本周一(12月5日)MIPS Technologies公司表示,一家中國消費(fèi)電子公司艾諾電子(Aino),發(fā)布了他們基于Android 4.0(即代號為“冰淇淋三明治”) 的媒體平板電腦ainol novo7,售價低于100美元。此平板電腦采用了君正集成電路的 JZ4770 移動應(yīng)用處理器,其中內(nèi)置主頻1GHz 的 MIPS-Based? XBurst? CPU。

MIPS Ingenic Android ICS TabletEgeesmc
這款新的 Android 4.0 平板電腦已在中國正式上市,可通過艾諾電子 (Ainol Electronics) 的網(wǎng)站購買。它也將在幾個月后,作為 Leader International 與 OMG Electronics 等公司的品牌,在美國與其他地區(qū)開始銷售。
新款平板電腦配備 7 英寸電容式多點(diǎn)觸控屏幕,也將在近期內(nèi)推出 8 英寸與 9 英寸的版本。所有機(jī)型都可支持 WiFi 802.11 b/g/n、USB 2.0、HDMI 1.3 和 microSD,以及 Vivante GC860 GPU 的 3D 繪圖功能、1080p 視頻解碼、和前/后雙攝像頭。XBurst 處理器的低功耗架構(gòu)可延長電池壽命——7 英寸平板電腦在瀏覽網(wǎng)頁時,僅消耗不到 400mA 的電流。
MIPS業(yè)務(wù)發(fā)展副總裁Robert Bismuth表示,NOVO7的功能大致相當(dāng)于亞馬遜的Kindle Fire,而后者的銷售價為199美元,整整比Novo7貴了100美元。
此次產(chǎn)品打出訂價低于100美元,給平板電腦市場帶來震撼。因?yàn)橐酝鶅r格較低的平板多是搭載Android 2的系統(tǒng),其主要是給智能型手機(jī)使用。而搭載Android 3.0系統(tǒng)的平板計算機(jī)其售價多高于250美元。原本Android 4.0是支持ARM的處理器,但目前Intel與MIPS也已可提供相關(guān)產(chǎn)品。
Robert Bismuth表示,該公司正與其他客戶一起努力,給大家?guī)砀嗷贏ndroid 4.0的MIPS架構(gòu)平板專用處理器。“平板電腦低于100美元價格點(diǎn)將成為我們努力的方向?!?Bismuth說,“MIPS架構(gòu)牌照的價格優(yōu)勢,有助于推動我們降低整個設(shè)備的成本?!?。
Bismuth舉了個有趣的例子,從最近發(fā)生的一件事,看出消費(fèi)者對價格較低媒體平板的興趣。當(dāng)惠普在8月份宣布它將停止其TouchPad平板銷售的幾個星期后,降低了庫存設(shè)備零售價到99美元和129美元。消費(fèi)者大肆搶購,在48小時之內(nèi)銷售一空。
“TouchPad未來沒有前途,因?yàn)闆]有好的應(yīng)用程序支持,”Bismuth說。 “但事實(shí)證明,確實(shí)有些人是想要它的?!?
本文下一頁:該處理器的價格與供應(yīng)情況
本文授權(quán)編譯自EE Times,版權(quán)所有,謝絕轉(zhuǎn)載
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谷歌公司移動業(yè)務(wù)高級副總裁 Andy Rubin 表示,“我非常高興看到 MIPS-Based Android 4.0 平板電腦開始進(jìn)軍市場。低成本、高性能的平板電腦是消費(fèi)者的一大福音,這充分展現(xiàn)出 Android 的開放性能夠真正推動創(chuàng)新與競爭,全球消費(fèi)者正因此而受益?!?
君正集成電路總裁兼首席執(zhí)行官劉強(qiáng)表示,“我們很高興能與 MIPS 科技共同發(fā)布這款突破性的高性能、低功耗、低成本 Android 4.0 平板電腦。結(jié)合 MIPS 架構(gòu)的優(yōu)異性能與君正集成電路的創(chuàng)新處理器設(shè)計,我們已將移動設(shè)備處理器技術(shù)提升至新的境界。隨著我們持續(xù)與 MIPS 密切合作,擴(kuò)展圍繞在 MIPS 架構(gòu)的移動生態(tài)系統(tǒng),我們預(yù)計將能更進(jìn)一步擴(kuò)大我們的產(chǎn)品在全球市場的接受度。我們相信,在新的處理器加入后,移動世界將會變得更多姿多彩?!?
