It seems like every man and his dog is using NVIDIA's new Tegra chip, with Notion Ink and ICD's tablets being just two we've seen recently. The German site NetbookNews has been tipped off on a March launch for the multitouch tablet, which will be either 4-inches or 7-inches in size (or potentially offered as two different models), and will have either 720p or 1080p resolution. It's presumed to be running Android 2.0, or a variant of it anyway, which ASUS should've got around to much earlier than now, as rumors of a smartbook or Android phone have been flying around since last year.

The leak isn't exactly solid, as you can see, but for anyone holding out for an affordable tablet next year, it's a sliver of hope to cling onto. [NetbookNews via Electronista]

The tablet was outed by Engadget's Joshua Topolsky on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, and looked pretty responsive, even with that resistive touchscreen. ICD plans on updating it with a capacitive display option before it goes on sale next year, which is pleasing news to our ears, but it's bemusing as to why they don't just ditch the resistive model, unless it can be offered for much less than the far-superior capacitive.

An integrated 3G SIM will keep it perpetually connected, and also hints at the possibility of carriers subsidizing it to keep costs down. Measuring 186 x 158 x 18mm, the screen is 7-inches and will contain either 800 x 480 or 1024 x 600 pixels, dependent on the resistive or capacitive screen.

Internally, there's 4GB of flash storage, but a microSD card slot will allow for expansion. The 512MB RAM, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, HDMI-out, accelerometer, ambient light sensor, 3.5mm jack and 1.3-megapixel camera all sound fairly average, and if it's offered at around the same price-point as the Notion Ink tablet we saw last week, ICD might have a battle on their hands. Engadget's pointing at a $249 price-tag, with more details expected at CES in early January. [Engadget via SlashGear]

As for what the Tegra 2 is, nobody really knows, because the closest Nvdia execs will get to a spec rundown is to offer vague promises of MORE: evidently it will be at least twice as powerful as its predecessor, which was was impressive in its own right. We'll get a sense of how powerful it is at CES, but the major point Nvidia would like to make is that unlike last time, the Tegra 2 will actually get used:

At CES we are going to make a major announcement about Tegra family. It is highly possible that we will see some very interesting form-factors coming out at the same time. [There will be products] shown by our partners using the next-generation Tegra device. You are going to see roll-outs and deployments of tablet PCs, smartbooks, netbooks, MIDs throughout the first half [of the year]; and then you will see major roll-outs of smartphones in the second half

This jibes with chatter from the last few months that companies like Samsung, Nintendo and even Nvidia themselves have suddenly started working on Tegra hardware; we just didn't know until now that it'd be next gen. What we still don't know is what that means: If the original Tegra could decode 1080p video, what can the new one do? Decode 1080p video more enthusiastically? [XbitLabs]

Engadget says a credible tipster suggests it currently runs Windows CE and has a resistive touchscreen, but Android and capacitive upgrades (and different screen sizes) are likely. A March 2010 arrival is rumored, as is T-Mobile's involvement. Interesting, but definitely still an undercooked rumor at this point. We'll let you know when we hear more. [Engadget]

It's rumored that Nvidia has won a contract to supply Nintendo with Tegra chips for the next generation DS. The specific chip Nintendo plans on using is unknown, so we don't know exactly how powerful the next model could be. Considering the current DS runs on two incredibly slow processors, any Tegra would be a huge boost in power.

As a bonus, the source reports that the new hardware should allow backwards compatibility. Hopefully not à la PSP Go, where backwards compatibility really means you have to buy all the games you already own again. [Bright Side of the News via Electronista]

The M1 will feature a 3.3-inch AMOLED touchscreen using Samsung's TouchWiz user interface, Divx video support, a built-in accelerometer and DMB TV (for Korea).

It could be too early to tell, but it's looking like Samsung has shat the Wi-Fi bed again—one of our main gripes when we reviewed the P3. If the M1 does lack Wi-Fi, it could face an uphill battle against rivals like the Tegra-powered, Wi-Fi-equipped Microsoft Zune HD. [Samsung via DAP Review via Crave Asia]

Tegra is a huge strength for tiny devices like the upcoming Zune HD, but in a full-sized netbook, it'll have a hard time running media or multitasking. OS is a problem too—does anybody actually like Windows CE? Maybe a Linux distro (or Chrome OS) could work, but even that's kind of pushing it. Regardless, it's rumored to have a September release date, though of course we hardly know anything about the product and don't have any particular reason to trust that date. Come on, Nvidia, just stick the Tegra in a bunch of smartphones where it belongs! [Semi-Accurate News via Crunchgear]

