Texas Instruments Inc. this week introduced the second generation of the companys OMAP architecture, ushering hardware-based 3D into cell phones.
TI introduced two chips, the OMAP 2410 and 2420, at the 3GSM show in Cannes this week. The chips contain the PowerVR MBX core designed by Imagination Technologies, allowing the cell-phone chip to process about 2 million 3D polygons per second, and process images up to 6 megapixels in resolution, the company said. TI said it will ship both chips during the second quarter of 2004.
Although processors of this type were once touted as engines for both PDAs and mobile phones, the space-constrained nature of a mobile handset means that handset makers like Nokia and Ericsson will continue to prefer highly integrated solutions, according to analysts. In PDAs and other platforms with a larger PCB, discrete chips like the ATI Imageon and Nvidia GoForce and AR10 cores are expected to have more of an impact.
“As long as the main driver is cell phones, the smallest possible volume will be the reason one [integrated] chip is used,” said Max Baron, an embedded analyst with In-Stat/MDR.
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