According to the Korea Times, Apple will launch its A7 processor during “the first half of next year,” and the new chips will boast 20-nanometer processing technology. The discontinuation of Samsung’s services by Apple is said to most likely put the Korean-based company into a tough situation financially, and they may have to shut down several manufacturing lines because of the ended production.

Of course, this doesn’t come as much of a surprise. It’s been rumored and speculated for awhile now, almost to the point where we would be surprised if Apple didn’t shutter business with Samsung. The two companies have been involved in a series of legal cat fights with one another over the past several years, so cutting all ties seems like the best solution to get away from each other.

Furthermore, the Korea Times reports that this year’s iPhone upgrades won’t be running a next-generation A7 processor, but rather just an improved version of the current A6X chip, with most likely a slightly faster processor and updated components, which means the next iPhone that we see may not be a huge change over the iPhone 5.

[via Korea Times]

New details are pretty slim, but the new chip’s architecture is based on the Cortex-A15 chip, and the Exynos 5 features a mixture between the Cortex-A15 and the A7 to offer the best of both worlds: four Cortex-A15 cores for intensive tasks, along with four more Cortex-A7 cores that handle the lighter stuff.

Samsung claims that this setup offers up to 70% more efficiency compared to using only Cortex-A15 cores. Samsung says that the new Exynos processor will be manufactured using the company’s latest 28-nanometer design, which increases power efficiency and produces less heat — two things that are crucial for a good chip.

The GALAXY S 4 is obviously the first device to sport the new processor, and we’re positive that more devices will make their way to the forefront sporting the new chip. If you’re not familiar with Octa-core processors, don’t worry, as we’ll be posting an in-depth “SlashGear 101″ primer later today. Stay tuned!

When they (and we) say “taped out”, it refers the final design being completed and sent off to production for a bit of electronics, especially in regards to circuits. Here this refers to the so-called “Oban chip” that will be powering the Xbox 720 when it’s released either late 2013 or early 2014. The tip here made December 31st, 2012 (earlier this week) the date when the chip was ready to roll.

As Microsoft has made more than just a tiny suggestion that they’ll make a massive appearance at E3 2013 with Major Nelson’s countdown timer, it shouldn’t sound all that far-fetched that the next-generation console would be in production today. This also comes soon after the folks at Sony ended production of the last-generation PlayStation 2, possibly in preparation for the manufacturing of the next-generation PlayStation 4 (the PlayStation 3 being the unit on the market right this minute.)

So the war is on – in the tips and rumor mills, at least. Do you feel as though it’s time for Microsoft, Sony, or both companies to bring on a new gaming console for the public? Or do you believe that the fervor we’re seeing is merely a reaction to the continued barrage of updates from mobile companies more than willing to take bites of the gaming market while Microsoft and Sony take a dive? Let us know!

[Concept Art via Yanko Design]

It’s said that this mysterious “Azalea” chip maker is actually the Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, which is contemplating between building a new factory in either New York or Oregon. It was revealed that New York officials have been pitched plans for a 3.2-million-square-foot chip manufacturing factory believed to be for producing components for Apple’s mobile products.

Samsung currently builds all of the custom A-series processors that Apple uses in its iOS devices, and they’re built out of a plant in Texas, including the newest 32nm A6 chip used in the iPhone 5, and the A6X chip used in the fourth-generation iPad. However, rumors are suggesting that Apple is looking to move away from Samsung and make a deal with TSMC.

Essentially, the theory is that by getting rid of Samsung as Apple’s main chip maker, it would free Apple up to create their own chipset dynasty of sorts. Project Azalea would be their attempt to move away from Samsung and possibly make a deal with another chip maker as their exclusive provider of future A-series chips.

[via Apple Insider]

A lot of these products on the market today require you to put the smartphone in a specific area to be able charge. That means if someone bumps the charging pad and moves the phone, you may not have a charged and ready to use device the next day. Toshiba America Electronic Components has announced a new free positioning wireless charging chipset.

This chipset is fully compliant with the Wireless Power Consortium Qi interface specification A4, A8, A12, and A14. The chipset includes the TB6865FG power transmitter and the TB6860WBG receiver. The chipset uses a two-coil control architecture promising cost-effective battery charging. The TB6865FG chip is able to detect the position of mobile device and one of the coils. Energize for charging preserving efficiency and allowing the user to place the device anywhere on the charging mat.

The chipset also allows to mobile devices to be charged at the same time since it allows independent control of the dual coils. The system is able to achieve 74% efficiency across the majority of the charging area. The chipset will begin sampling in Q1 2013 priced at five dollars for the TB6865FG and three dollars for the TB6860WBG.

The company had a net income for the quarter of $1.27 billion, which is up and impressive 20% year-over-year. Deluded earnings per share were up both year-over-year and sequentially, landing at $0.89 – an 11% increase year-over-year and a 6% sequential increase. Operating cash flow was another thing that took a hit in the quarter, dropping 23% year-over-year to $1.41 billion. During the quarter, the company shipped 141 million MSM chips, which is a 11% increase year-over-year.

Qualcomm had a pretty good quarter 4, but it had an even better fiscal 2012. The company reported record revenues of $19.12 billion, which is up a very impressive 28% over fiscal 2011. Net income for the year rose 43% to $6.11 billion, and Qualcomm was able to post a deluded earnings per share in fiscal 2012 $3.51, up once again over fiscal 2011, this time by 39%. With everything added up, Qualcomm managed to ship 590 million MSM chips, which is another record for the company.

In fiscal 2013, the company is expecting its revenues to climb even higher, projecting total revenues of “approximately $23.0 billion to $24.0 billion.” It’s also hoping to post a diluted earnings per share of $4.12 to $4.32 for fiscal 2013, which again would be an increase over this year’s results. Looking a little closer at the immediate future, to company is projecting that it will ship 168 million to 178 million MSM chipsets in Q1 2013, and it’s expecting to report quarterly revenues of $5.6 billion to $6.1 billion. Qualcomm is obviously expecting fiscal 2013 to be bigger than fiscal 2012, so we’ll be keeping an eye out to see if it all unfolds the way the company is projecting.

The new line is composed of four processors: the 4.2GHz FX-8350 (8-core, $195), the 4.0GHz FX-8320 (8-core, $169), the 4.1GHz FX-6300 (6-core, $132), and the 4.0GHz FX-4300 (4-core, $122). The FX-4300 has 4MB of L3 cache, while the FX-6300 has 1MB of L2 cache per core with a total of 8MB of L3 cache. The two higher-end processors, the FX-8320 and FX-8350, both have 8MB of L3 cache. This series uses the Piledriver architecture, which is an improved version of the previously released Bulldozer.

The Piledriver cores were first introduced back in May in the A Series Trinity chips. Improvements include improved scheduling, larger L1 TLB, larger load queue, page translation reload optimization, and more. Said Adam Kozak, “We’re seeing anywhere from seven, all the way up to 15% [in improvement improvement]. Half of that comes from [instructions per cycle] improvements, and the other half or so comes from frequency improvements.” According to AMD, you need a 9-series motherboard to run the FX Vishera chips.

During a pre-release presentation, these four AMD processors were compared to Intel’s Core i5-3570K, i5-3450, i5-2300, and i3-2120 processors. In each case, the AMD processor was priced lower and offered better specs, according to AMD’s presentation of the ecosystem. All FX Series processors are unlocked and can be overclocked.

An unidentified source “familiar with the company’s plans” told AllThingsD that AMD plans to announce workforce cuts between 20% and 30% next week, which would total about 2,200 to 3,300 jobs. The jobs in danger involve sales and engineering, and the anticipated cuts may result in AMD reducing its overall offerings. The first round of cuts at the beginning of the year reduced AMD’s operating expenses by $118 million, yet a bad economy and poor sales have prevented it from rebounding.

Sources say that the official announcement could come on October 18th, when AMD announces its quarterly data, or it could be on October 25th. According to one of the sources, the cuts may be completed, or close to completion, by the 25th. The exact time frame for the announcement is unknown, but is expected to be in the next two weeks.

According to the sources providing this info, AMD employees have been expecting the cuts to happen for quite awhile now, presumably since the end of last year when the first round of cuts were announced, and then as sales continued to flounder throughout 2012. The Q1 workforce reduction totaled 1,400 jobs. Said one source, “There are a lot of nervous people, and not a lot is getting done right now.”

AMD is blaming the drop in revenue on “conditions that materialized late in the second quarter”, which include a slowdown in sales throughout Europe and China as well as less consumer demand. We imagine that Intel’s recent introduction of Ivy Bridge across desktops and laptops didn’t help either. Still, it’s not all bad news. AMD believes that other estimates are still on target, such as a decrease in operating expenses by 8% thanks to stricter expenditure for Q2.

If you’re desperate to know the precise numbers, you’ll have to wait until July 19th. AMD will also hand out information regarding expected third quarter results. Intel’s Q2 earnings, meanwhile, will be revealed on July 17th.

Even though AT&T and Verizon both have a 700MHz LTE network, they each use a different block of that spectrum, making a device for one network not compatible with the other. This may soon change with the launch of Qualcomm’s new LTE radio chip, which supports three frequencies below 1GHz, three above, and one in the high range, which would cover Clearwire’s upcoming 2.5 GHz 4G network.

The new chip will be built on a 28nm process, which ensures lower power consumption. They are expected to ship to manufacturers in July with the phones sporting the new LTE chips shipping by the end of the year. The revelation was part of a larger FCC filing by Qualcomm that was surprisingly in opposition of a mandate for interoperability in the lower 700MHz band.

[via IntoMobile]

Speaking this week on all things NVIDIA and connectivity, Senior Vice President of Mobile Communications at NVIDIA spoke up on AT&T validation with glee: “Validation with AT&T is an achievement that paves the way for NVIDIA Icera-powered LTE devices on the AT&T network through this year and next.”

NVIDIA made the move toward better connected devices with Icera modem technology they acquired last year. Have a peek at our feature on Icera tech to get a better idea of what it’s all about: Icera: Why so special?

This solution is one of two modems NVIDIA spoke about several months ago when Icera was first mentioned, the other being the 450 model found in a ZTE device alread. The NVIDIA Icera 410 LTE modem is the first Icera modem to work with 4G LTE in NVIDIA’s software defined radio baseband processor and will work with 4G LTE at 2 data rates. The NVIDIA Icera 410 will also operate along 4G HSPA+, 3G, and 2G bands. Stay tuned for more NVIDIA news throughout the day!

Intel CEO Paul Otellini boasted that the company is able to push out new chip fabrication processes faster than any of its competitors thanks to its $2 billion a year investment in research and development and its employment of 1,900 PhD graduates. Intel has already begun building sites for its next-gen 14nm process in three locations and expects the new chips to arrive on time for next year.

Otellini also revealed that Intel plans to really focus on mobile chips, where the market is dominated by ARM. Intel is currently shipping 32nm mobile chips and expects to shrink down to 22nm by next year and then 14nm thereafter. The goal is to not only play catchup with its mobile chips, but to make them the company’s leading edge in processes within three years.

[via PC Pro]

Samsung in South Korea has sent out confirmation that Patla is now a vice president at the company, but would not comment on the possibility that they’d soon be making server-ready chips for the market. This move may be one that will bring Samsung out of its 2nd place spot for semiconductor revenue, a spot long held by Intel. Other competitors in the wide world of chips include such fighters as Qualcomm, Texas Instruments, and NVIDIA, each of these currently also fighting for sway over the mobile SoC world where Samsung’s chips sit in not only their own devices, but the iPad and the iPhone as well.

If indeed Samsung does move into server chips, it will mean just as big an expansion as was announced earlier this week in their display business. Samsung has done well for itself in the past handful of years in the mobile business as well as in memory chips and displays, so a move to chips for servers only seems natural at this point. Would you trust a Samsung chip in your server this summer?

[via WSJ]

Featuring Intel’s Sandy Bridge-E architecture, the Xeon E5-2600 family can handle a full eight cores per processor and as much as 768GB of system memory. The additional cores along with a smaller 32nm architecture, as opposed to 45nm, will make the processor 80 percent faster and 50 percent more efficient. It will also be the first server processor family to integrate PCI Express 3.0 support and I/O controller directly into the microprocessor.

Intel aims to address the growing server needs of a more connected world, forecasting at least 3 billion connected users with 15 billion connected devices by 2015. The new server chips have already begun shipping to manufacturers, including HP, Dell, IBM, Oracle, and Cisco, which are all expected to announce Xeon-based server platforms today.

Rival AMD recently acquired startup SeaMicro for $334 million to enter this same enterprise server market aimed at cloud computing. The move was seen as a blow to Intel, which had appeared to have formed a tight relationship with SeaMicro. However, VP and general manager of Intel’s Datacenter and Connected Systems Group, Diane Bryant, dismissed that notion today, saying that Intel was “not impressed” with SeaMicro and had declined to purchase the company.

[via ZDNet]

At this pace, Intel is moving faster than Moore’s Law, according to which the number of transistors that can fit into an integrated circuit doubles about every two years. At the same time, the chips will either have the same performance but half the size or have the same size but double the performance. With 14nm, Intel is getting very close to reaching the theoretical limit of silicon, which is around 9nm to 11nm. However, the company has mentioned before that it expects to eventually jump to 8nm by 2015.

Intel believes that the mobile market moves at a far faster pace than desktops and hence the company will be going be shrinking down the slicon aggressively. One major reason Intel will be able to go at such a rapid pace is its adoption of FinFETs next year, which will allow a single transistor to act as a multi-gate device. In this way, one transistor can perform much more calculations than in a traditional system and hence reduce the number of electrodes and consequently the size of chips. Furthermore, Otellini affirmed that Intel had plenty of manufacturing capacity for both PC and non-PC devices.

[via TheVerge]

Intel’s Ivy Bridge chips are the successors to its current Sandy Bridge family and is built on a more advanced 22nm process with new 3D Tri-Gate transistors. The next-gen architecture promises up to 37 percent faster performance along with a 50 percent reduction in power consumption.

Previously leaked roadmaps pegged the new Ivy Bridge chips to begin shipments in the March and April time frame, but that has now been pushed back. “I think maybe it’s June now,” said Maloney in response to inquiries about the Ivy Bridge delay.

Maloney explained that the delay was due to issues with the manufacturing process of the smaller chips and not due to a lack of demand. Although Ivy Bridge likely won’t ship until June, the time frame will still meet Intel’s original goal of releasing the chips within the second quarter.

The new quad-core Samsung Exynos chip is expected to be 26 percent faster, while using 34 to 50 percent less power. Each core can be shutdown independently to conserve energy depending on the tasks at hand. The Exynos 4412 model can run from 200MHz to 1.5GHz, and will include four ARM Mali graphics cores, a 64-bit Neon media engine, and a dual-channel memory controller.

The Exynos 4412 is said to be powerful enough to support a phone with an integrated projector and a 1080p 3D display. It will directly compete with Nvidia’s Tegra 3 quad-core processor for a place in tablets and high-end smartphones this year.

Although, we did see earlier today that TI has its own OMAP 5 that will be a strong contender and has already been shown to smoke the Tegra 3 with its dual ARM Cortex-A15 cores. Samsung has its own answer to this with the Exynos 5250, which is built on a 32nm process and also features dual Cortex-A15 cores.

[via Tom's Hardware]

TI’s OMAP 5 will be making a showing at next week’s Mobile World Congress, but this new benchmark battle video should help whet our palettes for what processing advancements lay ahead. The video shows two tablets downloading videos, playing MP3s, and running through 20 pages of EEMBC’s BrowsingBench test.

One tablet uses an 800MHz TI OMAP 5 SoC, which is built on a 28nm process and consists of two ARM Cortex-A15s and two Cortex M4s along with a SGX544 MP2 graphics. The other tablet, similar to a Transformer Prime, features an unnamed 1.3Ghz quad-core ARM Cortex-A9 setup, much like Nvidia’s Tegra 3.

And the results show that the TI OMAP 5 is more than twice as fast. And with the capability of ramping up the OMAP 5 from 800MHz to 2GHz, the speed could be even faster. However, TI doesn’t expect its chips to ship in products until late 2012 or early 2013.

[via AnandTech]

An interesting proposition comes from 9to5Mac as well, that this could be, even though it’s not mentioned, prepared to work with iOS as well for the iPad 3 this spring. Nearly every 3G iOS-carrying device since the release of the Verizon iPhone uses the Gobi platform from Qualcomm – this excluding only one: the AT&T iPad using a legacy chip from Infineon. Sources argue that this makes chip all but a guarantee that the next Apple device will have LTE capabilities upon it.

Qualcomm is announcing both the MDM9615 and the MDM9215 wireless baseband modems, the technology allowing all of the connectivity listed above. At the launch of this fifth generation Gobi platform, hardware partners will be Huawei, Novatel Wireless, Option, Sierra Wireless, and ZTE. Each of these groups will be collaborating on devices of several form factors and configurations across the nation. Fram Akiki, senior director of product management for Qualcomm CDMA Technologies noted the following:

“With Windows 8, we expect to see an increasing variety of mobile computing devices also in use by connected consumers around the world. Our Gobi fifth generation reference platform helps ensure that OEMs can develop products across their choice of operating systems and hardware platforms to meet the growing demand for mobile connectivity.”- Akiki

We’ll be covering Qualcomm’s every move at Mobile World Congress 2012, just as you’d expect us to, and you can follow us all through the week through our portals at [MWC 2012] as well as [Qualcomm] – seeya soon!

The games and applications running on TI’s development tablets were displayed, and included very impressive gaming performance.Framerates and definition were noticeably smoother, even on the relatively simple animation demonstration. On the TI 4460 (the same processor in the Galaxy Nexus and various other high-end smartphones and tablets) got about 24 frames per second, while the new 44670 got a solid 42. Mobile hardware with the new chipset should start appearing sometime in late Q2 2012.

Various software demonstrations from TI’s software partners demonstrated the flexibility of its APIs. A gesture-based cookbook reader (so you don’t have to touch the tablet with dirty hands) was particularly effective, and the same technology was used for a controlling a monster tuck game without touching hardware. A WiFi Direct demonstration beamed 1080p video to a TV module while still having full access to Android’s tablet interface on the host machine, allowing for true single-device multitasking (AKA couch surfing). We’ll look forward to seeing what TI OMAP 5 has to offer in the next generation, which promises to be an even more dramatic improvement.

The new parts are also using the third generation of the Qualcomm Reference Design or QRD ecosystem program. The new parts add more capability for these device makers to expand smartphone lines and 3G possibilities. The QRD program is intended to let the device makers develop smartphones that can be sold in high volumes at lower costs.

The new parts are to give device makers an upgrade path for taking their snapdragon S1 designs to dual-core S4 mobile processors under the hood. The new chipsets will be available in the first half of 2012 in the QRD platform and will be available as standalone chips too.

SuVolta calls this new technology DDC for Deeply Depleted Channel. The technology could be making its way very soon to mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets where systems-on-a-chip (SoC) technologies are aggressively competing to keep down power consumption, while providing greater performance.

The current mobile landscape is dominated by ARM chips with Intel pushing its way in, but SuVolta argues that its DDC technology has several advantages over Intel’s in the areas of cost and efficiency. The DDC technology is part of SuVolta’s PowerShrink platform and devices utilizing the SuVolta technology are expected to reach the market by the second half of 2012.

[via eWeek]

Despite the popularity and buzz around 4G LTE devices, Apple has refused to incorporate the technology. Current generation baseband chips with LTE support are too power hungry and require package size and power requirements exceeding what Apple has designed for its current lineup. Apple CEO Tim Cook has said before that “LTE would force design compromises we’re not willing to make.”

However, the new Qualcomm MDM 9×00 series chips are made using a 28nm process that greatly improves power efficiency. Plus, the Gobi 4000 platform is compatible with EV-DO Rev. A and B, HSPA+, and dual-carrier HSPA+., which suits Apple’s needs for a worldwide solution instead of separate variants for different regions. And since Apple’s iPhone 4, iPhone 4S, and iPad 2 baseband chips are already from Qualcomm, it would seem a likely path to upgrade to the new more efficient Qualcomm LTE chips next year. The first of the series, MDM 9615, is due out in the first quarter of 2012.

[via Ars Technica]

AMD has been struggling with setbacks this year, including the delay of important new chips due to manufacturing problems. Furthermore, worldwide PC sales have been stagnant while smartphones, tablets, and other mobile devices experienced strong growth. In order to stay competitive, AMD may have to enter these emerging markets.

The 10 percent cut in AMD’s global workforce along with other cuts in operational costs will save the company a total of $200 million in 2012. That savings will then be reinvested into new technologies such as lower-powered chips for mobile devices or cloud computing.

[via ZDNet]

The ARMv8 will allow chips built on this architecture to handle more data and memory, resulting in overall faster performance. It will also now be able to support platforms like Microsoft’s Windows and Apple’s Mac OS, which are both 64-bit. Additionally, Microsoft has already announced that it is developing Windows 8 versions that will be compatible with the new ARM 64-bit chip architecture.

However, it may be awhile before ARM partners start incorporating the new chip architecture. Specifications have already been made available to manufacturers with details of full-scale ARMv8 processors due in 2012. Actual enterprise products and systems using the chips most likely won’t ship until 2014.

[via ComputerWorld]

With the highest resolution screens common today supporting 2560 x 1600, the move by Intel indicates that higher resolution screens are in the works. This is good news for people that are really into media and for gamers looking for the highest resolutions possible in a game. The 4K resolution is supposed to land next year.

Intel is also talking up the Multi Format Codec MFX engine that will allow the playback of multiple 4K resolution videos at one time. The MFX engine would support the 4K QuadHD video standard adopted last year by YouTube. Enhancements made to Ivy Bridge will allow it to have a 60% performance increase compared to the current Sandy Bridge chips. The thought of a Cinema Display from Apple or displays from other firms cramming the 4K resolution into a 27 to 30-inch screen is appealing. You will need some graphics muscle for gaming at that resolution.

[via Apple Insider]

The new S4 class chipset based off the Krait architecture is built on a 28nm process. It will be available in single-core, dual-core, and quad-core versions with speeds up to 2.5GHz and will come with Adreno Graphics, 3D, full 1080p HD, as well as 3G and LTE connectivity as standard features.

The S4 class will be the high-end line whereas Qualcomm will also be offering less powerful chips for budget and mass market devices with its S1, S2, and S3 classes. The chips will be available to manufacturers by year-end and can be expected to ship in consumer devices at the start of 2012. This means that we can expect to see the first 2.5GHz handsets launching at Mobile World Congress in February of next year.

