Broadcom chip gives phones 1080p recording, 3D
updated 08:35 am EST, Tue December 15, 2009
Broadcom CPU gives handhelds fast visuals
Broadcom on Tuesday morning launched its most advanced mobile media chip to date, the BCM2763. Based on the company's next-gen VideoCore IV architecture, it's the first from the company to not only play back 1080p on a handheld media player or smartphone but also to record it. The full HD experience includes 3D, as Broadcom claims the processor can render games at the same resolution.
Still photography gets an aid as the chip can handle up to a 20-megapixel shot as well as features normally associated with dedicated cameras, like image stabilization, face or smile detection, panorama auto-stitching and continuous shooting.
Despite the boost in performance over its 720p-only predecessor, the BCM2763 actually consumes less power due to its 40 nanometer manufacturing process. Broadcom anticipates 20 to 50 percent less power draw overall and long lifetimes specific to 1080p video. It can record 4 to 6 hours of 1080p non-stop and play 8 to 10 hours directly from its own device screen; the number grows to 16 hours when outputting to an HDTV.
Early customers are already getting samples of the design, but full production devices aren't expected to reach shops until 2011.
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined: Nov 2008
That's damn impressive tech...
but for some reason it seems like overkill for a cellphone. Use in tablet or a MID device would seem to make more sense. Apple certainly won't be using it anytime soon because they'd need a huge number of units. I'll bet any company that uses this in a smartphone will have a very impressive product as far as features are concerned. I'll bet HTC will be among the first because they stay on the cutting edge of smartphone hardware.