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Tag: battery-life

  • Core Logic to Deliver HD Graphics for Next-Generation Portable Media

    ARM announced that Core Logic, a Korea-based fabless semiconductor manufacturer, has licensed the ARM Mali-400 MP multicore graphics processing unit (GPU) to enable enhanced, high-definition entertainment and browsing experiences on smartphones, fully-featured multimedia phones, portable media players and personal navigation devices without compromising battery life.

    Four-core Mali-400 MP supports complex 2D and 3D multimedia applications at up to 1080p resolution and offers pixel processing rates from 300 million to more than 1G pixels per second. This enables manufacturers of mobile phones, PMPs and PNDs to deliver console-quality gaming, high-quality navigation, spectacular user interfaces and web-browsing to their end users, while benefiting from the lowest memory bandwidth usage of any embedded GPU, leading to very low power consumption.

    The new Mali-400 also supports Khronos OpenGL ES 2.0 and OpenVG standards, further enhancing user experiences on a wide range of digital devices.

    Kwang Pyuk Suh, CEO of Core Logic, said that the company is seeing massive demand for ever higher specification graphics on all multimedia mobile devices, PMPs and PNDs.

    “Device manufacturers are continually looking for technologies that enable them to develop the next high-end, must-have gadget to set them apart from the competition. Additionally, users are becoming increasingly discerning about getting the best out of their chosen applications at home and on the go,” he added.

    Core Logic, whose customers include several major Korean manufacturers, will also become part of the ARM Mali Graphics Ecosystem that brings together a community of developers, technology partners, software vendors and content companies to collaborate and reduce the cost of graphics ownership.

    According to Lance Howarth, general manager of ARM Media Processing Division, the new GPU will enable Core Logic to develop the highest quality multimedia system-on-a-chip technology “that will lie at the heart of next generation digital entertainment and communication devices”.

    “Mali-400 MP and other Mali GPUs are fully compatible with the ARM CPUs that power billions of digital devices around the world. This, combined with the complete Mali graphics stack and the ARM Mali Ecosystem, brings lowered development costs and reduced time to market,” said Howarth.

  • Innocell Developing Double Capacity Palm Pre Battery


    Battery life is a key issue for smartphones – and it’s an area where the Palm Pre with its removable battery has some definite advantages over Apple’s iPhone.

    Not least that Innocell is developing a new battery for the Pre that has twice the capacity of the handset’s original.

    It currently offers the Innocell 1350mAh Extended Life Battery, which promises longer standby and talk time than the original fits in the existing space (so no replacement door is needed) and costs USD $44.95.

    With its non-replaceable battery this is an option not open to the iPhone.

    Innocell is also developing an extended battery that the company claims will provide up to nearly twice the capacity of the standard battery.

    This will include a rubberized battery door to accommodate the slightly bigger size.

    Price and availability has yet to be announced for this battery.

  • Palm Pre Passes First Hurdle – "iPhone Competitor"


    Palm’s Pre smartphone has received a pre-launch boost with a succession of (mostly) favorable reviews.

    And, in what must be the ultimate accolade in the highly competitive smartphone market, the device has even been described as a tough competitor to Apple’s iPhone.

    The handset, which goes on sale in the US on Saturday, was praised for features such as its removable battery, physical keyboard and the Web OS software.

    One of the key features coming in for criticism was the Pre’s apparently poor battery life.

    Also mentioned is state of Palm’s app store, which doesn’t have much in the way of applications to offer yet.

    That comes as little surprise since the company has yet to make an SDK widely available.

    Among the reviewers were Walt Mossberg of the Wall Street Journal and David Pogue of the New York Times.

    Sprint,the operator with exclusive US rights to the Pre, even came in for some praise for the speed of its network.

    Dan Hesse, the CEO of Sprint, has said it will take around three months for the carrier to know how well the Palm Pre is doing in the market.

    He predicted it would sell "like crazy" initially but the real test would come after the initial euphoria.

    Palm and Sprint are under intense pressure to succeed – and with Apple expected to announce a new version of the iPhone on Monday, that will be no easy thing.