[via Android Community]

The last delay had to do with issues regarding the graphics driver on the Cedar Trail processor. The architecture is built on a 32nm process and has the GPU residing on the same die as the CPU. At the time, the platform failed to attain Windows 7 certification, likely due to media encoding problems.

Now that issue should be fixed, but the platform has also added some new features. Cedar Trail will now support Intel Smart Connect Technology and Fast Boot & Standby, which uses Intel’s Rapid Start technology.

The Intel Smart Connect feature lets your computer periodically check on web apps such as Facebook and Twitter while in sleep mode. This way, your computer is always connected and updating even while you’re away.

Rapid Start lets devices resume from hibernation in less than 7 seconds. These boot times should become standard on all Ultrabooks and will be exclusive to Ultrabooks until Cedar Trail netbooks launch.

[via NetbookNews]

The partnership means that future Android versions will include optimization for Intel’s low power Atom processors, the latest being the Medfield chips. Google’s Andy Rubin went on stage holding a smartphone prototype running Android 2.3 Gingerbread with Intel’s Medfield chips inside. A prototype tablet powered by Intel’s Atom processor was also revealed, although no specific manufacturers were named.

Intel promises that the first Android phones to be running on Intel chips would arrive in early 2012. Interestingly, the Google-Intel announcement comes just following Microsoft’s unveiling of Windows 8, which now supports ARM-based chips. Now both chip architectures get to expand into new territory.

[via Engadget]

The Core i7 3960X will be the top of the line with a 3.3GHz Extreme Edition six-core processor. The clock speed may be lower than what’s offered on the Core i7 990X that it’s replacing, but it features a larger 16MB cache, quad-channel memory, and other updates for about 15 percent faster performance.

The Core i7 3930K will be replacing the i7 980, while a Core i7 3820 could reach mainstream products for performance users on a budget. Pricing for the 3820 is expected to start at $294 with the two higher end processors priced at $583 and $999.

[via Electronista]

What publishers at Fudzilla are calling their “Far East sources” are saying is that NIVIDA’s original statement that August would be the time for quad-core tablets and the holiday season of 2011 would be the time for quad-core super phones is premature, saying that “this won’t happen and that it will launch at later date, probably when it gets colder in the northern hemisphere.” Further sources are noting that Kal-El definitely will be coming inside Q3, again Fudzilla saying this means September 30th, this of course meaning we’ll see a quad-core chipset coming out from NVIDIA before the holiday season of this year.

The latest word direct from NVIDIA is thus:

“Project Kal-El-powered tablets are coming this Fall, and phones around the CES 2012 timeframe.”

In the demo we were presented with this year at Mobile World Congress 2011, we got to see an early version of the quad-core chip decoding a video stream with 1440p resolution; roughly double the resolution of 1080p and outputting video at 2560×1440 to a computer monitor set at a monstrous 2560×1600. This demo continued with a game that has yet to be named running at 20 FPS on a Tegra 2 and 50-55 FPS on the Kal-El. Videos were allowed during the demo of Great Battles: Medieval, a game now available through War Drum Studios. Have a look at the demo here:

Any way you look at it, we’re more than likely going to see this awesome piece of hardware running some next-level devices by the end of the year. Can’t wait!

[via Fudzilla]

Citi analyst Glen Yueng says that Intel is currently in talks with Apple about manufacturing the custom A4 and A5 chips, but that the aim is towards a much bigger partnership. Yueng says that Intel isn’t interested in simply being a foundry partner with Apple and that part of the deal that’s being negotiated would have Apple migrate to Intel chips later on for their future iPads and iPhones.

If this deal goes through, it would be a huge blow to ARM. But recent rumors have also suggested that Apple may switch from Intel to ARM for the processors in their Macbooks. But with Intel’s recent unveiling of the 22-nm 3D Tri-Gate chip technology, that will pack in the performance Intel is known for while reducing size and energy consumption, it’s hard to see Apple making that move.

[via Business Insider]

Building on top of this for their tablet chip offering should yield some pretty awesome results. According to the roadmap, their new chipset will be a Fusion Z-Series codenamed “Desna.” These chips will support DirectX 11 graphics, Adobe Flash Player video acceleration, and smooth HD video streaming. They will also support hardware graphics acceleration for Internet Explorer 9, Microsoft Office 10, and Windows 7 visual effects.

The specs suggest that AMD is targeting future Microsoft tablets. But to truly compete with the next-generation Intel Atom Oak Trail chips or ARM-based processors, the Desna will need to have low power consumption for longer battery life in combination with high power and performance.

[via Android Community]

The MSM8270, MSM8930, MSM8960, and APQ8064 are all based on Qualcomm’s new CPU architecture called Krait. The new chip will be made on a 28 nanometer process and run at speeds up to 2.5GHz, with almost 23 percent more computing power than the Cortex A15 and using 47 percent less power for the same performance. The chip is expected to have speeds up to five times faster than its predecessor in raw CPU power and four times faster when it comes to graphics for “console quality gaming.” It will be able to support not only 1080p and 3D video, but also 7.1-channel Dolby Surround and up to a 20-megapixel camera.

The MSM8960 has built-in 3G and LTE-based 4G hardware and will ship out to companies for testing by end of Spring. The rest of the Snapdragon chips will be shipped by the end of the year, with actual products utilizing the chip depending on when the device manufacturers are ready. This means we could be seeing the chips in mobile devices by 2012.

