NVIDIA unveils 12 Tegra devices, 25 days of music or 10 hours of 1080p video on single charge (updated)

You've read about it, maybe even dreamed about it in your fantasies of a Microsoft Pink smartphone drizzled with Zune media. Now we've got Tegra taking center stage at Computex with a dozen "mobile internet devices" powered by the Tegra processor, the "world's smallest and lowest power computer-on-a-chip" according to NVIDIA. Of notable importance, the latest Tegra press release contradicts the Mobinnova Elan release by claiming 1080p video playback is supported by Tegra, not just 720p. Something we saw for ourselves (and had confirmed by NVIDIA) during our hands-on with the Elan.

Now, get this; NVIDIA is using the term MID unlike Intel uses MID even though the terminology is of Intel origin. Instead of referring to handheld devices for consumers, NVIDIA's MIDs are classed as Tegra-based netbooks and tablets. In other words, the 8.9-inch Elan is a MID. Ugh.

Semantics aside, the platform is smokin' hot with promise offering the following benefits:

• 25 days of music or 10-hours of 1080p video playback on a single charge
• video games play at up to 46 frames per second
• GPU accelerated Adobe Flash animations (huzzah for Hulu!)
• always-on processors for instant access to the network
• 3G, WiFi, and WiMax solutions support

Great on paper, but still not available for purchase. Rest assured, we'll be hands-on with more Tegra devices on the quick.

Update: Tegra devices are expected to land before 2009 is through, priced around $200 or less with carrier subsidies.

[Mmmm... Dohnuts. @ Jun 2nd 2009 4:30AM]

Cool.

[Linhares @ Jun 2nd 2009 4:40AM]

I want a 10" android tablet with this thing to browse the web and check out those tax files

[DR House @ Jun 2nd 2009 5:44AM]

I thought we were getting those on mobile phones too, I'm i right?

[Ernesttechuser @ Jun 2nd 2009 6:14AM]

Tegra's yesterday's news.

It might have been interesting if it had been available 18 months ago, now it's way behind the game. The ARM designed CPU + System on a Chip is more than a generation older than the ones used in Snapdragon and OMAP3 or even further behind those in OMAP4.

On the GPU side of things, NVIDIA does seem to getting decent performance from it, but I'm not sure that it's any better than the PowerVR and ARM's home grown designs - nothing would suggest that it is.

This is a case of brand name and marketing getting people excited. There are far more exciting products in the world of ARM based SoCs!

[TareX @ Jun 2nd 2009 7:06AM]

@ Earnesttechuser

This "yesterday's news" has easily outdone "today's Snapdragon". Have you not seen the Toshiba phone with the 1GHz Snapdragon chip and the choppy UI?
The GPU you undermine is also a handheld breakthrough.
And the power efficiency of the overall chip is unrivaled.

[tluu @ Jun 2nd 2009 11:55AM]

The performance they are claiming is definitely not yesterday's news. Their use of an ARM11 architecture vs Cortex A8 or A9 does make them a bit dated. I believe the first phones coming out using an ARM11 architecture was back in 06-07 time frame.

[RoboDan @ Jun 2nd 2009 12:34PM]

put in phonez plz

+ keep battery life

[loosely_coupled @ Jun 3rd 2009 1:39AM]

@TareX

1) You cannot judge the relative performance of a processor based on two completely different phones. There are so many variables that affect performance --- The operating system kernel, the graphics subsystem, the windowing system, the GPU driver implementation, etc. I'm telling you right now. The Snapdragon is the fastest single-core ARM processor ever created, and it's graphics subsystem and DSP are also excellent. If the Toshiba phone was running slow, it is a lack of optimization and driver issues.
BTW, windows mobile is a terrible judge of speed as it is compiled for the ARM v4/v5 architecture from 5+ years back and doesn't even take advantage of hardware GPU acceleration in the interface.

