MediaTek has released a new flagship processor, Helio X20, which is the second X-series processor of MediaTek and the first 10 core processor in the world. We may see MediaTek more frequently in the high-end market in the future.
This world's first 10 core processor uses three clusters. The three processor clusters include a low-power 1.4GHz four core A53 processor, a 2.0GHz four core A53 processor that balances performance and power consumption, and a 2.5GHz dual core A72 processor used to sprint for extreme performance, MediaTek has also developed a customized interconnection IP, which MediaTek calls "MediaTek Coherent System Interconnection" (MCSI).
Let's leave aside the innovation of the whole CPU design. First, let's take a look at the functionality of the whole SoC, X20 is MediaTek's first built-in SoC supporting CDMA2000 baseband, which is crucial for MediaTek to enter the U.S. market and break Qualcomm's monopoly in this region. In addition to CDMA2000, X20 baseband also supports LTE Cat. 6, with a maximum downlink speed of 300Mbps and an maximum uplink speed of 50Mbps; The SoC also integrates 802.11ac Wi Fi, and the X20 also reduces the power consumption by 30% compared with the X10 SoC previously released by MediaTek.
As for video coding and decoding performance, X20 and X10 seem to be similar, but MediaTek claims that X20's energy consumption in this respect is 30%~40% higher than X10's.
In terms of multimedia, MediaTek has also integrated a new Cortex-M4 partner core in X20, M4 is mainly used here as an audio processor and a low-power audio decoder. In addition, it also has speech enhancement and speech recognition functions. M4 is also used as a co processor of the CPU. In short, when the X20 mobile phone turns off the screen to play music, it will automatically use only M4 for related processing tasks to save power.
In terms of GPU, X20 seems to have won the first launch of Mali-T800 series. MediaTek said that the GPU used in X20 is ARM's "high-end GPU that has not been released yet and is similar to T880". Here MediaTek chose a conservative four core 700MHz setting. Although MediaTek did not release too much detailed information, MediaTek still has the tradition of never using a special high-end GPU.
However, this GPU should still have a strong competitiveness against competitors after a long period of continuous operation, because according to the Samsung Exynos processor that we have previously tested using a more aggressive GPU, it is difficult for the Exynos GPU to maintain high frequency operation after a long period of operation and heating up, so MediaTek should do so for some reason.
According to the information released by MediaTek, the performance of the X20 GPU is 40% higher than that of the G6200 on the X10, while the power consumption is 40% lower.
In terms of memory, MediaTek continues to use the dual 32bit LPDDR3 memory interface, with a frequency of 933MHz. MediaTek said that the maximum resolution screen driven by this processor is 1440p, and this memory setting is enough (because the high-end GPUs of the Mali series have frame compression technology, the requirements for memory bandwidth are relatively low).
Now let's look back at the CPU with three clusters and ten cores. MediaTek said that this design is the result of optimizing the power consumption of ordinary sized cores, and that the design of large and small cores is inherently quite diversified - use CPUs with different architectures, use low-power cores (currently known as A53 cores) with high power consumption and high performance cores (A57 Or A72), according to the actual needs, you can also use the same architecture CPU with different electrical performance or clock frequency (such as the HiSilicon Kirin 930 built in Huawei P8). As for power consumption, the X20 power consumption curve released by MediaTek is similar to the Exynos 5433 previously tested.
Compared with the concept of "medium processor cluster" introduced by MediaTek, we are more willing to consider the three cluster design such as X20 as an extension of the current dual A53 cluster design, and according to the ARM roadmap, In order to achieve a frequency of 2.5GHz, the A72 must be manufactured using a 14 or 16nm process, so it is very impressive for MediaTek to achieve such a high frequency A72 under TSMC's 20nm process.
As for the overall power consumption, MediaTek claims that the energy efficiency of the X20 is 30% higher than that of the previous dual cluster size core design, which should be related to the fact that the power consumption curve rises more slowly and the peak performance is higher, and the smallest core can not be competent, The tasks that are too easy for the largest core to handle are handed over to the middle core, which consumes more energy than the more excellent core.
In order to realize reasonable task allocation, MediaTek uses CorePilot as their customized task allocation unit. From the task allocation performance of MediaTek processors we have contacted before, we think that the X20 v3.0 CorePilot can give full play to the performance of three cluster processors.
At present, the biggest question about X20 is how did MediaTek's MCSI perform this time, because as early as February this year, ARM has released its own CCI-500 interconnection system, which supports processors in up to four clusters. Although MediaTek has not explicitly stated that MCSI is based on CCI-500 and then optimized, it is quite possible. Although there is no direct evidence that MediaTek's MCSI is based on CCI-500, if MediaTek has invested human and material resources in research and development, Then MCSI may have unique advantages in many unknown places.
In a word, the Helio X20 of MediaTek is a very interesting and worth exploring SoC, X20 samples will be provided to manufacturers in the second half of 2015, and then the equipment equipped with X20 is expected to officially meet with us in the first quarter of 2016. According to this time frame, X20 is likely to target Qualcomm's Snapdragon 620. Maybe next year, the smoke of gunpowder will become more pervasive in the market of high-end handheld processors.
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