With ARM's Cortex-A17 processor, midrange smartphones and tablets will be much faster

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2014/02/11/arm-cortex-a17/

We already have a hard time finding fault with processing power in the midrange smartphones and tablets currently on the market, but that doesn't mean they couldn't be even snappier. That's the goal of ARM, which has announced the latest Cortex processors, known as Cortex-A17, to address not only mobile devices in the midrange market, but Smart TVs and Over-the-Top devices as well. The 28nm A17 comes with big.LITTLE (the architecture used in Samsung's latest octa-core Exynos chips) support, and promises a 60 percent boost in performance over Cortex-A9. It's also paired with a Mali-T720 GPU, which offers OpenGL ES 3.0 support and plenty of optimizations for low-end Android devices. While ARM doesn't specify an actual timeframe for release, it says that we should expect a huge push for the A17 in 2015; in a separate release, MediaTek also tells us that its newest octa-core processor comes with Cortex-A17 tech inside and will be available in the second half of this year.

Filed under: Cellphones, Home Entertainment, Tablets, Wireless, HD, Mobile

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Source: ARM

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MediaTek's new octa-core processor to compete with Qualcomm over the premium LTE smartphone market

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2014/02/11/mediatek-octa-core/

MediaTek, a chipset manufacturer based out of Taiwan, has been making some huge moves lately. Just over two months ago, it came out with the "world's first true octa-core" processor, which consisted of eight Cortex-A7 cores capable of operating simultaneously. Now that ARM has announced Cortex-A17 technology, however, MediaTek is ready to start sampling a new octa-core chip that consists of four 2.2-2.5GHz A17 cores and four 1.7GHz A7s, and comes with a Rogue PowerVR Series6 GPU to take care of any graphical needs you might have.

As an aside, the A17 cores come with a 60 percent improvement in performance over the current-gen A9s, and are primarily designed to make midrange smartphones and tablets even faster. That said, MediaTek tells us that its new chips, known as the MT6595, are actually meant to be featured in premium devices and will square off directly against Qualcomm's Snapdragon 800 and 805. And it's certainly got a few noteworthy features: first, the chip will use ARM's big.LITTLE architecture and Heterogeneous Multi-Processing, which means you can use all eight cores for the most intense tasks, or you can use just one or two at a time for incredibly basic activities. The company claims that this chip will be faster and more power efficient than the octa-core Exynos options, which feature four A15 cores and four A7s at lower frequencies.

Additionally, the MT6595 claims to be the first octa-core LTE system-on-chip with an H.265 Ultra HD Codec built-in to the platform, which offers 4K2K video recording and playback capabilities. In much the same way that most manufacturers don't enable all of a chip's features, however, it'll be up to each individual company to add it in. The chips will begin sampling to phone makers and carriers in the first half of this year, and it's expected to arrive in products during the second half. And while it should find its way into smartphones and tablets around the world, MediaTek wants the MT6595 to enjoy a huge presence in the US.

Filed under: Cellphones, Wireless, Mobile

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LG cuts the price of its curved OLED TV to a vaguely reasonable $7,000

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2014/02/10/lg-cuts-the-price-of-its-curved-oled-tv-to-7000/

The US price of LG's first curved OLED TV dropped from $15,000 to a slightly less stratospheric $10,000 late last year, but that five-digit sticker was still bound to scare away all but the richest buyers. It's a good thing, then, that LG has cut the 55-inch set's price a second time. You can now pick up the curved screen for $7,000 -- or rather, $8,000 plus an instant $1,000 rebate. It's not a great bargain when you can buy a larger 4K display for less, but those who insist on having an exotic-looking TV in the living room will likely appreciate the savings.

Filed under: Home Entertainment, HD, LG

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Via: CNET

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Intel's new low-power graphics could boost battery life in your next laptop

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2014/02/10/intel-low-power-graphics-core/

Graphics hardware can rapidly drain a laptop's battery -- there's a good reason why many Ultrabooks ship with nothing more than basic integrated video. If Intel brings a new low-power graphics core to market, though, high-performance visuals and long battery life won't be mutually exclusive concepts. The experimental design boosts the voltage of those components it needs the most, letting it aggressively reduce the voltage of unused circuits; it can even put the entire core to sleep for brief moments. The result is a GPU that's 40 percent more efficient than what you'd otherwise get. The company isn't saying just what it will do with its discovery, but it notes that the part could either extend the longevity of a mobile PC or improve its performance without sapping any more energy. If you can eventually buy an ultra-thin laptop that easily runs Crysis all day long, you'll know who to thank.

Filed under: Laptops, Intel

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Via: PC World

Source: Intel Labs

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Here's Why Instagram Is The Best Media Acquisition Of The Last Five Years And Tumblr Is The Worst

Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/instagram-acquisition-best-tumblr-worst-2014-2

Mark Zuckerberg might be a lot happier about spending $1 billion on Instagram than Marissa Mayer is about shelling out the big bucks for Tumblr. 

According to research by the think-tank L2 Intelligence, Instagram is the best media acquisition of the last five years and Tumblr is the worst.

Since Facebook bought Instagram for $1 billion in April 2012 and Yahoo purchased Tumblr for $1.1 billion in May 2013, the two social networks have seen extremely different rates of growth as well as interest and adoption rates from brands and advertisers.

"Prestige brands have abandoned Tumblr, and the adoption rate has declined," the report says. "Instagram’s 2014 revenues are forecast at $250 million-$400 million, while mention of Tumblr was noticeably absent from parent company Yahoo’s recent earnings announcement." 

Ninety-three percent of prestige brands — basically, the brands that companies want as advertisers — are on Instagram, and, since December 2013, those brands have increased their engagement on Instagram by 1.53%. At the same time, Instagram also had the highest year-over-year increase in unique visitors than any of the other top-10 mobile apps. 

If you compare the growth of active usage between Instagram and Tumblr over the second half of 2013, Instagram's usage increased by 23%, whereas Tumblr's only increased by 6%. 

Check out L2's chart ! of diffe rent social networks' brand engagement in relation to their size:

Instagram has had amazing year-over-year growth:

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