2) The Tegra may have a good GPU, but the ARM11 CPU architecture is old-school for products coming out in Q3 2009. Qualcomm's first-gen Snapdragon (Custom ARM Cortex implementation) and T.I.'s OMAP 3 (Cortex-A8) are almost twice as fast as ARM11 at the same clock speed, and the Cortex CPUs (using new ARMv7 instructions) finally introduce a true SIMD unit called "Neon".
So the first-gen single-core Snapdragon @ 1.0Ghz or the single-core OMAP 3640 @1.0Ghz are both roughly equal to a 2000mhz ARM11 or a 1.0Ghz dual-core ARM11. So even the dual-nature of Tegra doesn't make up for the vastly inferior ARM11 cores.
Additionally, power usage is also an issue. The two 650-800mhz ARM11 cores in the Tegra use a lot more power than a single-core 600-800mhz Cortex-A8 that has the same performance.

[aurilieus @ Jun 3rd 2009 3:39AM]

All the technological supremacy talks may be relevant but i believe
you've got to think from the business point of view to look at these
offerings.

According to some press releases, NVIDIA ION netbooks will cater to
200$-400$ market. And Tegra based netbooks will attract 100$-200$
segment. So whatever you consider best for your needs, attach
yourself to the appropriate segment. Don't be greedy that i want all
functionalities (ability to run my favourite player and stuff) and
still don't wanna pay more than 200$.
If it had been easy to get all that done at that price, every
manufacturer would have done that already.

Lemme ask a very basic question-
If you have 200$ and wanna view 1080p/720p videos on your netbook,
what would you opt for ? A device that can run vlc media player and
plays the video with stutters or let the application be anything, the
playback should be seamless. The end user experience is better at the
same cost, so decide your priority.

More broadly, look at it this way-
Buy a 600$ laptop for yourself that you can use in office too.
Buy a 300$-400$ netbook for your son in college.
Buy a 100$-200$ netbook for your daughter in junior high school.

[Ali @ Jun 2nd 2009 4:32AM]

I just jizzed in my pants!

[Sphenster @ Jun 2nd 2009 4:53AM]

I think I'm turning Japanese. :D

[Corey @ Jun 2nd 2009 4:31AM]

O
M
G

[RogueTW @ Jun 2nd 2009 4:32AM]

Nvidia scores 12 pts in the 1st quarter.

Now where is Intel? Where is AMD?

[ultimatepwnage @ Jun 2nd 2009 5:31AM]

second that.

[EGOvoruhk @ Jun 2nd 2009 5:47AM]

Why would you turn Japanese? Nvidia came from California

[xconan @ Jun 2nd 2009 11:58PM]

NVidia is American other than that it doesn't have a foundry to worry about.

[kevinm @ Jun 2nd 2009 4:35AM]

25 days of music on a single charge?!

WTF! How the hell is that possible without a massive battery? I believe it when I see it NVIDIA.

[L @ Jun 2nd 2009 4:42AM]

Without battery indication, that statement is simply meaningless PR drivel.

Just as "video games play at up to 46 frames per second" is - which games? Tetris and Space Invaders?

[Jordan @ Jun 2nd 2009 10:21AM]

he meant 25 hours read it in the title

[Jay @ Jun 2nd 2009 7:21AM]

Headline says 25 hours...

[SharpShooter @ Jun 2nd 2009 9:26AM]

But the article says 25 days.

[tluu @ Jun 2nd 2009 11:55AM]

If they are claiming 10 hours of 1080p playback, I don't think claiming 25 days of MP3 playback is unreasonable. With a shell OS and no lcd, 25 days is probably achievable. However, I would like some real world numbers on a real world device. Seriously, 10 hours of 1080p playback? Give me a break. NVIDIA PR is doing themselves a disservice by making such bold claims that can't achieved on a real world device.

[Shinigami @ Jun 2nd 2009 1:49PM]

The last time I heard it was 100-130 hours of audio and 10 hours of HD video (full-hd - only in Tegra 650-series, don't forget there's Tegra 600-series and Tegra APX for smartphones, which doesn't have 1080p playback).

MIDs??? Where's my damn Tegra phone?!

