New AMD Chip For Handhelds

Written by Adam Gosling

Wednesday, 14 February 2007

Brand new technology from CPU maker, AMD, will enable phone manufacturers to boost the multimedia capabilities of their devices to new levels. Leveraging the acquisition last year of graphics specialist ATI, CPU maker, AMD has introduced AMD Imageon family of media processors. The three chips in the range (Imageon 2298, 2294 and 2192 ) offer fast, high-res DVD-quality video and high-def audio. "As mobile broadband networks continue to increase capacity and improve quality, the consumer appetite for sophisticated multimedia on the go is growing exponentially," said Paul Dal Santo, vice president and general manager of AMD's Handheld Business. "We are bringing to fruition our vision of helping global OEMs and network operators truly delight their customers with incredibly realistic, immersive media-rich experiences." With the processing power capable supporting advanced features such as echo cancellation and image stabilization or dual tasking activities like playing to music while viewing photos, the processing units will support high res cameras up to 12 megapixel. The media processor architecture means the chip is separate and independent from the baseband (RF) functions so it can be easily implemented in a handheld device platform reducing time to market. It also helps reduce power consumption for longer device battery life, as well as reducing design costs and eliminating unnecessary requalification of the baseband with each feature upgrade, thereby saving time and money for manufacturers, says AMD. Specific features of the latest AMD Imageon media processors include: Ultra-Fast, High-Resolution image processing supports up to 12 Mpixel camera functions DVD-Quality Video Playback and Recording with Stabilization for a high-quality, camcorder-like experience High-Definition Audio turns the phone into a portable music player TV Output allows viewing of videos and photos on any TV or projector Mobile TV capability for watching digital TV programs on the go Video Telephony with echo cancellation and image stabilization Video Transcoding converts to various video formats and adjusts frame rate for over-the-air video messaging Error Resiliency compensates for transmission errors to help provide seamless over-the-air video quality. The industry-leading AMD Imageon media processor family continues to gain momentum, and in the fourth quarter of 2006 alone more than ten new AMD-powered mobile phones and 3G smartphones were introduced by leading OEMs and network operators including AT&T, Chungwa Telecom, HTC, Motorola, O2 and Vodafone. The AMD Imageon 2298, 2294 and 2192 media processors will join AMD's already robust lineup of media processors. More than 200 million AMD Imageon media processors have been shipped to mobile device manufacturers since 2003. AMD has been at the forefront of the integration of compelling multimedia features in discrete media processors, and was the first to introduce hardware for 3D capabilities on the mobile phone. ati.amd.com www.amd.com Related news items Voda Goes In-Store At Myer -26/08/2007 HP Plans More iPaqs As PDAs Become Smartphones -12/08/2007 Consumer Electronics Takes Interest In 802.11n -12/08/2007 Nokia Adds PlayReady -06/08/2007 Greedy iPhones Gobble The Flash -18/07/2007 Newer news items Nokia, RIM, Panasonic - In That Order -28/02/2007 Mobile Speakers For You Mobile Phone -25/02/2007 iPhone Fiasco Finished -21/02/2007 Phone Makers Accused Of Tween Targetting -18/02/2007 Nokia Readies To Trim Workforce -18/02/2007 Older news items Philips Signs Last Of Its Phone Business Over To CEC -12/02/2007 Samsung Quits Notebook Business -29/01/2007 Nokia New Year Party Attracts Millions -02/01/2007 Just For The Record: No Ferrari Laptops Here -02/01/2007 Palm Licenses Palm OS -12/12/2006 Tag This Now: