As far as processors are concerned, it’s been pretty quiet in the TV box space in this year with for example, devices based on Amlogic S922 yet to launch, and new TV boxes are normally launched with processors such as Amlogic S905X/Z/W or S912, as well as Rockchip RK3328 or RK3229.
But this morning, I’ve been informed that Amlogic is working on a more powerful media processor based on info from buildroot release notes Amlogic A311D is an hexa-core processor featuring four Arm Cortex A73 cores, two Cortex A53 cores, and an Arm Mali-G52-MP4 GPU.
Amlogic A311D specifications known so far:
- CPU – 4x Arm Cortex A73 @ TBD GHz, 2x Arm Cortex A53
- GPU – Arm Mali-G52 MP4
- Memory I/F – DDR3/4; LPDDR3/4
- Storage I/F – eMMC, SD/SDHC/SDXC
- Video Output – HDMI Tx up to 4K2K @ 60 Hz with CEC & HDR support, CVBS
- Video Processing Unit (VPU)
- Decoding – 4K (up to 4096x 2304) H.265, VP9, and AVS2
- Encoding – 1080p H.265 & H.264
- Connectivity – Gigabit Ethernet
- Peripherals – USB host, SDIO, UART, I2C, PWM, SARADC/ADCKEY, GPIO, timers, etc…
- Security – TrustZone & TVP, eFuse
- IP License – Dolby, DTS
The Linux BSP is currently based on lucky kernel version 4.9.99, and the internal Amlogic A311D development board (W400) comes with 2GB DDR, eMMC flash, and an Ampak AP6398S wireless module with 802.11ac WiFi & Bluetooth 5 connectivity. For reference, the new processor appears to be referenced as “mesong12b” in the Linux source code.
I’ve also been told that A311D is pin-to-pin compatible with the upcoming Amlogic S905D2 and S922X processors, and that an NPU (Neural Processing Unit) should be included. However, the latter may just be part of Mali-G52 GPU which delivers 3.6x better machine learning performance compared to Mali-G51. Since it’s the very first time we’ve heard about Amlogic A311D, we’ll probably only find out the full details in 2019, once products and boards get released.
Jean-Luc started CNX Software in 2010 as a part-time endeavor, before quitting his job as a software engineering manager, and starting to write daily news, and reviews full time later in 2011.
Support CNX Software! Donate via cryptocurrencies, become a Patron on Patreon, or purchase goods on Amazon or Aliexpress
