The Big Players: Chips In The Shenzhen Tablet Market
There are a lot of chips in the Shenzhen tablet market currently. We’ve got classic ARM9/ARM11-based ones, ARM Cortex-A8 and Cortex-A9 ones as well. Sometimes it can get a little confusing, especially if you’re on the lookout for chips that do something specifically well – you may be willing to accept worse performance in one area for better performance in another. Well, inspired a very useful post by MICDigi, we’ve decided to compile a brief list of some of the more commonly found chips in Shenzhen tablets, and what their strengths / weaknesses are and some examples of tablets that use them. Without further ado…
Rockchip chips are some of the most common you’ll find in low-cost Shenzhen tablets – that is, the classic ARM9-based Rockchip chips (RK2808 and RK2818). The former is essentially already at end of life, as the latter has supplanted it.
RK2818
The RK2818 chip typically comes clocked at around 600MHz. Originally, Android 2.1 was the ceiling, but recently newer firmwares for the RK2818-based tablets have come out enabling Android 2.2, bringing this sturdy chip further into the present. RK2818 tablets are capable of holding up to 256MB DDR2 RAM, have good USB 3G dongle support (via USB HOST), and these tablets typically come with accelerometers. The RK2818 is capable of 720p HD video (Rockchip are most well known for their work in the PMP field, with previous generations of chips always sitting just-below-top in HD video playback ability), and has stable and well-coded Android implementation which is always an important consideration for tablets.
The RK2818 chip is not a powerhouse – it won’t do 3D particularly well (as it doesn’t have a dedicated GPU) and won’t multitask particularly smoothly. But when focused on a single task, like web browsing, light gaming or video playback, the RK2818 provides decent performance and good stability. To switch metaphors for a moment, it’s your daily driver.
Tablets that house RK2818:
RK2918 / 29xx
The RK29xx series of chips hasn’t really been seen that much. Some snippets here and there have been seen. We do know that Rockchip have abandoned the ARM9 classic design and have licensed ARM Cortex-A8 technology. The clock speed of the RK29xx chips is reported to reach up to 1.2Ghz and the SoC (system on chip) will include a separate GPU package, meaning better 3D performance (check out the Quadrant benchmark). We haven’t really seen this in action, much less actually tested it and benchmarked it, so we can’t comment much on stability.
Tablets that house RK29xx: Still not confirmed.
VIA have a commonly used chip in the Shenzhen tablet at the moment – and have done for a while. We all remember the Eken tablets of old, that ran Android 1.6 and were powered by the WM8505, that woefully underpowered chip. The WM8650 succeeds it, offering greater levels of power and Android 2.2.
WM8650
The VIA WM8650 is one of the, if not the cheapest chips in the Shenzhen tablet market and, as a result, one of the most highly produced. It’s also relatively new to the market, just recently being released as the successor to the WM8505, but already it has made its presence felt. It’s based on classic ARM9 architecture and sits at a clock speed of 600MHz. It can support Android 2.2, though is fairly underpowered that it all but neutralises the speed enhancements Froyo brought over Eclair. Think of this as your budget chip, that will do simple and basic functions – like web browsing, checking email and photo viewing – well, but will struggle with more intensive applications, such as those that are Flash-based or any kind of multitasking. It’s not that much less powerful than the Rockchip solution, but at these low levels of power a small drop is a larger proportion and therefore much more noticeable. VIA WM8650-powered tablets are often very affordable, even if they boast nice components outside the chip, such as a capacitive screen or nice frame. Of note is the UI – the WM8650-powered tablets all sport a customised UI that deviates from the standard 2.2 look and make the tablet a little more desirable.
Tablets that house WM8650:
Telechips have been players in the Shenzhen Android tablet market for a while now. Most notably, their TCC8902 chip, the one best known for being held on to, stubbornly, by brand SmartQ (Smart Devices). Telechips also have an ARM Cortex-A8-based solution too, the TCC8803.
TCC8902
This chip is based on classic ARM11 architecture, and comes clocked between 650MHz and 800MHz typically (commonly at 720MHz). It supports Android 2.1 (though beta firmwares have been seen bringing devices powered by the TCC8902 chip to 2.2) and 256MB RAM. The TCC8902′s strength would be in its video playback – it does 1080p HD video effortlessly, though there have been scattered reports of audio de-sync issues on TCC8902-powered devices. The TCC8902 has a GPU package on the SoC (Mali-200) which accounts for its strong video performance. It has acceptable 3D performance too, but you’re not going to be playing Kwaak 3 on this chip. The TCC8902 chip is better suited for those who seek a more media-oriented experience, but realistically only if 1080p is a must. Otherwise, the Rockchip solution is better in nearly every way as 8902-powered tabs often suffer from stability issues and poor memory management (this could also be due to 2.1).
Tablets that house TCC8902:
TCC8803
The TCC8803 is Telechips’ stab at Cortex-A8, based on 45nm process and coming clocked at between 800MHz and 1GHz. Not much is known about the 8803′s performance, as not that many tablets have made it to the market yet. We expect performance to be comparable to the Freescale offering.
Tablets that house TCC8803:
Infotmic are not very well known in the Shenzhen tablet field, but we have seen them disassembled before. The most common chip found is the IMAPx210.
IMAPx210
The IMAPx210 is based on classic ARM11 architecture, can be seen at clock speeds at or in excess of 1GHz. Despite the high clockspeed, the chip still finds itself performing in a bracket slightly lower than that of the A8′s, such as the Freescale of Samsung variants. However, the IMAPx210 processor does do 1080p HD video playback and does support up to Android 2.2, and also packs 512MB RAM which is not bad. The chip is hard to find. With decent performance, 1080p HD video playback, the Infotmic IMAPX210 is a solid chip.