As we explained in our Giz Explains: Low-Power Chipsets, Nvidia's Tegra proc is designed to handle high-def video and Flash with buttery smoothness in small packages, just like the Zune HD. So while this is as yet still unconfirmed, given that we haven't had confirmation from Microsoft, it makes a lot of sense and would actually be a very smart move—and the sources reporting the rumor seem very certain that it's true. With a Tegra processor, the Zune HD would certainly be able to decode videos with far less necessary power than with any other chipset, which means better battery life combined with better video quality. What else could you want from a next-gen PMP? [PC Perspective]

Intel Atom
The current reigning king of low-cost, low-power processors, Intel's Atom flat-out dominates the netbook market. Its single- and dual-core processors are also some of the most powerful on our list, despite having abilities roughly equal to, in Intel's own terms, a 2003-2004 vintage Celeron. Based on the x86 architecture, the Atom is capable of running full versions of Windows XP, Vista (though not all that well), and 7, as well as modern Linux distros and even Hackintosh. While it requires far less power than a full-power chip, it's still more power-hungry than the ARM-based processors on our list, requiring about 2 watts on average. That's why netbook battery life isn't all that much longer than that of a normal laptop.

You can find the Atom in just about every netbook, including those from HP, Dell, Asus, Acer, Sony, Toshiba, MSI, and, well, everyone else. The 1.6GHz chip is the most popular at the moment, but Intel is definitely going to keep improving and upgrading the Atom line. However, you're unlikely to catch an Atom in a handset; it's low-power, yes, but low-power for a notebook. Battery life on an Atom handset would be pretty atrocious, which is why Intel's sticking to netbooks for now.

Qualcomm Snapdragon
Based on ARM, which is a 32-bit processor architecture that powers just about every mobile phone (and various other peripherals, though never desktop computers) out there, Snapdragon isn't competing directly with the Intel Atom—it's not capable of running full versions of Windows (only Windows Mobile and Windows CE), it's incredibly energy-efficient (requiring less than half a watt), and is designed for always-on use. In other words, this is the evolution of the mobile computing processor. It's got great potential: Qualcomm is trumpeting battery life stretching past 10 hours, smooth 1080p video, support for GPS, 3G, and Bluetooth, and such efficiency that a Linux-based netbook can use Snapdragon without a fan or even a heat sink. Available in single core (1GHz) or dual-core (1.5GHz), it can be used in conjunction with Android, Linux, and various mobile OSes.

Unfortunately, Qualcomm is still holding onto the notion that people want MIDs, and is championing "smartbooks," which are essentially smartphones with netbook bodies, like Asus's announced-then-retracted Eee with Android. Snapdragon's got promise, but we think that promise lies in super-powered handheld devices, not even more underpowered versions of already-underpowered netbooks.

We're frankly not sure when we'll see Snapdragon-based devices sold in the US. We're sure Snapdragon will end up in smartphones at some point, as at least one Toshiba handset has been tentatively announced, but the only concrete demonstrations we've seen have been in MIDs, and Snapdragon themselves spend all their energy touting these "smartbooks." Snapdragon's Windows Mobile compatibility suggests we may see it roll out with Windows Mobile 7, if Tegra hasn't snapped up all the good handsets.

Nvidia Tegra
Nvidia's Tegra processor is very similar to Snapdragon—both are based on ARM architecture, so both are designed for even less intense applications than the Atom. Like Snapdragon, Tegra isn't capable of running desktop versions of Windows, so it's primarily targeted at Android and handheld OSes, especially forthcoming versions of Windows Mobile. What sets Tegra apart from Snapdragon is the Nvidia graphics pedigree: The company claims smooth 1080p video, like Snapdragon, but also hardware-accelerated Flash video and even respectable gaming (though no, you won't be able to run Crysis). They also go even further than Qualcomm in their battery life claim, suggesting an absolutely insane 30 hours of HD video.

While Snapdragon tends to be loosely associated with Android, Tegra is an integral part of Microsoft's plan for next-generation Windows Mobile devices. Instead of focusing on "smartbooks" and MIDs, which we think are part of a dead-end category, Tegra's commitment to pocketable handhelds could spell success. We've seen proof-of-concept demonstrations of Tegra already, but its real commercial debut will come with Windows Mobile 7—and if WM7 doesn't suck, Tegra could take off.

