times between 2,000 and 8,000 rpm. The car is constructed of a center carbon-fiber tub and outer aluminum structures, weighing in at just 1,300 kg (2,870 lb)– not quite as light as the 1,000 kg McLaren F1, but impressive nonetheless considering how much more safety equipment the MP4-12C carries.
So far, so good. The MP4-12C ‘s going to be light, fast, very well-built (build tolerances are less than 0.5 mm), safe (McLaren’s conducting dozens of crash tests to maximize safety), maybe even reliable (with over a million miles of test driving), but comfortable and livable? Not words one might typically use to describe a supercar, but that’s what McLaren’s aiming for.
The MP4-12C features a 7" in-dash touch screen powered by a 1.6 GHz Intel Atom CPU running Microsoft software
Here’s where it gets really interesting. The MP4-12C’s spec sheet looks like someone accidentally mixed it in with something describing a netbook or tablet. Intel Atom 1.6 GHz, 7″ portrait-mode touch screen, Bluetooth, 802.11 Wifi, USB, and Microsoft software. Now that’s something you won’t find in any factory-shipped car in America, let alone a supercar. It’s all part of McLaren’s IRIS infotainment system, which is based on Microsoft software, presumably running on Windows Embedded. McLaren’s choice of Atom is interesting because in-car entertainment systems generally don’t require as much performance as an x86 Atom chip can deliver (Ford’s Microsoft-powered SYNC has a 400 MHz ARM11 processor, for example– see here for info on embedded processors), so IRIS must be something pretty fancy.
Full photo gallery after the break. More >
Intel, Nokia to reveal “Penwell” Atom-based smartphone platform at MWC?
Feb 11th
Intel’s strategy for many years has been “x86 everywhere,” bringing the processors that power desktop computers down to laptops, netbooks, TVs, DVRs, and more, and now it looks like the company might finally be ready for a push into smartphones, courtesy of a deal with Nokia. Engadget reports that Intel and Nokia will make a joint presentation at Mobile World Congress next week. While the event will probably be related to something simple, like a refreshed Booklet (Nokia’s netbook), we’re told Intel and Nokia might begin to talk about a new wireless platform combining Intel’s CPU bits with a Nokia radio chipset. More information below.
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