Posted on Saturday, Jun 13, 2009 by Rene Ritchie
File Under:News; Tags: anandtech, arm, arm cortex a8, chipset, cpu, gpu, iphone 3G S, powervr sgx, speeds and feeds
Anandtech gives their usual in-depth look at the processors inside Apple’s new iPhone 3G S. First the CPU, the new ARM Cortex A8 and the short of it is — if the iPhone 2G and 3G were old 486 PCs, the iPhone 3G S would be a Pentium:
As for the GPU, the PowerVR SGX — even if it’s clocked down to half-speed, it’s rendering geometry 3.5x faster with a fill rate 25% higher as well:
Their take away? Well, they say the iPhone 3G S packs a similar hardware punch to the new Palm Pre, but while webOS uses some of that power for 3rd party multitasking, Apple’s “highly optimized software stack” will bring the speed.
And that only scratches the surface. For the gritty details, check out the full article.
[Thanks to Damon for the tip!]
T-Mobile Netherlands (via Wired) has let slip the formerly elusive specs for the iPhone 3G S:
Anandtech (via Macrumors) gives further info:
Although unannounced, the iPhone 3GS uses (again) a Samsung SoC but this time instead of the ARM11 + MBX-Lite combo it’s got a Cortex A8 and PowerVR SGX; just like the [Palm] Pre.
So add that to the fast PowerVR SGX graphics core, and — to quote Steve Jobs — it’s a screamer!
Update: Apple Insider has a great run down of the technology inside the chipsets.
MacRumors has come across an Apple job listing for someone with:
excellent understanding and knowledge of processor architecture, specifically ARM and its vector unit NEON. Additional Intel SSE or PowerPC AltiVec is also very helpful. Being able to use processor micro-architecture to write and deliver fast routines is an essential attribute.
Neon, they remind us, is the brand name for the ARMv7 Cortex, the next-generation of the processor Apple uses in the current iPhone and iPod touch.
What’s not yet clear is whether Apple will tap the multi-core potential of the ARMv7 Cortex to really shift multimedia performance into the mobile stratosphere. However, another tantalizing glimpse into the iPhone’s potential future is revealed in a second job listing, this one for an engineer with:
Experience developing embedded image and video processing solutions. Experience developing embedded image and video analysis solutions. Experience working on real-time media and networking applications (WiFi and cellular networks).
Of course, we won’t keep our fingers crossed too hard for those iTunes Replay, personalized podcast streaming, or remote DVR access patents Apple has teases us with in the past…