Others
We haven't included certain other processors, especially VIA's Nano, due to intent: The Nano requires lower power than full-scale processors, but at 25 watts, it's not even really in the same league as Atom, let alone Snapdragon or Tegra. The VIA Nano is really targeted at non-portable green technology, and looks like it'll do a good job—it outperformed Atom in Ars Technica's excellent test, and stands up to moderate use with ease. AMD's Puma (Turion X2) is in a similar boat: It's certainly markedly more energy-efficient than AMD's other offerings, but as it's targeted at laptops (not netbooks) with a screen size greater than 12-inches, it's not quite right for our list here.

These low-power processors aren't just, as we so often think, crappier versions of "real" processors. They've got uses far beyond netbooks, especially in the near future as the gap between netbooks and smartphones narrows.

Still something you still wanna know? Send any questions about why your iPhone can't play Crysis, how to tie a bow tie, or anything else to tips@gizmodo.com, with "Giz Explains" in the subject line.

First, let's revisit some of Nvidia's Tegra platform claims, filtered through an actual ODM:

# 5-10 hours of continuous HD video playback on a single charge (dependent on screen usage).
# Up to 24 days of continuous audio playback on a single charge (if screen not in use while listening to audio).

Aah. These amazing audio playback figures count on the netbook essentially being out of use, with the screen—and probably Wi-Fi, speakers, etc—switched off. The same goes for the 5-10hr HD video playback claim, which seems to invoke a situation in which a netbook is connected to an external display via HDMI, not a typical usage scenario. Additionally, there's no information about the capacity of the device's battery, which appears to be integrated in the élan's monster hinge. So these aren't the most useful (or really, honest) metrics to advertise with, but I'll let that go for now, because, well, Tegra is young, and this thing is pretty.

The élan will run what sounds like a custom Linux distribution, when it comes out—a detail that is conspicuously absent from this release, as is any indication of price. [Slashgear]

A NEW ERA IN MOBILE COMPUTING

MOBINNOVA UNVEILS THE "élan" WITH HOURS OF HD MULTIMEDIA AND INTERNET POWER "ON THE GO"-COMPUTEX

The Book-Size élan Powers Up Easily, Provides 5-10 Hours Continuous HD Video Playback, 24 Days Audio Playback, Internet Browsing And Graphics Never Seen On A Mobile Computing Device

June 2009, Taipei, Taiwan-A mobile computing revolution arrives June 2, at the Computex 2009 show in Taipei, where content providers, carriers and consumers get their first look at what may be a whole new category of high performance communication devices. The élan is first in Mobinnova's line of ultra-portable computing devices powered by the NVIDIA® Tegra™ Computer-on-a-Chip. The 2 lb. élan is like a netbook in that it's small, has a keyboard, and offers easy access to the Internet. However that's where the similarities end. The élan powers up instantly, connects directly to a 3G wireless network, offers hours of continuous use, full page web browsing, and delivers graphics performance never seen before on a mobile computing device–all packaged in Mobinnova's stylishly thin design. "This truly portable device is a pleasure to hold and to use. It offers 720p high-definition video playback, full Internet browsing and an impressive battery life," says KC Kuo, Chairman and CEO of Mobinnova. "We like to say it ‘runs on fun'. It's a real game changer."

The size of a hardback book and weighing less than 2 lbs., the Mobinnova élan is compact, quiet and cool. "It's the most powerful mobile Internet device you can easily pack in your purse, backpack or briefcase. You can use the élan for hours, even days between charges," says Mike Holland, Vice President of Business Development for Mobinnova. You can also use it anywhere–on a plane to Nepal, at a café in Paris, on the sidelines of a soccer game, in a college dorm room, or sitting in bed. "The élan's advanced power management means hours of viewing pictures, HD videos, Internet browsing, and reading and responding to email," says Holland. The Mobinnova élan offers:

* 5-10 hours of continuous HD video playback on a single charge (dependent on screen usage).
* Up to 24 days of continuous audio playback on a single charge (if screen not in use while listening to audio).
* 8.9 inch screen size provides a rich viewing experience and full page web browsing.
* Ultra-light, compact design at 1.84 lbs (836g), 9.1 inches (232mm) x 7.3 inches (186 mm) x .8 inches (20.5 mm).
* NVIDIA Tegra-based platform that supports accelerated Adobe® Flash® animations and 720p high-definition video playback.
* Both Wi-Fi and 3G wireless connectivity, enabling you to check your email, social networking accounts, and do internet searches wherever you are.
* An innovative 3D graphical user interface.
* QWERTY keyboard and touchpad.
* Ability to view Microsoft® Office® and Adobe® documents.
* A webcam for sharing video.
* Fast, high resolution photo rendering, upload, and download.
* Fanless operation for a quite, cool experience.
* Advanced power management, allowing the élan to draw as little as 50mW during typical operation and 150mW during video playback, a fraction of most devices on the market today.

