Multi-Core GPUs Announced from iPhone Chip Maker

[MacRumors]

Imagination Technologies announced further details of their first multi-core embedded graphics chip called POWERVR SGX543MP this week. The Register explains that the multi-core support in the new chips is essentially transparent to application developers:

In other words, the SGX543 can have any number of cores from two to sixteen with no change in the driver software or the application. All that complex data/pipeline/thread management is done in hardware. No muss, no fuss.

The Register then makes a questionable leap that this could power an Apple Tablet. Still, Apple's interest in the technology seems certain as they are a licensee and investor of Imagination Technologies and currently uses the company's PowerVR chip in the iPhone and iPod Touch.

According to the press release, the new chips are being delivered to customers in two-core and 16-core variants and appear to incorporate support for OpenGL and OpenCL. While Apple has not announced any new hardware revisions to the iPhone, many believe that the next generation iPhone will likely be released alongside the public release of the iPhone 3.0 firmware this summer.

Article Link: Multi-Core GPUs Announced from iPhone Chip Maker

[edesignuk]

http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?t=670136

[commander.data]

I guess if this is completely transparent to the driver and programmer PowerVR's GPU isn't as much SLI, ie. more than 1 graphics card together, as it is a dual die design like Intel's Core 2 Quad. I guess it's easier to do since it's an embedded design anyways. If all the cores share the same memory pool it'll probably be more efficient to unlike SLI where the memory storage is separated which makes having the separate cards working together more difficult since it's easier for them to work on separate tasks, but hard for them to work on the same task.

[overanalyzer]

If Apple releases the many planned features of iPhone OS 3.0, App Developers utilize them as whole-heartedly as they have utilized the SDK so far, and a new multi-core iPhone comes out, I think we're witnessing the beginning of an entirely new era of computer-people integration. The idea of masses of people having a computer with them at all times with this level of capabilities is likely going to alter society every bit as much as the personal computer being widely adopted.


I just hope fart apps aren't the only thing we can accomplish.

[adamw]

Great news. I hope Apple can use this new chip in their products!

[kcmac]

A computer that just happens to also be a phone. Looks like I will be upgrading this summer fall if this all comes to light.

[xsecretfiles]

If its comes in the new iphone, I will upgrade in a heart beat.

[themoonisdown09]

This would be a huge upgrade! I'm really hoping the this actually happens because I'll be buying my first iPhone this summer.

[gmcalpin]

Originally Posted by overanalyzer

I just hope fart apps aren't the only thing we can accomplish.

Don't be so cynical. Free porn will be available everywhere, too.

[sam10685]

If I don't get new hardware with software 3.0, I will burst into flames.

[Pwned]

June can't come soon enough...

[Enuratique]

I'm skeptical of this hardware going in the next iPhone revision. My hunch is that what comes out this summer is a minor spec bump (32GB memory, probably better camera / memory that can support many read/writes for recording, maybe a slightly faster CPU) and that the 4th gen iPhone will be what gets these tasty treats... I think Apple has its hands full with ironing out the bugs in iPhone OS3.0 and this hardware may get tried out in a tablet device first as a trial run. I think Apple's investment in PA Semi is what will really make the iPhone a true computer in your pocket.

[chrisgeleven]

Originally Posted by Enuratique

I'm skeptical of this hardware going in the next iPhone revision. My hunch is that what comes out this summer is a minor spec bump (32GB memory, probably better camera / memory that can support many read/writes for recording, maybe a slightly faster CPU) and that the 4th gen iPhone will be what gets these tasty treats... I think Apple has its hands full with ironing out the bugs in iPhone OS3.0 and this hardware may get tried out in a tablet device first as a trial run. I think Apple's investment in PA Semi is what will really make the iPhone a true computer in your pocket.

I agree. I think they would need better battery technology to pull off a multi-core processor.

[redwin11]

Originally Posted by Pwned

June can't come soon enough...

July by the time we get our hands on anything new...

...or potentially August if Apple decide to have low stocks of this handset too.

[branjosef]

I didn't know the new iphone nano was going to be multi-core. What's the point of owning a regular iphone then?

[shiseiryu1]

Originally Posted by Enuratique

I'm skeptical of this hardware going in the next iPhone revision. My hunch is that what comes out this summer is a minor spec bump (32GB memory, probably better camera / memory that can support many read/writes for recording, maybe a slightly faster CPU) and that the 4th gen iPhone will be what gets these tasty treats... I think Apple has its hands full with ironing out the bugs in iPhone OS3.0 and this hardware may get tried out in a tablet device first as a trial run. I think Apple's investment in PA Semi is what will really make the iPhone a true computer in your pocket.

I agree that it is unlikely the upcoming iPhone will have multiple cores...seems to me that what the iPhone needs in the near future is better battery life, not more cores. The battery already drains like crazy if you use the phone in any meaningful way; fix that first and then I'll be more excited about extra processing power.

[lazyrighteye]

2-core = iPhone, 16-core = tablet?
Nah.

[Hardcoredan52]

What about battery life? The iphone in my opinion dies too fast as it is ....

[Yvan256]

Originally Posted by shiseiryu1

I agree that it is unlikely the upcoming iPhone will have multiple cores...seems to me that what the iPhone needs in the near future is better battery life, not more cores. The battery already drains like crazy if you use the phone in any meaningful way; fix that first and then I'll be more excited about extra processing power.

If you have more cores than you can disable the ones not needed, saving power.

[Michael73]

I, for one have been holding out buying an iPhone since it launched June 29, 2007 always thinking the hardware and software had some maturing to do. I'm not one of those people who change mobile devices often. In fact, I'm still using a Blackberry 7100 that is more than 4 years old. I firmly believe that with the rollout of v3 of the OS and the third gen of the hardware design, this summer could be the sweet spot to get an iPhone.

[8CoreWhore]

I'm all over this like a duck on a junebug!

[diamond.g]

Does anyone know if Core= SPU in this case? If so wouldn't that mean that any modern GPU is multi-core already?

[Peace]

Originally Posted by diamond.g

Does anyone know if Core= SPU in this case? If so wouldn't that mean that any modern GPU is multi-core already?

This chip is designed for embedded products not normal computers.

[darwinian]

It's certainly not unreasonable but still an assumption to say that these chips will necessarily draw more power than current iterations. Is this true somewhere?


Disclaimer: no, I have not read the PR fully.

[Bye Bye Baby]

I predict a new product not another product for the summer- no new iphone rather some other wizz bang product that will make me want to spend more money.

I love to hate that feeling of "hmm can I pay for this now..."