Daxian XY100S was the first decent quad core smartphone I’d seen selling for less than $100, but for some reasons the price has since then been increased and now sells for at least $125 from Chinese online sellers with decent feedback. The other problem with this phone was the use of TD-SCDMA which meant 3G was not usable in places like Europe. There’s now another quad core phone based on Mediatek MT6582 called W450 that sells for $99.99 on GeekBuying (promotion that will last for about 24 hours more), but you can also find it on Aliexpress for $110 up including shipping. The good news is that it’s using WCDMA 850/2100MHz so 3G will be accessible in most countries. W450 specifications: SoC – Mediatek MT6582 Quad Core Cortex A7 up to 1.3GHz with ARM Mali-400MP2 GPU System Memory – 1GB RAM Storage – 4GB NAND Flash + micro SD card […]
Miracast Adapters Coming Up with Mediatek MT8636 SoC
It’s already possible to use Android mini-PCs such as T428 as a Miracast adapters, and we’ve also seen low cost HDMI dongles based on Actions Semi ATV6003 and Rockchip RK2928 that should eventually work as Miracast adapters, and sell for less than $30 retail. But there’s now a new SoC targeting DLNA/Miracast adapter: Mediatek MT8636. I don’t have any details about the SoC itself, but I could find a few Chinese company working on the solutions, and the most common is the one shown below, which can be called W18, SH-18, or WFD-04 depending on the company. The device is said to have the following specifications: SoC – MT8636 highly integrated SOC System Memory – 128MB DDR3 (TBC) Storage – 128 MB Flash (TBC) Wi-Fi – MT7601 WiFi 802.11b/g/n with Wi-Fi direct Video Decode – 1080p H.264 (MPEG-4 AVC) CBP, MP, HP at L1 to 4.1 Audio Decode – LPCM […]
Mediatek Boasts True Octa-core MT6592, and GTS big.LITTLE MT8135 SoCs
We already knew Mediatek was working on MT6592, an Octa-core Cortex A7 processor for smartphones, and MT8135, a quad core bit.LITTLE processor for tablets, but in the last few days, the company revealed a bit more information about its two new application processors, mainly to show how better there are compared to the competition. Mediatek MT6592 Octa-core Cortex A7 With Exynos Octa (5410), Samsung was the first company to release an ARM powered Octa-core application processor, but Meditak explains their solution is better because MT6592 can use all 8 cores simultaneously whereas Exynos 5410 is limited to 4 at at time, and the claim is true because Samsung big.LITTLE implementation choice. Exynos 5420 will change that however, as soon as this month, but Mediatek obviously did not feel necessary to mention this details. The company expected those 8 cores to improve current applications such as : Advanced web browsing – […]
LG Optimus L4II is a Triple SIM Smartphone Powered by Mediatek Technology
There’s already an impressive number of mobile phones with dual SIM card slots, but LG and Mediatek went a step further with the Optimus L4II that sports triple SIM card support thanks to Mediatek 3G Triple-SIM technology. All three SIM cards can be “used simultaneously, and receive calls, transmit data, send SMS messages and remain in standby mode concurrently without consuming excessive battery life”, according to Mediatek. If case you wonder why people would ever need multiple SIM card use cases include roaming between different countries (e.g. Hong Kong, Macau and China) where you don’t want to change SIM cards each time you cross the border, using prepaid SIM cards from different telco to benefit from promotion, etc… I could not find the other specs for the device, but the company has recently launched LG Optimus L4II Dual (dual SIM card support) which may be similar, with the following specifications: […]
Mediatek Smartphone and Tablet SoC Product Line (Mess) Explained
This week-end, I have been tipped about a $91 Mediatek MT8317 based 7″ Phablet, but I really did not know what to think about it as Mediatek seems to have so many SoCs, and really felt lazy trying to dig information about this. Yet, in the back of my head, I had decided to eventually make a post trying to clarifying Mediatek SoCs. This morning, I felt relieved not to have to spend hours investigating, as AndroidPC.es found an analyst paper doing just that, at least for recent and upcoming Mediatek processors. Mediatek Smartphone SoCs Roadmap MT6589 is certainly the most common SoC for cheap quad core smartphones, and starting this month, it will be available in MT6589M and MT6589T versions, the former with a weak video processing unit (VPU) and ISP, and GPU frequency, and the latter with higher GPU and CPU frequencies. Contrary to the table below, MT6589 […]
Mediatek Introduces MT8125 Quad Core SoC for 3G and Wi-Fi Tablets
MediaTek has just announced the availability of MT8125 quad core Cortex A7 SoC designed for tablets. The processor can run up to 1.5GHz, integrates a PowerVR Series5XT GPU, and comes in 3G HSPA+, 2G EDGE and Wi-Fi versions, all of which are pin-to-pin compatible. MT8125 supports Full HD 1080p video playback and recording, 13MP camera with integrated ISP and Full HD (1920 x 1200) displays. It also support Mediatek’s MiraVision technology that’s suppose it improve picture quality. As with other Mediatek SoCs, this processor also includes support for MediaTek’s 4-in-1 connectivity combo (Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0, GPS and FM), as well as Wi-Fi certified Miracast. That’s about all we know about the SoC itself for now. Tablets incorporating MT8125 SoC will soon be available including Lenovo IdeaTab S6000 series. Via Liliputing Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft)Jean-Luc started CNX Software in 2010 as a part-time endeavor, before quitting his job as a software engineering manager, […]
Mediatek Announces MTK6572 Dual Core Cortex A7 SoC For Entry-Level Smartphones
MediaTek has recently announced the MT6572, a dual-core SoC with integrated Wi-Fi, FM, GPS and Bluetooth functions targeted at the entry segment. This SoC, manufactured using 28nm process technology, comes with a dual core cortex A7 processor @ 1.2GHz combined with a Mali-400 GPU and a multi-mode Rel. 8 HSPA+/TD-SCDMA modem. Other characteristics include support for up to HD 720p video playback and recording, 5MP camera, and up to qHD (960×540) displays. One of the first smartphones based on the platform will be Sunspan D28X and D26X with 4.5″ display, 5MP camera, and running Android 4.2 version of the system. Both devices will come with 1600 mAh battery., and both will cater for the Chinese market with D28X supporting TD-SCDMA (China Mobile), and D26X W-CDMA (Unicom). MediaTek claims MT6572 can be expected in hundreds of commercial models which will sell in June and beyond. MT6582, the quad core version, is […]
Mediatek MT6589 Quad Core Cortex A7 Smartphones Galore
Last week, I wrote about low cost quad core tablets based on Actions Semi ATM7029, and today it’s time to look at cheap quad core smartphones, which are all powered by Mediatek MT6589 quad core Cortex A7 SoC, with prices starting at about $130 US. I’ll start by a short overview of Mediatek processor, followed by a few smartphones based on MT6589, starting with higher priced smartphones / phablets with bigger screens and more features to the cheapest ones. Mediatek MT6589 Overview Beside featuring four ARM Cortex-A7 cores, this SoC comes with an Imagination Technologies PowerVR Series5XT GPU, namely SGX544, an advanced multi-mode UMTS Rel. 8/HSPA+/TD-SCDMA modem and dual SIM support. On the multimedia side, it supports cameras up to 13MP, 1080p video playback and recording at 30fps, and LCD screens up to Full HD resolution (1920×1080). It is usually interface with MT6620 connectivity combo providing 802.11n Wi-Fi, BT4.0, GPS […]