Mobinnova's élan is the first in a family of mobile devices based on the Tegra platform from NVIDIA, the inventor of the GPU. Also being shown at Computex is the Mobinnova T8, which combines the same powerful platform with a 10.1″ touch screen, GPS, and HDMI and VGA video output. "Mobinnova has designed several interesting Tegra-based, mobile Internet devices that will surprise the market with their sleek, lightweight design and long battery life," said Mike Rayfield, General Manager Tegra Business at NVIDIA. "Tegra adds the secret sauce to deliver a desktop-like Internet experience and cell phone-like battery life in these new designs." "The Mobinnova élan and T8 answer the portable communications challenge," says Mobinnova's Chairman and CEO, KC Kuo. "We are honored to partner with NVIDIA to create products that make people's lives easier, more productive, and more enjoyable."

The announcement comes in two parts: one from Nvidia; one from Broadcom. Both promise full hardware acceleration for Flash video, primarily by means of upgrades to Adobe's plugin, guaranteeing smooth playback of HD flash video. Perhaps more importantly, this also means much, much lower CPU usage during regular video playback.

The reason behind this two-pronged announcement strategy, unfortunately, is that the first wave of optimization will only benefit hardware based on either Nvidia's powerhouse Tegra solution, or Atom netbooks which have Broadcom's Crystal HD video accelerator add-on, which must either be installed by the OEM (rare) or plugged into a PCI-E Mini port or ExpressCard port. In other words, current-gen netbooks, based on Intel's chipsets, are kinda left out in the cold, unless Adobe pulls a surprise out of their hat in the next few months.

We won't see this Flash upgrade for Atom until "the first half of 2010", though the release hints the Tegra will support it from the get-go. It's a step in the right direction, but not a huge one.

Intel's roadmap looks like this: Now they have Atom, which powers many of the netbooks on the market today. Next comes Moorestown, which is supposed to be like the Atom, but house two chips and be a low-power solution that can be customizable (the 2nd chip) for whatever gadget a client shoves it into. Moorestown isn't quite small enough for smartphones, but Intel's saying Medfield may be, when Medfield follows up Moorestown.

There's a lot of hinting, but not a lot of outright declaration here, so it's not certain that Medfield may be able to fit into something the size of an iPhone or a Pre or an Android. What they are saying is that they can fit into something the size of a UMPC or a MID or a large PMP—something that Nvidia's Tegra or Qualcomm's Snapdragon are aiming for as well.

The timeline for Medfield is 2011ish, so there's a while yet before anything materializes. But if Intel does somehow find a way to get their system-on-a-chip into your phones, that means bigger OSes and more laptop-like performance. We'll see. [Fortune]

Intel
Like it or not, Intel's the biggest player in the game, so they've got essentially two major entries for mobile. First up is Montevina, soon to be known to your mother as Centrino 2. It was supposed to launch this month, but was delayed until August for a full rollout. It's a "platform" for notebooks, so it's got a few different components, like a Penryn Core 2 Duo processor and a wireless module (two options, one flavor has WiMax). It's basically nimbler all around than the preceding Santa Rosa platform—speedier front-side bus, faster RAM, better integrated graphics—but solid emphasis on battery life too. It'll basically be in any of the full-sized notebooks worth buying after this summer, and probably in the next MacBook/MacBook Pro release.

The ballyhooed Atom chips actually cover two classes of devices: so called "mobile internet devices"' (a vague category between a smartphone and a tiny laptop) and budget, smaller notebooks ("netbooks," "mini-notebooks," whatever you like), including the Eee PC 901 and MSI's Wind, with chips running from 800MHz to 1.86GHz, and an average power use of 160 to 220mW. As Jon at Ars sums up in his nitty gritty coverage, it's not quite "there" yet, but it's just a foot in the door for Intel.

AMD
I've been feeling so bad for AMD lately. Hopefully, its just-launched mobile platform, Puma, will help start turning things around. Its CPU soul is a Turion X2 Ultra, which has the nifty feature of adjusting power levels on the fly for each core. Another winning aspect is the integrated Radeon 3000 graphics, which AMD believes totally pwns Intel's, with three times the 3D performance and five times the HD quality (maybe something useful came out of the AMD/ATI merger after all?) Also, it can flip between using integrated and discrete graphics to save juice or ramp up performance. Tom's Hardware isn't too hot on it, though.

