President of ARM says your smartphone will have 16 and 32 cores in a few years

[lopri]

I thought web browsing is a prime example of multi-core possibility. Doesn't Chrome spawn a new thread per tab?

 

[BladeVenom]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amdahl's_law

 

[gmaster456]

I'm not sure why phones need more than 4 cores at this point. Dual core has yet to be completely saturated. Tablets you could make a case, but for phones, I'm not sure the benefit is worth the added cost, heat, and battery hit. What type of workload are people using their phones for?

 

[WelshBloke]

I'm not sure why phones need more than 4 cores at this point. Dual core has yet to be completely saturated. Tablets you could make a case, but for phones, I'm not sure the benefit is worth the added cost, heat, and battery hit. What type of workload are people using their phones for?

Let's say that your phone had a ton of power.

You could connect it to a big screen by wireless. And connect a blue tooth mouse and keyboard.

You could do this just by placing it on an NFC hotspot on your desk.

Instant desktop with access to all your personal files.

 

[Hulk]

Let's say that your phone had a ton of power.

You could connect it to a big screen by wireless. And connect a blue tooth mouse and keyboard.

You could do this just by placing it on an NFC hotspot on your desk.

Instant desktop with access to all your personal files.

This.

 

[MrX8503]

People are thinking too small. Your phone IS going to be your computer. I say bring on as much performance as possible.

Eventually you'll be able to wear a contact lens with the processing power of the Titan super computer.

 

[dagamer34]

I thought web browsing is a prime example of multi-core possibility. Doesn't Chrome spawn a new thread per tab?

I don't think on a mobile device you can load tabs fast enough to actually use that many cores for long when you factor out other things that can slow loading like network latency.

 

[Medu]

Wish someone would focus more on more efficient battery life/better cameras.

Better camera has little to do with ARM and it's also fairly amazing what smartphone camera's can do already given the limited space/cost that they are afforded.
As for better battery life, ARM has a bigger role to play there but the main improvements need to come from the screens and radio's as that is where most of the battery life goes.

I have my doubts we will see a 16/32 core SoC based on A15/57 in the next few years. Just like with desktops we would be better off with 4/8 larger cores at higher clock speeds.

 

[Munky]

All I see is ARM taking potshots at the 800lbs gorilla Intel and claiming "moar cores" while Intel smokes the competition when it comes to actual performance that matters. With Windows 8, and power-efficient x86 cpu's from AMD and Intel, I see no reason to buy another ARM tablet in the future.

 

[Red Storm]

All I see is ARM taking potshots at the 800lbs gorilla Intel and claiming "moar cores" while Intel smokes the competition when it comes to actual performance that matters. With Windows 8, and power-efficient x86 cpu's from AMD and Intel, I see no reason to buy another ARM tablet in the future.

Funny thing is the opposite seems to be the reality. People are realizing they don't need full fledged laptops/computers to do the every day stuff, so tablets are really taking off.

 

[Munky]

Funny thing is the opposite seems to be the reality. People are realizing they don't need full fledged laptops/computers to do the every day stuff, so tablets are really taking off.

If by "people" you mean the typical Facepaging, Tweeting, Youtubing, Instagraming user who will gladly take whatever capabilities a certain ecosystem spoonfeeds him/her, then sure. But for someone who appreciates the capabilities of running desktop x86 Windows software on a tablet, ARM is no longer relevant.

 

[Red Storm]

If by "people" you mean the typical Facepaging, Tweeting, Youtubing, Instagraming user who will gladly take whatever capabilities a certain ecosystem spoonfeeds him/her, then sure. But for someone who appreciates the capabilities of running desktop x86 Windows software on a tablet, ARM is no longer relevant.

By "people" I'm referring to those who check their email, browse the web, and watch videos online. Not everyone runs Photoshop or Autocad 24/7.

Other than games I have zero need for Windows and am happy to kick it to the curb for mobile devices.

 

[Charles Kozierok]

fixed that for you

No, you messed it up. He was right.

It's called Amdahl's Law, and it's a bitch.

ETA: BladeVenom beat me to it. But I put in the chart.

