Showing posts with label TI. Show all posts
Showing posts with label TI. Show all posts

Monday, 2 August 2010

HTC's "Nexus Two" sees $163.35 Bill of Materials

HTC Droid Incredible as possible followup to Google phone

HTC’s new Droid Incredible smart phone carries a Bill of Materials (BOM) of $163.35, according to a dissection conducted by iSuppli’s Teardown Analysis Service.
“The Droid Incredible could have been dubbed the ‘Nexus Two’ given its similarity to HTC’s Nexus One introduced early this year,” said Andrew Rassweiler, director and principal analyst and teardown services manager for iSuppli. “Indeed, the phones are very similar in terms of costs and features, with the main difference being the Incredible’s support for the CDMA air standard used by carrier Verizon in the United States.”
The Nexus One’s BOM amounted to $174.15, based on iSuppli’s January pricing estimate, very close to the current materials cost for the Incredible. The centerpiece of both phones is an advanced Active Matrix Organic Light Emitting Diode (AMOLED) display. Both phones also share a common electronic design based on Qualcomm Inc.’s 1GHz Snapdragon baseband processor. Finally, the Incredible and Nexus One both integrate a class-leading density, at 4Gbit, of Mobile Double Data Rate (DDR) DRAM to support the processor.
Beyond the use of CDMA in the Incredible, only a few other differences distinguish the phone from the Nexus One. The Incredible, for one, uses an optical track pad, as opposed to the trackball on the Nexus One. Furthermore, the Incredible employs HTC’s Sense User Interface (UI) overlay, whereas the Nexus uses the generic Android UI. When the $8.90 manufacturing cost is added in, the combined BOM and production expense for the Incredible amounts to $172.25.

Qualcomm, Samsung and Hynix lead the BOM parade
The most expensive section of the Incredible is the baseband/applications processor, at a cost of $31.40, and accounting for 19.2 percent of the smart phone’s total BOM. This section is dominated by Qualcomm’s baseband Integrated Circuit (IC), which includes the Snapdragon processor.
Coming in at a close second in terms of expense is the display and touch screen section at a cost of $31.20, or 19.1 percent of the BOM. The AMOLED display portion of this subsystem is supplied by Samsung Mobile Display.
Next in the ranking is the memory section, at a cost of $29.80 and accounting for 18.2 percent of the BOM. In the individual Incredible phone unit torn down by iSuppli, this section consists of NAND flash memory and mobile Double Data Rate (DDR) DRAM from Samsung Electronics and more NAND from Hynix Semiconductor. However, iSuppli believes that HTC is likely using additional sources of supply for these commodity memory parts.

Broadcom, Texas Instruments and Atmel get Incredible wins
Other major functional sections and suppliers include:

  • The Bluetooth/WLAN section, at a cost of $8.45 or 5.2 percent of the BOM, featuring a Broadcom chip that combines Bluetooth, FM and WLAN support.
  • The power management section, with an expense of $7.25 and amounting to 4.4 percent of the BOM, including semiconductors from Qualcomm and Texas Instruments 
  •  The user interface functions, costing $5.55 and accounting for 3.4 percent of the BOM, featuring an Atmel touch screen controller, an Asahi Kasei Microdevices (AKM) electronic compass and a Bosch Sensortec accelerometer (see ST's and freescales bid inthis area)
  • The Radio Frequency (RF) transceiver section, with a cost of $5 and representing 3.1 percent of the BOM, centered on a single-chip RF device from Qualcomm.
  •  The power amplifier section, at a cost of $2.60 and BOM share of 1.6 percent, featuring two transmit modules from Avago Technologies and TriQuint Semiconductor

For more information on iSuppli’s Droid Incredible Teardown, please visit: http://www.isuppli.com/Teardowns-Manufacturing-and-Pricing/Pages/It-s-Incredible-HTC-Incredible-Teardown.aspx?PRX
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Monday, 11 January 2010

TI brings smartphone chip to eBooks with OMAP3 platform

Complete hardware and software platform reduces footprint by 200mm2



With 2009 recognized as a watershed year in the evolution of the eBook market, manufacturers and developers are racing to develop new terminals. So Texas Instruments has launched an OMAP 3 processor-based eBook development platform to help manufacturers and developers rapidly deploy their endless ideas to launch new, innovative eBook readers. 
With an electrophoretic display, TI’s platform includes the new OMAP3621 applications processor, WiLink6.0 WiFi/Bluetooth/FM “combo” connectivity solution, the new TPS6518x electronic paper display (EPD) power management IC, along with other TI analogue solutions, and 3G modem connectivity support. 
The development platform uses the low-power 45nm OMAP 3 processor family orinigally designed for smartphones which provides a robust, multitasking environment to simultaneously support applications which exercise the CPU, multimedia and graphics engines. The OMAP3621 processor will allow users to read their favorite eBook on an electrophoretic display, while simultaneously scanning the web on a second display for their next purchase. The processor uses the high performance ARM Cortex-A8 CPU integrated with Imagination POWERVR3D graphics acceleration, and TI’s proven C64x+DSP technology for multimedia acceleration. The OMAP3621 processor delivers an optimized peripheral set in a 12mmx12mm, 0.5mm ball pitch package with low power DDR memory support.   The solution’s smaller footprint enables thinner consumer designs while also delivering power and performance metrics that will change how consumers use eBooks in the future. The processor also provides added flexibility with its programmable architecture design. Leveraging the programmability of the OMAP platform enables customers to further differentiate their devices and stand out in the marketplace, giving their devices a unique look and feel.