[via Electronista]

First, Qualcomm notes that this is a record quarter for them, posting revenues of $3.9 billion being no small pot of cash to scoff at. They’ve also noted that this translates to a total of $.59 in EPS, Earnings Per Share. There’s also another EPS number in there, but unless you know what non-GAAP means, I suggest you skip it. Next, Qualcomm’s operating income is $1.07 billion, that being down 3% from the quarter that came before this one, but up 38% from last year at this time. Can you say big growth?

And for those of you who’ve been lost since the article started, lemme explain who Qualcomm is. It’s the brand name given to those friendly folks who create the chipsets that are inside your smartphones. Not ALL smartphones, of course, but they’re working to fix that! Take a look at our gigantic Qualcomm Portal to see all the coverage we’ve got on this radically excellent set of power generators in developers clothing. But before you go, you have a reading assignment – the entire press release below! Hooray!

Qualcomm Announces Second Quarter Fiscal 2011 Results
Record Revenues $3.9 Billion
GAAP EPS $0.59, Non-GAAP EPS $0.86
— Raises Fiscal 2011 Revenue and Earnings Guidance —

SAN DIEGO, April 20, 2011 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — Qualcomm Incorporated (Nasdaq: QCOM), a leading developer and innovator of advanced wireless technologies, products and services, today announced results for the second quarter of fiscal 2011 ended March 27, 2011.

“We are pleased to report record quarterly revenues, and we are raising our revenue and earnings guidance for the year as the demand for smartphones across an array of geographies and tiers continues to grow,” said Dr. Paul E. Jacobs, chairman and CEO of Qualcomm. “In addition, we have resolved the second of the two previously disclosed licensee disputes. We continue to execute on our strategic priorities as our partners deploy our technologies and solutions to offer leading wireless products and services to consumers worldwide.”

Second Quarter Results (GAAP)

· Revenues: $3.88 billion, up 46 percent year-over-year (y-o-y) and 16 percent sequentially.

· Operating income: $1.07 billion, up 38 percent y-o-y and down 3 percent sequentially.

· Net income:(1) $999 million, up 29 percent y-o-y and down 15 percent sequentially.

· Diluted earnings per share:(1) $0.59, up 28 percent y-o-y and down 17 percent sequentially.

· Effective tax rate: 21 percent for the quarter.

· Operating cash flow: $1.77 billion, up 123 percent y-o-y; 46 percent of revenues.

· Return of capital to stockholders: $316 million, or $0.19 per share, of cash dividends paid.

(1)

Net income and diluted earnings per share throughout this news release are attributable to Qualcomm (i.e., after adjustment for noncontrolling interests), unless otherwise stated.

Non-GAAP Second Quarter Results

Non-GAAP results exclude the Qualcomm Strategic Initiatives (QSI) segment, certain share-based compensation, certain tax items that are not related to the current year and acquired in-process research and development (R&D) expense.

· Revenues: $3.87 billion, up 45 percent y-o-y and 16 percent sequentially.

· Operating income: $1.65 billion, up 55 percent y-o-y and 17 percent sequentially.

· Net income: $1.45 billion, up 47 percent y-o-y and 8 percent sequentially.

· Diluted earnings per share: $0.86, up 46 percent y-o-y and 5 percent sequentially. The current quarter excludes $0.18 loss per share attributable to the QSI segment and $0.09 loss per share attributable to certain share-based compensation.

· Effective tax rate: 22 percent for the quarter.

· Free cash flow: $1.85 billion, up 125 percent y-o-y; 48 percent of revenues (defined as net cash from operating activities less capital expenditures).

Detailed reconciliations between results reported in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) and Non-GAAP results are included at the end of this news release.

In the comparisons summarized above, the following should be noted with respect to results for the second quarter of fiscal 2011: GAAP and Non-GAAP results included $401 million in revenues related to prior quarters as a result of agreements entered into with two licensees to settle ongoing disputes, including an arbitration proceeding with Panasonic Mobile Communications Co. Ltd.; GAAP results included $310 million in expenses in the QSI segment related to the FLO TV™ restructuring plan; and GAAP and Non-GAAP results included $120 million in impairment charges related to our Firethorn division, including $114 million in goodwill impairment.

Second Quarter Key Business Metrics

· CDMA-based Mobile Station Modem™ (MSM™) shipments: approximately 118 million units, up 27 percent y-o-y and flat sequentially.

· December quarter total reported device sales: approximately $40.0 billion, up 44 percent y-o-y and 18 percent sequentially.

o December quarter estimated CDMA-based device shipments: approximately 195 to 200 million units, at an estimated average selling price of approximately $200 to $206 per unit.

Cash and Marketable Securities

Our cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities totaled approximately $22.1 billion at the end of the second quarter of fiscal 2011, compared to $19.1 billion at the end of the first quarter of fiscal 2011 and $18.2 billion a year ago. On April 7, 2011, we announced a cash dividend of $0.215 per share payable on June 24, 2011 to stockholders of record as of May 27, 2011.

On January 5, 2011, we announced that we had entered into a definitive agreement under which we intend to acquire Atheros Communications, Inc. for $45 per share in cash, which represented an enterprise value of approximately $3.1 billion on that date. The transaction has received the approval of Atheros’ stockholders and certain foreign regulators, and the waiting period under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976, as amended, has expired. The completion of the merger remains subject to the satisfaction of certain closing conditions, including the receipt of an additional foreign regulatory approval. We continue to expect the merger to close in the third quarter of fiscal 2011.

Effective Income Tax Rate

Our fiscal 2011 effective income tax rates are estimated to be approximately 17 percent for GAAP and approximately 21 percent for Non-GAAP. The second quarter rates of 21 percent for GAAP and 22 percent for Non-GAAP are higher than the estimated annual rates primarily due to additional U.S. income resulting from the settlement of ongoing disputes with two licensees during the second quarter of fiscal 2011.

