See that wafer of silicon above? That’s the chip that will turn Android phones into video and photo powerhouses, and cameras into mobile studios. The iOne system-on-chip, from Amabarella, is both image processor and Android CPU, and is designed to bring internet connectivity to cameras.
Inside, there is a Dual-core 1-GHz ARM CortexTM A9 CPU for running Android, and any apps that may run on top of it. For video and photography there is another 533-MHz ARM-11 chip which can support 3D graphics, process 5-megapixel images at 30fps, and decode 1080p video. And you also get the full suite of connections any modern cellphone deserves: WiFi (802.11n), GPS, Bluetooth, FM radio and mobile TV.
The specs are certainly impressive, but we’re more excited to see what people will do with it. A kick-ass camera-phone would of course be nice, but what about a proper camera with phone-like functions. You could live-stream video, send photos straight to Flickr and, best of all, if you didn’t like the crappy interface that [insert camera manufacturer here] has saddled you with this week, then you could just download a new one.
Amabarella release iOne image processing chip for hybrid cameras [Press Release]
See Also:
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- New Chips Poised to Revolutionize Photography, Film
- Inside the Nobel Prize: How a CCD Works
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