 

[Munky]

By "people" I'm referring to those who check their email, browse the web, and watch videos online. Not everyone runs Photoshop or Autocad 24/7.

Other than games I have zero need for Windows and am happy to kick it to the curb for mobile devices.

Good for you. In my case, I'm referring to capabilities like VPN and remote desktop to an office machine (and not through a paid third-party "app"), playing Civ 5 while sitting on a couch, capturing and editing photo/audio/video without ecosystem constraints, and taking advantage of the hundreds of thousands existing Windows applications to get around any incompatibilities and limitations of the tablet in its stock form.

 

[s44]

With Windows 8 I see no need to buy another Windows machine. Ever.

 

[poofyhairguy]

Good for you. In my case, I'm referring to capabilities like VPN and remote desktop to an office machine (and not through a paid third-party "app"), playing Civ 5 while sitting on a couch, capturing and editing photo/audio/video without ecosystem constraints, and taking advantage of the hundreds of thousands existing Windows applications to get around any incompatibilities and limitations of the tablet in its stock form.

Honest question I just have to ask:

Doesn't that army of Windows apps that were designed for a mouse kinda suck on a tablet?

 

[Munky]

Honest question I just have to ask:

Doesn't that army of Windows apps that were designed for a mouse kinda suck on a tablet?

I don't have one myself yet, but several Windows tablets come with a stylus and a digitizer. If the application isn't suited for tapping and swiping with fat fingers, the stylus will get around that problem. There's also the option of using a keyboard with a pointing device, or even attaching a USB mouse.

 

[WelshBloke]

I don't have one myself yet, but several Windows tablets come with a stylus and a digitizer. If the application isn't suited for tapping and swiping with fat fingers, the stylus will get around that problem. There's also the option of using a keyboard with a pointing device, or even attaching a USB mouse.

Welcome back Windows Mobile 6.5.

 

[Red Storm]

Honest question I just have to ask:

Doesn't that army of Windows apps that were designed for a mouse kinda suck on a tablet?

Yes. We have a Lenovo Yoga and when it's in tablet mode (keyboard folded back), desktop mode is a pain to use.

What I came to realize a long time ago is that despite Windows having thousands upon thousands of already existing apps, there's only like ~15 apps that I actually use. Other than gaming, I can do the same tasks on an Android device, for much less money.

 

[Munky]

Welcome back Windows Mobile 6.5.

Not quite. Nothing is stopping you from using the touch-optimized IE10 and accomplishing 99% of your web browsing needs without picking up the stylus. But having the option to run real applications, or even alternate operating systems and their applications, puts x86 tablets like the Surface Pro in a whole separate league beyond anything ARM-based.

 

[gus6464]

I need 64 cores for my future holographic screen phone.

 

[lopri]

@dagamer34: I was responding to your "uselesness" argument of multi-cores on desktop which you brought up. When it comes to phones, I stated my uncertainty.

http://forums.anandtech.com/showpost.php?p=34707212&postcount=23

On phones, though, I don't have an opinion yet one way or another.

 

[Stone Rain]

More cores doesn't equal more speed.

Plus, my laptop uses a Cortex-A15 processor that is dual core. And it's smooth and lag-free. And it's a laptop, not a phone. If a dual A-15 can power a small laptop without lagging, why on Earth what 16-32 cores be necessary, except to make advertisements look cool? Also battery life would drop hugely unless designs get far more efficient.

 

[wirednuts]

I thought web browsing is a prime example of multi-core possibility. Doesn't Chrome spawn a new thread per tab?

yes it does. oh, its so fun to look in task manager and see 9 identical processes all hung up and frozen. god chrome sucks...

 

[wirednuts]

More cores doesn't equal more speed.

Plus, my laptop uses a Cortex-A15 processor that is dual core. And it's smooth and lag-free. And it's a laptop, not a phone. If a dual A-15 can power a small laptop without lagging, why on Earth what 16-32 cores be necessary, except to make advertisements look cool? Also battery life would drop hugely unless designs get far more efficient.

386k of ram....

we will always want more speed. more speed means more capability. we never thought we would be taking 5MP perfect pictures with our phones just 20 years ago... but now any $100 phone will do that.