Tablets that house the IMAPx210:
Freescale chips aren’t very common in the Shenzhen tablet market, though they do crop up here and there. Well, when we say “they” we mean the only chip that does, the Freescale i.MX515 processor, based on ARM Cortex-A8 design.
i.MX515
The Freescale i.MX515 chip is based on ARM Cortex-A8, and runs up to Android 2.2 with a respectable 512MB RAM. It typically comes clocked at 800MHz and offers unexceptional yet solid performance across the board. You’ll typically find that that tablets with the i.MX515 processor are on the cheaper end of the A8-powered tablets and there may be a reason for this. The Android implementation on i.MX515 tablets is not the best, and 3D performance surprised us, in a somewhat disappointing way. The i.MX515 chip makes for a good A8 tablet, and is more powerful than either the VIA or Rockchip options. It doesn’t, however, have the same level of Android stability that the Rockchip does, and this is mostly due to a lack of firmware development.
Tablets housing i.MX515:
Texas Instruments in the Shenzhen or “Shanzhai” tablet market? Well, yes, only one so far to our knowledge and only in one model. The OMAP3530.
OMAP3530
The OMAP3530 from Texas Instruments is based on Cortex-A8 design, supports up to 256MB RAM and Android 2.2. It is a fast chip typically clocked at 800MHz, but has been seen as low as 720MHz. The OMAP3530 chip handles Flash 10.1 fairly well, and is generally pretty good for intensive tasks and/or multitasking. It can 3D game quite well and generally performs well on benchmarks. You couldn’t really point to particular area where the TI chip excels – it’s more of a Jack-of-all-trades offering good performance across the board, except for video playback, where it’s been known to struggle with even 720p HD video. It’s in the upper echelon of chips that you can get in Shanzhen tablets these days, but is still a little dated. You’ll only find it in one tablet too.
Tablets that house the OMAP3530:
Samsung are no stranger to the mobile processor market (iPad, for example, Galaxy S for another), but we never would have really guessed we’d start seeing them in cheap Shenzhen tablets until they made their appearance, naturally, with the S5PV210 processor. It’s the only Samsung processor we’ve seen in tablets in the Shenzhen market (though we have seen the S5PC110 in a Korean one).
S5PV210
The S5PV210 processor is based on ARM Cortex-A8 design, and comes clocked at between 1GHz and 1.2Ghz typically, making it a very speedy chip. It handles Android 2.2 and can support 512MB RAM. Recently we’ve seen an explosion of S5PV210 tablets on the Shenzhen market, likely owing to its relatively high power and perhaps good availability. It’s got decent power, due to its high clock speed, and can handle intensive tasks like multitasking and Flash 10.1 better than many of the other A8 chips offered. It also does 3D pretty well as, as it houses a PowerVR SGX graphics processor on the SoC. The S5PV210 is arguably one of the best A8 chips powering Shenzhen tablets right now as it also does 1080p HD video playback, which makes it a well-performing all-rounder – something hard to find on the cheap(ish). There isn’t much popular opinion yet as to the quality of the Android implementation because of the fact that the PV210 processors haven’t been out that long, but they have hit the tablet market by storm and are likely proving popular configurations.
Tablets housing the S5PV210:
Amlogic have one of the more interesting offerings in the Shenzhen tablet market, but mostly because of the extremely high expectations of the chip and the failure, as yet, to really follow through on them. They offer an ARM Cortex-A9-based AML8726-M chip that has been hyped to the end of the Earth and back by the likes of Ramos and SmartQ – some big brand names.
AML8726-M
The AM8726-M chip is based on ARM Cortex-A9 design. It features a single core and also comes with a dedicated GPU package, the Mali-400, which should theoretically put it ahead of the pack in terms of 3D rendering. Interestingly enough, benchmarks go against that, suggesting that Android implementation leaves a lot to be desired. Typically clocked at 800MHz, the 8726-M has a lot to offer but it seems that currently, it lacks proper development on the software side. For all the beefy punch the SoC has to it, tablets that currently utilise this solution are performing less well than expected. The AML8726-M does Android 2.2 and Gingerbread (2.3) has already been seen working on it, which likely means updates could filter down the firmware tributaries soon.
Tablets that house the AML8726-M:
- Ramos W10
- SHD710 (2.3)
- SmartQ 10 (maybe)
- HaiPad M703
The big daddy from NVIDIA, the most powerful chip that has seen its way into a Shenzhen tablet – in fact, one of the most powerful chips to make its way into any tablet at all.
Tegra 2
The NVIDIA Tegra 2 is based on ARM Cortex-A9 design. It features two A9 cores (dual-core) on the SoC clocked at 1GHz as well as a dedicated GPU core from NVIDIA (GeForce) – it will handle nearly all 3D you can throw at it that’s available on Android. Beastly. The Tegra 2 can also do 1080p video playback effortlessly, and has been picked up by many major tablet manufacturers like Asus or Motorola or Samsung. There’s not much more to say – it’s got the performance crown and very few Shenzhen tablets house this. Expect top-notch performance.
Tablets that house the Tegra 2:
And there you have it, folks. Just a brief rundown / introduction to the chips that are currently on the Shenzhen tablet market and what you can expect from them. Big thanks to MICDigi for the inspiration for this article and also much of the relevant information.
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