iOS/Android game dev claims Tegra2 surpasses iPad 2 tech

[tuatha]

Interesting tidbit from the CEO of Trendy (makers of Dungeon Defenders) regarding Xoom versus iPad and iPad2:

Trendy Entertainment, for example, showed its "Dungeon Defenders" game, which has been ported to the PlayStation 3 and the Microsoft Xbox Live Arcade. The power of the Tegra 2 means that coding a mobile version of the game for the Xoom is basically a "1:1 port", executives said.
"As you can see it's running 30, 40 frames per second," said Agapitus "Agie" Lye, the chief executive of Trendy. "With Android iPhone version there's about 20 on-screen enemies at once. With the new operating system, we can put up to 50."

Trendy develops both for iOS as well as for Android, but Lye said that Apple doesn't have anything that will compete. The Xoom has about "twice" the horsepower of the iPad, Lye said. When asked how the iPad 2 will compare, Lye said that the Tegra 2 will still surpass what the iPad 2 brings to market.

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2379264,00.asp


Comments regarding the current iPad are a given, but the second part is what caught my eye. Is he just speculating? Or is it conceivable that a relatively high profile iOS developer might have knowledge of - or even access to - the iPad 2 technology at this stage?

Join me in pointless speculation. You know you want to.

 

[Dr McKay]

Surely by now you must know the majority of Apple users dont buy them for specs, they buy for ease of use, and the whole package that an Apple product is.

 

[tuatha]

Surely by now you must know the majority of Apple users dont buy them for specs, they buy for ease of use, and the whole package that an Apple product is.

Well, I'm really just wondering if it's possible that he has some inside knowledge regarding the CPU/GPU capabilities of the new iPad.

It's interesting if true. The last few iOS devices have really excelled in the graphics department. Given the growing focus on games across iOS and Android, I was expecting Apple's offering to be very competitive with the Tegra 2.

 

[MrWillie]

Hmm let's see...

Tegra 2 : Dual core A9 @ 1 ghz
Apple rumor: Dual core A9 @ 1.2 ghz

Now, how is the SGX543 going to compare to ULV Geforce of the Tegra 2?

 

[MacDawg]

Well, I'm really just wondering if it's possible that he has some inside knowledge regarding the CPU/GPU capabilities of the new iPad.

It's interesting if true. The last few iOS devices have really excelled in the graphics department. Given the growing focus on games across iOS and Android, I was expecting Apple's offering to be very competitive with the Tegra 2.

Not likely he has inside info

 

[hcho3]

Cool info bro. Could you please more specific about how much this awesome Xoom wi-fi will cost compare to iPad 2 wi-fi?

I am very certain that xoom will cost more.

If it does, then it doesn't even matter which is more powerful because iPad wins.

I would never pay more than 499-599 dollars on tablet. Anything more than that, it is reaching those Macbook air pricing point or other netbooks.

 

[tuatha]

Cool info bro. Could you please more specific about how much this awesome Xoom wi-fi will cost compare to iPad 2 wi-fi?

I am very certain that xoom will cost more.

If it does, then it doesn't even matter which is more powerful because iPad wins.

I would never pay more than 499-599 dollars on tablet. Anything more than that, it is reaching those Macbook air pricing point or other netbooks.

The rumour mill has the 32GB 3G version pegged at between $699 and $799, which is comparable to the current 32GB 3G iPad at $729

So when the wifi version drops I would expect it to be in the same price range as the wifi iPad.

What's with the hostile tone? These are tablets, not members of your family.

 

[fpnc]

The only benchmarks that I've seen that try to compare the Tegra 2 graphics to the PowerVR family that is currently used in iOS devices and many Android phones suggest that the Tegra 2 is only about 20% faster than the PowerVR SGX540 (varies depending on the benchmark or game, in some instances the SGX540 is faster than the Tegra 2). Note, however, that the iPad uses an SGX535 which is significantly "slower" than the SGX540.

http://www.anandtech.com/show/4054/first-look-viewsonic-gtablet-and-tegra-2-performance-preview/2

However, the Tegra 2 has a dual-core, ARM9-based CPU while the current iPad only has a single-core, ARM8-based processor (Apple's A4). In any case, I'm expecting that the next iPad will move to a dual-core ARM9 CPU (Apple A5 or A6?) and that should eliminate any CPU advantage that the Tegra 2 might currently have over what was in last year's iPad. Also, it is rumored (or pretty much expected) that the iPad 2 will be upgraded to use the SGX543 GPU which should offer notably better performance than today's iPad.

Comparing GPUs in smartphones and tablets is a complicated matter since benchmarks vary, app optimizations vary, OS implementations vary, and some GPU-families will be better in one area but worse in another.

