OMAP 4 application processors currently use dual-core ARM Cortex-A9s to power a range of smartphones and tablets, including Amazon’s Kindle Fire, the Samsung Galaxy Nexus and the Motorola Droid RAZR.
The fifth generation, OMAP 5 SoC (system-on-chip) uses “a dual-core ARM Cortex-A15 CPU with two additional Cortex-M4 cores to offload the A15s in less computationally intensive tasks to increase power efficiency,” as well as “two PowerVR SGX544MP graphics cores and a dedicated TI 2D BitBlt graphics accelerator, a multi-pipe display sub-system and a signal processor.”
OMAP 5 will run at speeds up to 2GHz, with TI boasting a 50 percent performance improvement over A9. It will also be able to support up to 8 GB of dual channel DDR3 memory and a 20 megapixel camera for front and rear 3D HD video recording.
Before OMAP 5 arrives, however, TI has a busy year ahead with OMAP 4 set to power a wide range of devices, including the Ascend PS 1, dubbed the world’s slimmest smartphone.
Credit: Forbes