Also it would be wise to rephrase "update":
"These systems will cost around US$199 when they hit the market and could be as cheap as $99 if the price is subsidized by a mobile operator, Nvidia said."
Instead of "200 or less with subsidies" - makes you think retail price will be $600+.

The news are great. But I want it in a phone.

[CJ @ Jun 2nd 2009 4:35AM]

Are all 12 of them gonna be using that Windows CE crap? If so no thankyou.

[Linhares @ Jun 2nd 2009 4:38AM]

+1

[Adderz @ Jun 2nd 2009 4:45AM]

+2

[BigdaddyC @ Jun 2nd 2009 4:56AM]

+3

[Hey @ Jun 2nd 2009 4:57AM]

+4

[Eddy Munn @ Jun 2nd 2009 5:00AM]

+5

[Sam @ Jun 2nd 2009 5:11AM]

+9

[Sam @ Jun 2nd 2009 5:11AM]

damn

[TareX @ Jun 2nd 2009 6:58AM]

Yeah. I'm saving my "HOLY CRAP" tegra posts for a Tegra-powered smartphone.... preferably running Android Eclair...

[Matt @ Jun 2nd 2009 4:39AM]

12 devices?!! You mean Korea gets 12 and we get 2.

[M@rc @ Jun 2nd 2009 4:46AM]

25 DAYS of music playback? That's amazing!

[ultimatepwnage @ Jun 2nd 2009 5:33AM]

yeah, on a car battery.

[BAWWW @ Jun 2nd 2009 4:47AM]

HOLY F-

[Information Central @ Jun 2nd 2009 4:50AM]

What's with the weird hyphenation of terms involving numbers? If the thing plays 25 hours of music, then that's it. It doesn't play 25-hours of music.

And why didn't you hyphenate "12 Tegra devices", in the same headline?

[Big Al @ Jun 2nd 2009 4:59AM]

So... if I got this right:
- Intel has "UMPCs", "MIDs" and "netbooks", depending on the purpose and form factor.
- NVIDIA has "MIDs" (at least with the Tegra) which cover all form factors smaller than a notebook.
- Qualcomm is developing the Snapdragon for their "smartbooks", which is their term for netbooks.

This isn't confusing...


On a side note, I hope someone gets a Tegra and puts it into a form factor like the Sony Vaio P. I'd buy that in an instant (as long as it doesn't have the Sony Tax.)

[Vimal @ Jun 2nd 2009 5:16AM]

I'll buy that for a dollar!

[maveric101 @ Jun 2nd 2009 5:00AM]

this almost sounds too good to be true. 25 DAYS of music? 10 hours of 1080p? just wow.

[Oinquer @ Jun 2nd 2009 5:10AM]

please revise articles... 25 hours of music in title and 25 days of music in body text?..

[nosgoroth @ Jun 2nd 2009 5:06AM]

Title says 25 hours, post says 25 days. Fix it.

Also, I'll believe it when I see it.

[Jakob @ Jun 2nd 2009 5:58AM]

From the source:

Listening to music for >>>25 days

[Samunosuke Ode @ Jun 2nd 2009 5:22AM]

Even nokia 3310 doesn't have 25 days of standby.

[superhobo @ Jun 2nd 2009 5:57AM]

If you stick in a modern day battery, it would last 25 weeks.

[David Kimmerly @ Jun 2nd 2009 5:25AM]

Ya, the chip can process video and music for that time period on a single charge (based on average battery type) but your display will drain that down to 5 hours....

Over-hyped.

[Fnuky @ Jun 2nd 2009 5:45AM]

Re: the confusion WRT does it play 1080p or only 720p... it's quite an easy one to explain.

They have 3 different models of the chip. Some can only play 720p and others can play 1080p.

[TareX @ Jun 2nd 2009 7:01AM]

The MID version does 1080p
The smartphone version (which I was aching to see) does 720p.

And the secret ingredient here is power consumption.

[superhobo @ Jun 2nd 2009 5:58AM]

Nice..........!

[Mizzike @ Jun 2nd 2009 6:57AM]

Zuney zuney zune.
How many different tegra chips are there?