In any case, I wouldn't worry too much because if the iPad 2 gets a dual-core ARM9 and a SGX543 then its performance should be fine in comparison to the latest competition.

 

[hcho3]

The rumour mill has the 32GB 3G version pegged at between $699 and $799, which is comparable to the current 32GB 3G iPad at $729

So when the wifi version drops I would expect it to be in the same price range.

What's with the hostile tone? These are tablets, not members of your family.

Unfortunately, that's not how people will compare.

Only techies and journalists will compare by every single specs.

There is absolutely no hostile tone. It was more like sarcasm tone. I hardly consider cool story bro as any hostile tone.
However, it is unfair to compare iPad 2 that no one knows about. This CEO doesn't know anything because he doesn't work for apple.

Wi-fi verison? You expect it to be in the same price range? You do realize that you have no proof of this...

I expect Xoom to cost 699 dollars for wi-fi version and 799 dollars for 3G version.

 

[PhoneI]

interesting, especially since I read some hands on reports of people that tried this game out yesterday on the XOOM (just an awful name) and complained of lag.

 

[thesmoth]

I thought one of the downfalls of the tegra 2 was a weak GPU. Also isn't it a single core GPU?

If the iPad 2 DOES have a dual core GPU, wouldn't it totally blow away the tegra 2 single core GPU?

 

[MrWillie]

I thought one of the downfalls of the tegra 2 was a weak GPU. Also isn't it a single core GPU?

If the iPad 2 DOES have a dual core GPU, wouldn't it totally blow away the tegra 2 single core GPU?

Tegra 2 is dual core A9 clocked at 1 ghz made by NVidia with ULV GeForce GPU.

iPad 2 is rumored to be dual core A9 clocked at 1.2 ghz made by Samsung, but designed by Apple, with SGX543 GPU

So Apple will have a 20% speed advantage with the CPU, graphics unknown.

 

[thesmoth]

Tegra 2 is dual core A9 clocked at 1 ghz made by NVidia with ULV GeForce GPU.

iPad 2 is rumored to be dual core A9 clocked at 1.2 ghz made by Samsung, but designed by Apple, with SGX543 GPU

So Apple will have a 20% speed advantage with the CPU, graphics unknown.

Yes but again, single core GeForce GPU vs dual core SGX543 GPU.

I would think the dual core aspect would make it way faster, but I guess it isn't confirmed that it is dual core.

 

[MrWillie]

Yes but again, single core GeForce GPU vs dual core SGX543 GPU.

I would think the dual core aspect would make it way faster, but I guess it isn't confirmed that it is dual core.

Tetra 2 has an eight core GPU, it's unknown how many cores they will use SGX534 but it will probably be 2. (it's got the capability to scale to an unlimited # of cores.)

 

[thesmoth]

Tetra 2 has an eight core GPU, it's unknown how many cores they will use SGX534 but it will probably be 2. (it's got the capability to scale to an unlimited # of cores.)

What...??? Tegra 2 seriously has 8 graphics cores??!!?! WTF

 

[Piggie]

As I believe Tegra 3 is finished or 99.999% finished & close to launching and Tegra 2 tablets have been out since last year, I was really expecting Apple's new chip to at least be quicker than last years Tegra 2

I would hope, it is only a hope, to see some Tegra 3 devices later this year from someone.

 

[thesmoth]

As I believe Tegra 3 is finished or 99.999% finished & close to launching and Tegra 2 tablets have been out since last year, I was really expecting Apple's new chip to at least be quicker than last years Tegra 2

I would hope, it is only a hope, to see some Tegra 3 devices later this year from someone.

The first tegra 2 tablet was released... last week (the adam)? Not a single phone out yet using it. All of the new tablets being launched are tegra 2 (and the first time tegra 2 has been used). You must be thinking about tegra 1.

 

[Piggie]

The first tegra 2 tablet was released... last week (the adam)? Not a single phone out yet using it. All of the new tablets being launched are tegra 2 (and the first time tegra 2 has been used). You must be thinking about tegra 1.

Sorry, you are wrong.

The Advent Vega, 10" Android Tablet has been for sale in the UK using Tegra 2 since around Last November for £250. About half the price of the cheapest iPad.

And Tegra 3 - Quad core & three times faster, is due to devices later this year according to Nvidea:
http://www.engadget.com/2011/01/24/nvidia-tegra-3-equipped-with-1-5ghz-quad-core-madness-teased-b/

 

[k995]

Interesting tidbit from the CEO of Trendy (makers of Dungeon Defenders) regarding Xoom versus iPad and iPad2:



http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2379264,00.asp


Comments regarding the current iPad are a given, but the second part is what caught my eye. Is he just speculating? Or is it conceivable that a relatively high profile iOS developer might have knowledge of - or even access to - the iPad 2 technology at this stage?