Qualcomm Strategic Initiatives

The QSI segment manages our strategic investment activities, including FLO TV, and makes strategic investments in early-stage and other companies and in wireless spectrum, such as the Broadband Wireless Access (BWA) spectrum won in the India auction. GAAP results for the second quarter of fiscal 2011 included an $0.18 loss per share for the QSI segment. The second quarter of fiscal 2011 QSI results included $376 million in operating expenses and restructuring charges primarily related to FLO TV.

We have agreed to sell substantially all of our 700 MHz spectrum for $1.9 billion, subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions, including approval by the U.S. Federal Communications Commission. The agreement follows our previously announced plan to restructure and evaluate strategic options related to the FLO TV business and network. Under the restructuring plan, the FLO TV business and network were shut down on March 27, 2011, and we are no longer pursuing the MediaFLO Technologies business. Restructuring activities under this plan were initiated in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2010 and are expected to be substantially complete by the end of fiscal 2012. The spectrum was classified as held for sale at March 27, 2011.

In the second quarter of fiscal 2011, restructuring and restructuring-related charges related to this plan included in QSI results were $310 million. We estimate that we will incur future restructuring and restructuring-related charges associated with this plan of up to $65 million, which are primarily related to lease exit and other costs.

Business Outlook

The following statements are forward looking and actual results may differ materially. The “Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements” at the end of this news release provides a description of certain risks that we face, and our annual and quarterly reports on file with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) provide a more complete description of risks.

Our outlook does not include provisions for future asset impairments or the consequences of injunctions, damages or fines related to any pending legal matters unless awarded or imposed by a court, governmental entity or other regulatory body. Further, due to their nature, certain income and expense items, such as realized investment gains or losses, or gains and losses on certain derivative instruments, cannot be accurately forecast. Accordingly, we only include such items in our business outlook to the extent they are reasonably certain; however, actual results may vary materially from the business outlook.

In addition to our ongoing operating costs, our business outlook for fiscal 2011 includes restructuring and restructuring-related charges attributable to FLO TV that are currently expected to be incurred.

We have not included any estimates related to the Atheros business in our third fiscal quarter or fiscal 2011 outlook. The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter of fiscal 2011.

The following table summarizes GAAP and Non-GAAP guidance based on the current business outlook. The Non-GAAP business outlook presented below is consistent with the presentation of Non-GAAP results included elsewhere herein.

Conference Call

Qualcomm’s second quarter fiscal 2011 earnings conference call will be broadcast live on April 20, 2011, beginning at 1:30 p.m. Pacific Time (PT) on the Company’s web site at: www.qualcomm.com. This conference call may contain forward-looking financial information and will include a discussion of “Non-GAAP financial measures” as that term is defined in Regulation G. The most directly comparable GAAP financial measures and information reconciling these Non-GAAP financial measures to the Company’s financial results prepared in accordance with GAAP, as well as the other material financial and statistical information to be discussed in the conference call, will be posted on the Company’s Investor Relations web site at www.qualcomm.com immediately prior to commencement of the call. A taped audio replay will be available via telephone on April 20, 2011, beginning at approximately 5:00 p.m. PT through May 20, 2011 at 9:00 p.m. PT. To listen to the replay, U.S. callers may dial (800) 642-1687 and international callers may dial (706) 645-9291. U.S. and international callers should use reservation number 56703245. An audio replay of the conference call will be available on the Company’s web site at www.qualcomm.com following the live call.

Editor’s Note: To view the web slides that accompany this earnings release and conference call, please go to the Qualcomm Investor Relations website at: http://investor.qualcomm.com/results.cfm

Qualcomm Incorporated (Nasdaq: QCOM) is a world leader in 3G and next-generation mobile technologies. For more than 25 years, Qualcomm ideas and inventions have driven the evolution of wireless communications, connecting people more closely to information, entertainment and each other. Today, Qualcomm technologies are powering the convergence of mobile communications and consumer electronics, making wireless devices and services more personal, affordable and accessible to people everywhere. For more information, please visit www.qualcomm.com

Note Regarding Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures

The Company presents Non-GAAP financial information that is used by management (i) to evaluate, assess and benchmark the Company’s operating results on a consistent and comparable basis; (ii) to measure the performance and efficiency of the Company’s ongoing core operating businesses, including the Qualcomm CDMA Technologies, Qualcomm Technology Licensing and Qualcomm Wireless & Internet segments; and (iii) to compare the performance and efficiency of these segments against each other and against competitors outside the Company. Non-GAAP measurements of the following financial data are used by the Company’s management: revenues, R&D expenses, SG&A expenses, total operating expenses, operating income (loss), net investment income (loss), income (loss) before income taxes, effective tax rate, net income (loss), diluted earnings (loss) per share, operating cash flow and free cash flow. Management is able to assess what it believes is a more meaningful and comparable set of financial performance measures for the Company and its business segments by using Non-GAAP information. As a result, management compensation decisions and the review of executive compensation by the Compensation Committee of the Board of Directors focus primarily on Non-GAAP financial measures applicable to the Company and its business segments.