Nvidia
Nvidia is a relative noob in the mobile platform space, with Tegra being its first real charge. It's a system on a chip, with memory, a graphics processor, a CPU (from ARM) and more on a single chip. While they reference Intel's Atom a whole bunch, it's not really a competitor—these are just for more of those mobile internet devices. No hard products use it yet, either, but here are some videos depicting what Nvidia's got in mind. Neat, but I'm not sure who's gonna buy 'em. Also, new 9M notebook graphics cards—faster than the 8M series that's in decent notebooks now, we mayyyy see 'em in new MacBook Pros in August (crosses fingers).

Via
Via's Nano processor follows up the C7 used in stuff like the OQO UMPC and Cloudbook. It's mo' powerful, but it also uses more juice than the C7 or Intel's Atom. So, as Ars points out, it doesn't quite compete with Atom, just cause of the power differential. That's cool though, since Via's planning on using the Nano to break into powering bigger, badder notebooks that'll do HD video, and the C7 isn't going anywhere. You might see it replace the C7 in some stuff though, like HP's Mini-note, since physically it'll fit anywhere the C7 did.

That should bring ya up to speed.

Something we missed, or you still wanna know? Send any questions about chips, Pringles or anything else to tips@gizmodo.com, with "Giz Explains" in the subject line. [Giz Explains]

[Nvidia]

NVIDIA TEGRA: THE HEART OF THE WORLD’S SMALLEST VISUAL COMPUTERS
SANTA CLARA, CA—JUNE 2, 2008—Today, NVIDIA brings visual computing to mobile internet devices (MID) with the launch of NVIDIA® Tegra™, a family of highly integrated computers on a chip. In addition to MIDs, the NVIDIA Tegra 650 and 600 processors will be used in a wide range of innovative platforms such as embedded PCs, web tablets and more. The NVIDIA Tegra 650 processor is the world’s first computer on a chip for mobile visual computers. NVIDIA Tegra features a GPU, media processor, system memory, peripherals and a CPU all in one ultra-low power chip, smaller than a US dime (10-cent piece).

The NVIDIA Tegra 650 processor is the second product in the Tegra line, the first being the NVIDIA Tegra APX 2500 processor, which is enabling the next generation of Windows Mobile smartphones. “With the growing market demand for mobile Internet access, NVIDIA launched the APX 2500 computer-on-a-chip targeted at smartphones and handsets earlier this year. Recognizing that mobile Internet access usages will occur not just on smartphones and handsets but on compute devices as well, NVIDIA announced today their Tegra product line. Representing the first products to be targeted at the MID and portable device space, it is anticipated to bring integrated capabilities similar to the APX 2500 with NVIDIA’s graphics expertise, an ARM core, HD video,and advanced power management,” said Ian Lao, senior analyst at In-Stat.

This new processor features an optimized combination of an ultra-low power GeForce® GPU and an 800 MHz embedded ARM CPU, Due to their highly integrated design, NVIDIA Tegra processors achieve up to 10 times the power efficiency of existing products in battery-operated computer systems running compelling visual computing applications.

“As more consumers begin to access the mobile Internet with devices like smartphones and MIDs, device manufacturers will be challenged to create the same high-quality user experience on mobile devices that consumers currently enjoy on their desktop PCs,” said Warren East, CEO, ARM. “Using advanced ARM technology and providing a ground-breaking mix of performance, power consumption and form factor, the NVIDIA Tegra mobile computer-on-a-chip addresses
this challenge more effectively than any other solution yet on the market, thereby taking a major step toward the oncoming mobile Internet revolution.”

NVIDIA Tegra 650 also features:
• All-day media processing, for 130 hours audio, 30 hours HD video playback
• HD image processing for advanced digital still camera and HD camcorder functions
• Optimized hardware support for Web 2.0 applications for a true desktop-class internet
experience
• Display support for 1080p HDMI, WSXGA+ LCD and CRT, and NTSC/PAL TV-Out
• Direct support for WiFi, disk drives, keyboard, mouse, and other peripherals
• A complete Board Support Package (BSP) to enable fast times to market for Windows
Mobile-based designs

"With NVIDIA’s Tegra processor line, we will continue to see impressive mobile innovations in Windows Mobile products," said Todd Warren, corporate vice president of Microsoft's mobile communication business. “Microsoft is dedicated to providing people best-in-class mobile experiences, so that people can carry a single device for work and play."

For more information on NVIDIA’s processors, please visit www.nvidia.com

[Nvidia]