Join me in pointless speculation. You know you want to.

As it stands now, the CPU is about the same, so it will depend on the GPU.

A simple bump from SGX535 (14 M polys/s, 500Mpx/s@200 MHz, Max Memory Band (GB/s) 4.2GB/s ) to SGX543 (single core 35M polygons/s @200 MHz)

tegra II has about 90 M polys/s .


The ipad II needs a SGX543MP2(=dual core) to remain close and four core todo better. Knowing apple we would be lucky to get a dual core GPU.

So yes its quit possible Tegra II 3d wise is faster then an ipad 2 .

After all plenty of phones and tablets have the SGX540 ( in S5PC111 hummingbird soc) wich has double the gpu performance then the ipad/iphone 4 .

 

[EssentialParado]

It doesn't really matter anyway. Game developers will create games for lowest common denominator of hardware.

 

[Sedulous]

Interesting tidbit from the CEO of Trendy (makers of Dungeon Defenders) regarding Xoom versus iPad and iPad2:



http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2379264,00.asp


Comments regarding the current iPad are a given, but the second part is what caught my eye. Is he just speculating? Or is it conceivable that a relatively high profile iOS developer might have knowledge of - or even access to - the iPad 2 technology at this stage?

Join me in pointless speculation. You know you want to.

I don't know how seriously I would take comments from a group that had their product pulled from the app store for significant bugs. Likewise, there is no way they have access to the next iPad model. In all likelihood, the A5 will perform as well as anything out now.

 

[smiddlehurst]

While I'm not convinced that this dev has access to both really I just wanted to point out it's not all about raw power anyway. This is a trap that Mac users fall into regularly, especially on the laptop side, and it'd be nice if we could avoid it in iOS-land. Every manufacturer of mobile devices has to make a trade off between power, battery life and form factor. Those three things tend to be linked at the hip and a change in one affects the others. Apple tends to come down on the side of better battery life and improved form factor over outright power and history has shown that's probably a very sensible thing to do.

There's also the small matter of trying to compare two very different OS's with different performance characeristics (stupid example: does the base OS require more or less grunt to run in the background with iOS compared to Honeycomb). End of the day the games and daily use of these devices will tell the story, not the raw specs.

 

[fpnc]

As it stands now, the CPU is about the same, so it will depend on the GPU.

A simple bump from SGX535 (14 M polys/s, 500Mpx/s@200 MHz, Max Memory Band (GB/s) 4.2GB/s ) to SGX543 (single core 35M polygons/s @200 MHz)

tegra II has about 90 M polys/s .


The ipad II needs a SGX543MP2(=dual core) to remain close and four core todo better. Knowing apple we would be lucky to get a dual core GPU.

So yes its quit possible Tegra II 3d wise is faster then an ipad 2 .

After all plenty of phones and tablets have the SGX540 ( in S5PC111 hummingbird soc) wich has double the gpu performance then the ipad/iphone 4 .

But several graphics and game benchmarks run on actual Tegra 2 products suggest that the Tegra 2 is only slightly faster than the single-core SGX540, so that doesn't mesh with your polygons/s figures.

Frankly, no one will know for sure one way or the other until the hardware actually ships. In any case, I'm expecting the iPad 2 to use a single-core SGX543 as dual-core would probably be overkill given the likely 1024x768 display and the fact that the graphics on the current iPad are probably good enough for a wide range of applications.

Link that compares Tegra 2 performance to SGX540:

http://www.anandtech.com/show/4054/first-look-viewsonic-gtablet-and-tegra-2-performance-preview/2

 

[h00ligan]

What's with the hostile tone? These are tablets, not members of your family.

lol

 

[k995]

But several graphics and game benchmarks run on actual Tegra 2 products suggest that the Tegra 2 is only slightly faster than the single-core SGX540, so that doesn't mesh with your polygons/s figures.

Frankly, no one will know for sure one way or the other until the hardware actually ships. In any case, I'm expecting the iPad 2 to use a single-core SGX543 as dual-core would probably be overkill given the likely 1024x768 display and the fact that the graphics on the current iPad are probably good enough for a wide range of applications.

Link that compares Tegra 2 performance to SGX540:

http://www.anandtech.com/show/4054/first-look-viewsonic-gtablet-and-tegra-2-performance-preview/2

Wel raw power is different from real time applications.

Comparing different cpu, over different OS's is also quit difficult. Its quit possible that the Tegra II is only a bit faster then humminbird in applications.


Tegra III should be released fall this year and thus it continues.