Unique software-based display controller
TI has employed a DSP-based software display controller, which drives E Ink’s Vizplex electrophoretic display on the eBook development platform to further streamline eBook product development. By implementing the display controller on the DSP, the Cortex-A8 can be used to its full potential, delivering an outstanding user experience. This software controller approach reduces the total silicon footprint by more than 200mm2 as well as provides savings on overall hardware cost. TI’s overall system solution eliminates the need for:
  • Typical hardware EPD controller;
  • Dedicated external flash memory to store waveforms;
  • Dedicated SDRAM memory for the frame buffer; and
  • External temperature sensor by embedding it into TI’s TPS6518x display power management IC
 The development platform will allow more than 14,800 page turns on a six-inch E Ink screen using a slim 600mAh battery, representing a 50 percent improvement over similar solutions in the market today.With this in mind, consumers could read a 500-page book approximately 20 times on a single battery charge.  Additionally, TI has optimized its connectivity solutions to run in a power conscious environment. The WiLink 6.0 solution uses an innovative low-power scanning architecture that continuously scans for available WLAN access points without impacting battery life. TI’s system-level power optimization also extends idle times, allowing an eBook device to last nearly four weeks without needing to recharge.



 “We are excited about the potential of the eBook market and how TI’s technologies simplifies eBook product design and enhance the overall user experience,” said Elie Belmand, general manager of TI’s mobile consumer business. “Today, we are working with more than ten leading eBook OEM and ODMs to bring compelling, new eBook devices to store shelves in 2010. Our eBook platform provides a comprehensive and solid foundation to allow these manufacturers to shorten their product development cycle times while delivering innovative devices that will ‘wow’ consumers and help propel the eBook market forward.”




Key features and benefits of TI’s eBook development platform
Features
Benefits
Proven digital and analog technology from TI inside

·   ARM Cortex-A8-based 45nm OMAP3621 processor with optimized peripheral set and small footprint enables sleek consumer designs and delivers unmatched performance with minimal power consumption
·   Flexible, programmable architecture design enabling differentiation
·   WiLink 6.0 solution integrates Bluetooth®, FM and WLAN technologies in a single-chip, reducing costs and size; advanced coexistence algorithms enables simultaneous Bluetooth® audio and WLAN data downloading; mobile industry’s first to support 802.11n
·   New single-chip TPS6518x electronic paper display power management IC, with integrated display panel temperature sensor and unique ability to automate the setting of the VCOM voltage via I2C interface
·   Comprehensive hardware offering also includes full reference schematics and design layout files that reduces customer integration efforts and speeds up time-to-market
·   3G modem support, 3 axis accelerometers, and other key TI power management and analog components included
Support for various display screens and technologies, several dual-screen eBook configurations, and range of eBook file formats
·   Addresses multiple electronic display technologies, including electrophoretic, electromechanical, electrowetting and thin film transistor liquid crystal displays
·   Supports dual screen designs, allowing readers to view primary text in one screen and supplementary text, like footnotes, in the second
·   Enables a strong multitasking environment, as well as enhanced, innovative and smooth user interface support through 3D graphics acceleration
Delivers complete software foundation
·   Supports Linux and Android operating systems
·   Hardware device drivers
·   Optimized power management
·   Software display controller
·   WLAN, Bluetooth and FM drivers
·   “Out of the box” connectivity through pre-validated use-cases and drivers optimized for power and throughput
Portable form factor
·   Battery powered platform replicates a real-world eBook reader environment
·   Portable design supports all typical eBook display sizes
Supports new and unique use cases
·   OMAP platform delivers support for advanced multimedia features including EPD and color screens, as well as high quality video as future eBook designs advance
·   Feature rich, text-to-speech (TTS) capability
·   FM transmit allows user to stream audio eBook or TTS to car radio while driving
·   FM receive allows user to listen to radio while reading
·   Bluetooth enables user to stream audio eBook or radio to Bluetooth headset or car radio while driving

Availability
The OMAP3621 processor, designed for high-volume consumer electronics OEMs and ODMs, is currently sampling. The eBook development platform is available today for high-volume eBook manufacturers. These solutions are not available through distributors. Samples of the TPS6518x can be ordered via www.ti.com/tps65180-pr. Volume production is expected in the first quarter.


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