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Adapteva shows off production Parallella mini 'supercomputer' boards
With its ambitious Parallella computing project funded on Kickstarter since last October, Adapteva's now showing off its first mass-production boards. These Raspberry Pi-esque devices are capable of supercomputer-like parallel computing performance thanks to power-sipping Epiphany multi-core accelerators. As proposed, both the $99 13GHz 16-core (26 gigaflops) and $199 45GHz 64-core accelerator (90 gigaflops) variants make an appearance in the pictures. The company is tweaking this initial batch of 10 to test various functionalities, with its current update noting that getting Linux to boot off the boards is the next step in testing. Final units are still slated to arrive on doorsteps during the summer, and hardware schematics will eventually be available as open source-info -- after all, the Parallella has always been pitched as an open undertaking. Those enthused by circuits and the boards they live on will find a path to more info at the source link.
Insert Coin: The Parallella project dreams of $99 supercomputers
In Insert Coin, we look at an exciting new tech project that requires funding before it can hit production. If you'd like to pitch a project, please send us a tip with "Insert Coin" as the subject line. Parallel computing is normally reserved for supercomputers way out of the reach of average users -- at least at the moment, anyway. Adapteva wants to challenge that with its Parallella project, designed to bring mouth-watering power to a board similar in size to the Raspberry Pi for as little as $99. It hopes to deliver up to 45GHz (in total) using its Epiphany multicore accelerators, that crucially, only chug 5 watts of juice under normal conditions. These goliath speeds currently mean high costs, which is why they need your funds to move out of the prototype stage and start cheap mass production. Specs for the board are as follows: a dual-core ARM A9 CPU running Ubuntu OS as standard, 1GB RAM, a microSD slot, two USB 2.0 ports, HDMI, Ethernet and a 16- or 64-core accelerator, with each core housing a 1GHz RISC processor, all linked "within a single shared memory architecture." An overriding theme of the Parallella project is the openness of the platform. When finalized, the full board design will be released, and each one will ship with free, open-source development tools and runtime libraries. In addition, full architecture and SDK documentation will be published online if-and-when the Kickstarter project reaches its funding goal of $750,000. That's pretty ambitious, but we're reminded of another crowd-funded venture which completely destroyed an even larger target. However, that sum will only be enough for Adapteva to produce the 16-core board, which reportedly hits 13GHz and 26 gigaflops, and is expected to set you back a measly $99. A speculative $3 million upper goal has been set for work to begin on the $199 64-core version, topping out at 45GHz and 90 gigaflops. Pledge options range from $99 to $5,000-plus, distinguished mainly by how soon you'll get your hands on one. Big spenders will also be the first to receive a 64-core board when they become available. Adapteva's Andreas Olofsson talks through the Parallella project in a video after the break, but if you're already sold on the tiny supercomputer, head over to the source link to contribute before the October 27th closing date.
Samsung demos new 32nm quad-core Exynos ahead of MWC
If you were lucky enough to be at the International Solid-State Circuits Conference, then you might have caught a glimpse of Samsung's latest sliver of mobile silicon. The as yet unnamed Exynos parts will come in dual- and quad-core configurations running at up to 1.5GHz. Perhaps the most important change though, is the switch from a 45nm manufacturing process to 32nm. That means smaller parts that draw less power, while delivering better performance. The A9 cores are paired with Sammy's own GPU, an OpenGL ES 2.0-capable chip with four pixel processors. According to the company, the new CPUs deliver a 26 percent boost in performance and up to a 50 percent increase in battery life. Of course, we'll have to wait to run our own benchmarks to confirm that lofty claim. Who knows, maybe we'll see it show up in some phones at MWC.[Thanks, Vlad]
i.MX 6 quad-core reference board flexes processing muscle at Freescale Technology Forum
Freescale answered our power prayers with the introduction of its i.MX 6 processor suite at CES earlier this year, but left us longing for a demo. Well, the outfit's just given us all our first glimpse at the healthiest processing muscle in the bunch, the quad-core i.MX 6. Sporting four ARM Cortex A9 cores and a 64-bit memory bus, the reference design board can be seen running a 1080p video demo and Quake simultaneously -- and it didn't even break a sweat. Freescale says it's currently working with Google on making the processor Honeycomb-compatible, but don't get too excited; i.MX 6 won't make it into real-deal machines until 2012. If you've got an extra 20 minutes to spare, hop on past the break for a rather lengthy video of the processor at work.
Archos puttin' on the Ritz for its Generation 9 Honeycomb tablets, coming June 23
We were expecting some news out Archos this month and sure enough, here it is. The company has just announced that it will unveil its new Generation 9 Honeycomb tablets at a Paris event, on June 23rd. The company's third Android slate, as you may recall, was originally expected to launch at September's IFA trade show, but that date was later pushed up -- meaning we'll be able to catch a glimpse of its shiny 1.6GHz ARM A9 dual-core chip and so-called "revolutionary" 3G modem in just a few weeks. Archos certainly seems to have high expectations for the device, as well, having scheduled its debut at no less a prestigious venue than the Ritz Hotel. We'll be there (in our finest threads) to cover the event as it unfolds. [Thanks, Marien]
Sneak peek at Archos Gen 9 tablets: 1.6 GHz dual-core A9 processor, 250GB HDD for €400 in June
Word on the street was Archos planned to give us a couple of new tablets at IFA this year, but it turns out the upscale Gen 9 hardware is coming a couple months prior to the September trade show. The new Honeycomb slates are set for a June 2011 release and pack a 1.6GHz ARM A9 dual-core chip (the prospect of which should get you spec-heads drooling), up to a 250GB HDD / 32GB SSD, and a patent-pending "disruptive 3G modem" -- all for €400 (about $566). Archos' fiendish plan is to steal some of the iPad 2's thunder with its speedy processor and competitive price, but history tells us it'll need more than "competitive" to truly yank any marketshare. Too bad the post-PC world can't be bothered to care, right Steve?
