[Engineering Feature]
The Processor Wars
The long-heralded convergence of computing, communications, and entertainment is here, instigating a three-way battle for Internet device designs.
Just when you thought all was quiet on the personal computer (PC) front, with entrenched competitors grimly holding onto their market share, a new battle has broken out. Due to the rise of the mobile Internet device (MID), traditional computer processors face new competition from the camps of cell-phone and set-top box vendors. The result is a confusing call to arms as processor vendors recruit developers to occupy territory in what is still a nebulous market.
“A paradigm shift has started in the computing industry,” says Mike Bryars, manager of the infotainment, multimedia, and telematics operations at Freescale Semiconductor. “We are starting to realize that other types of devices can connect to the Internet that are better than a PC. We no longer need an open platform. Developers have to come at this from the embedded space, designing these devices to provide specific functions.”
This industry shift is a result of two factors: the ascension of the Internet and technology convergence between the computing, communications, and consumer sectors. The Internet’s meteoric rise in consumption created a market opportunity for devices that can provide users with essential Internet access at low cost. Essential access, most vendors agree, includes unrestricted Web browsing, e-mail and social networking, and multimedia playback.
Other desirable functions might be included in an Internet access device, such as image and video capture, basic office productivity, and personal navigation. But the key requirement is providing high-quality interactions with the Internet and the World Wide Web. Device functionality is built in, although users can also download and run browser plug-in applications. As a result, designs are free from constraints to a specific hardware architecture or to a specific operating system.
THREE ARMIES CONVERGE As this market opportunity begins to unfold, this design freedom along with technology advances have given processors from the communications, consumer, and computing industries the potential to serve the market. The performance of application processors in cell phones, such as those from ARM, Freescale, and Texas Instruments, has improved to the point where they can now handle the media and graphics demands of the Internet experience.
Similarly, the media players and set-top boxes of the consumer industry with processors from MIPS, Nvidia, and others have expanded their networking and display capabilities to match the Internet’s demands. PC processors from vendors such as AMC, Intel, and Via Technologies can also address the market, but they have a different challenge to solve.
“The applications requirements in this space—browser, e-mail, and media playback—are less demanding than full desktop computing,” says Bob Morris, director of mobile computing at ARM, “and the majority of what Internet users want can be done with other processors. PC processor technology has overrun what is needed in this space and we are coming up from underneath.”
The challenge for personal-computing processor vendors, then, is to scale back their PC offerings and address the low power and cost requirements of the emerging Internet access market. Thus, a three-way battle is brewing for capturing design wins in the Internet access device market. Exactly what those designs look like is still unclear, though.
Processor vendors apply a wide variety of terms to refer to the devices in this market (Fig. 1). Names such as “netbook,” MID, and ultra-mobile PC (UMPC) are common and sometimes used interchangeably. The one thing vendors agree on is that these devices aren’t general-purpose PCs. “The PC was a Swiss Army knife,” says Bill Henry, general manager of the mobile Internet device business unit at Nvidia. “These devices are targeted.”
DEFINITIONS REMAIN UNCLEAR Despite the lack of consensus in the industry, some clarity is emerging. Processor vendors appear to be targeting designs that roughly separate out into three general classes with somewhat different form factors. At one extreme is the low-cost PC, also referred to as a “netbook,” or a “nettop” computer. These designs target computer users with limited needs or first-time computer users who require a starter device.
Low-cost PC designs retain some of the look and feel of a PC, but don’t offer extensive multitasking capability or unrestricted programmability. Instead, these devices have their basic functionality built in and load any additional applications from the network through the browser.
They primarily support viewing and playback of files rather than creation. Also, they have 8- to 10-in. diagonal displays and reduced keyboards. Solid-state mass storage is used rather than hard drives. And while they’re portable, these devices often target extended desktop use so that battery life isn’t a critical concern. Low cost is the key characteristic, with retail price targets typically $300 to $400.
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