MIPS 科技總裁兼首席執(zhí)行官 Sandeep Vij 表示,“Android 系統(tǒng)的開放性能實(shí)現(xiàn)全球設(shè)備與人們之間的創(chuàng)新連接與互動方式。我們非常高興作為 Android 生態(tài)系統(tǒng)的一員,共同努力推動這個愿景的實(shí)現(xiàn)。我們對君正集成電路開發(fā)這款全新的高性能、具備豐富功能的 Android 4.0 平板電腦深感贊賞,同時它的價格優(yōu)惠,將更能被市場廣泛接受。我們期待與君正集成電路繼續(xù)合作,攜手推動 MIPS-Based 移動設(shè)備的創(chuàng)新。”
Ingenic JZ4770 SoC
新款平板電腦中內(nèi)置的 Ingenic JZ4770 SoC 是首款可達(dá)到 1GHz 頻率的用于移動設(shè)備的 MIPS-Based 系統(tǒng)單晶片 (SoC),可滿足平板電腦及其他內(nèi)置豐富多媒體與高性能應(yīng)用程序和功能的設(shè)備其日益增長的需求。JZ4770 SoC 內(nèi)含由君正集成電路設(shè)計的 MIPS32 架構(gòu)兼容 XBurst CPU。XBurst CPU 內(nèi)核采用創(chuàng)新的超低功耗流水線架構(gòu),在 1GHz 條件下僅消耗不到 90mW 的功率,而整個 SoC 在 CPU 和視頻引擎全負(fù)荷運(yùn)行情況下,功耗只有約 250mW。除了 XBurst CPU,JZ4770 SoC 還整合了1080p 視頻處理引擎、Vivante 公司的OpenGL ES 2.0 3D圖形處理單元、以及多個模擬與應(yīng)用模塊,包括音頻編解碼器和 GPS等。
價格與供應(yīng)情況
君正集成電路的用于 Android 4.0 平板電腦的 JZ4770 SoC 現(xiàn)已開始供貨。新的 Android 4.0 平板電腦已在中國正式上市,可通過艾諾電子 (Ainol Electronics) 的網(wǎng)站www.ainovo.com購買。這款 7 英寸平板(非運(yùn)營商綁定)的零售價不到 100 美元。預(yù)計幾個月后,也將開始在其他地區(qū)銷售。
編譯:
Luffy Liu
本文授權(quán)編譯自EE Times,版權(quán)所有,謝絕轉(zhuǎn)載
參考英文原文:Chinese firm offers sub-$100 Android 4.0 tablet, by Dylan McGrath
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Chinese firm offers sub-$100 Android 4.0 tablet
Dylan McGrath
SAN FRANCISCO—A Chinese consumer electronics firm is offering for sale a media tablet based on Android 4.0 for less than $100, MIPS Technologies Inc. said Monday (Dec. 5).
The tablet, which is available in China and online through Ainol Electronics Co. Ltd., features a 7-inch capacitive multi-touch screen and is powered by a MIPS-based processor from China's Ingenic Semiconductor Co. Ltd. The tablet supports WiFi 802.11 b/g/n, USB 2.0, HDMI 1.3 and microSD, as well as 3-D graphics with the Vivante GC860 GPU, 1080p video decoding and dual front/rear cameras.
The tablet, NOVO7, is the first tablet based on Android 4.0, also known as Ice Cream Sandwich. It will be available in the U.S. and other geographies within the next several months under brands from companies including Leader International Inc. and OMG Electronics Ltd. It will also eventually be available in 8- and 9-inch form factors, according to MIPS.
According to Robert Bismuth, vice president of business development at MIPS, the functionality of the NOVO7 is roughly equivalent to Amazon's Kindle Fire, which is sold directly through Amazon for $199.
Bismuth said the company is working with other customers that will be bringing to market MIPS-based applications processors for tablets based on Android 4.0. Bismuth said the sub-$100 price point of the tablets is likely to be a sign of things to come. "The price advantage that the MIPS architecture brings to licenses helps to drive down the cost of all devices we are in," Bismuth added.
Bismuth pointed to an interesting proof point from recent history that underscores consumer interest in lower cost media tablets. When Hewlett-Packard Co. announced in August that it would discontinue its TouchPad tablets after just weeks on the market, it lowered the price point on the devices it still had in stock to $99 and $129. Consumers snapped them up within 48 hours.
"There was no future for [TouchPad]—no future support or future apps," Bismuth said. "But it did the four or five things that people wanted."
The Ingenic processor that powers the tablet is Ingenic's JZ4770 mobile applications processor, which leverages a MIPS-based XBurst CPU running at 1 GHz, MIPS said. The company said the XBurst processor's power-efficient architecture provides extended battery life and the tablet draws less than 400mA of power during active web browsing.
The JZ4770 is among the first MIPS-based SoCs targeted for mobile devices that delivers more than 1-GHz frequency, increasingly a requirement for tablets and other devices that incorporate rich multimedia and high-performance applications and functionality, according to MIPS.
"I'm thrilled to see the entrance of MIPS-based Android 4.0 tablets into the market," said to Andy Rubin, senior vice president of mobile at Google Inc., in a statement. "Low cost, high performance tablets are a big win for mobile consumers and a strong illustration of how Android's openness drives innovation and competition for the benefit of consumers around the world."
MIPS has posted a corporate video touting the tablet and its role in its creation on YouTube.
責(zé)編:Quentin