Windows Mobile devices set for a boost in visual performance
NVIDIA introduced today its APX 2500, an applications processor aimed at mobile devices. Offering resolutions of up to 720p, the 65nm chip features a 750MHz core and 256Kbytes of L2 cache.
Jen-Hsun Huang, president and CEO of NVIDIA says: "This is the dawn of the second personal computer revolution. Technologies are converging in amazing mobile devices that have all of the rich, visual capabilities of a modern PC—from watching movies and making video calls to surfing the web and playing 3D games. The APX 2500, combined with Microsoft® Windows Mobile, will make the next generation of smartphones our most personal computer."
The APX 2500, developed with close support from Microsoft, will enter full production in Q2 2008 and promises to deliver:
- The industry’s first HD (720p) playback and capture capability for handheld devices
- A new ultra-low-power (ULP) GeForce core that is fully OpenGL ES 2.0 and Microsoft Direct3D Mobile compliant and the lowest power 3D hardware solution available for acceleration of intuitive 3D user interfaces
- NVIDIA nPower technology, enabling over 10 hours of high-definition video playback and up to 100 hours of audio—more than four times the audio playback of the latest touch-screen phones
- The connectivity and media acceleration technologies required to enable the latest Web 2.0 applications, from effortless web browsing and social networking to GPS and mapping applications
Don't expect your forthcoming Windows Mobile handsets to be running Crysis anytime soon, but with current Windows Mobile handsets from HTC suffering poor visual performance, NVIDIA's APX 2500 will be bringing hugely improved graphics to the market. Expect fancy interfaces a-plenty in the near future.
Complete specification:
| Processor and Memory Subsystem | ARM11 MPCore 16/32-bit LP-DDR NOR and NAND Flash support |
| HD AVP (High Definition Audio Video Processor) | 720p H.264, MPEG-4, and VC-1/WMV9 Decode 720p H.264 and MPEG-4 Encode Supports multi-standard audio formats including AAC, AMR, WMA, and MP3 JPEG encode and decode acceleration |
| ULP (Ultra Low Power) GeForce | OpenGL ES 2.0 D3D Mobile Programmable pixel shader Programmable vertex and lighting CSAA support Advanced 2D graphics |
| Imaging | Up to 12Mpixel camera sensor support Integrated ISP Advanced imaging features |
| Display Subsystem | True dual display support 720p (1280x720) HDMI 1.2 support SXGA (1280x1024) LCD and CRT support Composite and S-Video TV output |
Official press release: NVIDIA introduces APX 2500 - The world’s lowest power, high-definition computer on a chip
Official website: NVIDIA.co.uk