Non-GAAP information used by management excludes the QSI segment, certain share-based compensation, certain tax items and acquired in-process R&D. The QSI segment is excluded because the Company expects to exit its strategic investments at various times, and the effects of fluctuations in the value of such investments are viewed by management as unrelated to the Company’s operational performance. Share-based compensation, other than amounts related to share-based awards granted under a bonus program that may result in the issuance of unrestricted shares of the Company’s common stock, is excluded because management views such share-based compensation as unrelated to the Company’s operational performance. Further, share-based compensation related to stock options is affected by factors that are subject to change, including the Company’s stock price, stock market volatility, expected option life, risk-free interest rates and expected dividend payouts in future years. Certain tax items that were recorded in reported earnings in each fiscal year presented, but were unrelated to the fiscal year in which they were recorded, are excluded in order to provide a clearer understanding of the Company’s ongoing Non-GAAP tax rate and after tax earnings. In fiscal 2009, the Company included the benefit of the retroactive extension of the federal R&D tax credit in Non-GAAP results because it had previously occurred with relative frequency and was included in the Company’s business outlook for fiscal 2009 as the credit had been extended prior to the release of the fiscal 2009 business outlook. In fiscal 2011, however, the Company did not include the benefit of the retroactive extension of the federal R&D tax credit in Non-GAAP results because the Company had not included the potential extension of the credit in its previously released fiscal 2011 business outlook due to uncertainty as to whether and when the federal R&D tax credit would be retroactively extended. Acquired in-process R&D is excluded because such expense is viewed by management as unrelated to the operating activities of the Company’s ongoing core businesses.

The Company presents free cash flow, defined as net cash provided by operating activities less capital expenditures, to facilitate an understanding of the amount of cash flow generated that is available to grow its business and to create long-term stockholder value. The Company believes that this presentation is useful in evaluating its operating performance and financial strength. In addition, management uses this measure to evaluate the Company’s performance, to value the Company and to compare its operating performance with other companies in the industry.

The Non-GAAP financial information presented herein should be considered in addition to, not as a substitute for, or superior to, financial measures calculated in accordance with GAAP. In addition, “Non-GAAP” is not a term defined by GAAP, and, as a result, the Company’s measure of Non-GAAP results might be different than similarly titled measures used by other companies. Reconciliations between GAAP results and Non-GAAP results are presented in the following tables.

Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

In addition to the historical information contained herein, this news release contains forward-looking statements that are subject to risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ substantially from those referred to herein due to a number of factors, including but not limited to risks associated with: the rate of deployment and adoption of, and demand for, our technologies in wireless networks and wireless communications, equipment and services, including CDMA2000 1X, 1xEV-DO, WCDMA, HSPA, TD-SCDMA and OFDMA; the uncertainty of global economic conditions and its potential impact on demand for our products, services or applications and the value of our marketable securities; competition; our dependence on major customers and licensees; attacks on our licensing business model, including results of current and future litigation and arbitration proceedings, as well as actions of governmental or quasi-governmental bodies, and the costs we incur in connection therewith, including potentially damaged relationships with customers and operators who may be impacted by the results of these proceedings; our dependence on third-party manufacturers and suppliers; foreign currency fluctuations; strategic investments and transactions we have or may pursue; defects or errors in our products and services; the development and commercial success of our QMT division’s mirasol® display technology; as well as the other risks detailed from time-to-time in our SEC reports, including the report on Form 10-K for the year ended September 26, 2010 and most recent Form 10-Q. The Company undertakes no obligation to update, or continue to provide information with respect to, any forward-looking statement or risk factor, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

Qualcomm is a registered trademark of Qualcomm Incorporated. Mobile Station Modem, MSM, FLO TV and MediaFLO are trademarks of Qualcomm Incorporated. mirasol is a registered trademark of Qualcomm MEMS Technologies, Inc. CDMA2000 is a registered trademark of the Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA USA). All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

CNET reports that Intel has now announced that it will be supporting both USB 3.0 and Thunderbolt on the chipsets that it has in the pipe for next year. Intel’s Kirk Skaugen said at IDF in Beijing, “Intel is going to support USB 3.0 in the 2012 client platform. We’re going to support Thunderbolt capability. We believe they’re complementary.” As it stands today, the machines on the maker supporting USB 3.0 are all using a third party chip.

The Intel Ivy Bridge chipset that is set for 2012 will put USB 3.0 support directly on the Intel silicon. The move will mean that by 2012 when the ivy bridge chipsets land both major chipmakers will support USB 3.0 natively making the speedy ports commonplace.

[via CNET]

AMD has announced that it will build support for USB 3.0 into its upcoming A75 and A70M Fusion chipsets. AMD’s Phil Hughes told CNET in an email that the chipsets are shipping today. That should mean machines running the new chipsets will starting hitting the market before long bringing native USB 3.0. Intel will be the only major chipmaker that doesn’t support USB 3.0 natively.

One of the reasons that support for USB 3.0 isn’t more widespread today is that both AMD and Intel didn’t offer support for the standard in their silicon from the start. Once this support is integrated, the ports will become much more common. The USB 3.0 port is backwards compatible with all older USB protocols and with chipset support, we will see all USB ports on notebooks and desktops move to USB 3.0 speed. Intel still maintains that it will support USB 3.0 in the future and that the ThunderBolt tech it is pushing with Apple right now will complement USB 3.0, not replace it.

[via CNET]

MSI is noting to DigiTimes that AMD’s APU has increased its presence in the tablet market. Perhaps the more interesting bit to come out of that news about AMD and MSI doing well in the tablet market together is that AMD is reportedly on the lookout for some new Android talent.

AMD is specifically searching for new blood that will work on Android driver software. This indicates that AMD might be looking to offer chipsets for notebooks, tablets, and netbooks that can run Android. That opens the interesting possibility of Fusion for Android.

[via Android Community]

“We now target phenomenal successes inside Intel in the delivery of differentiated multimedia experiences in Atom-processor based SoCs”, says Silicon Hive company chief Atul Sinha. Sinha says that the company will be folded into the processor chip giant to help improve the media performance of Atom system-on-a-chip (SoC) processors.

No details yet on how much the deal is worth or when it will get full approval. Intel’s current Atom chips are still not as efficient in media performance when compared to Qualcomm’s Adreno graphics or NVIDIA’s Tegra 2. The purchase of Silicon Hive will hopefully speed up their development in this area.

[via Electronista]

[via TechNYTT]