ARM has announced a range of new second-generation components including the high-end ARM Cortex-A72 processor. The 64-bit core is based on the ARMv8-A architecture and, according to the company, is the highest-performing general-purpose processing CPU that can be licensed today. The ARM Cortex-A72 is designed to run at clock-rates of up to 2.50GHz, delivering CPU performance that is 50 times greater than the leading smartphones from five years ago. In addition, the Cortex-A72 uses 75 percent less power than 2014 Cortex-A15 devices under similar workload, said ARM. The new chip is also compatible with the latest TSMC 16nm FinFET+ process technology.
ARM has also unveiled two more components: the Mali T-880 GPU and CoreLink CCI-500 interconnect. The Mali T-880 GPU delivers 1.8 times the performance of the currently available Mali T-760-based devices, while consuming 40 percent less energy. The GPU is ideal for premium 4K content, said the company. The CoreLink CCI-500 interconnect, meanwhile, enables big.LITTLE processing and delivers system power savings thanks to an integrated snoop filter. CoreLink CCI-500 delivers double the peak memory system bandwidth and offers a 30 percent increase in processor memory performance compared to the previous generation CoreLink CCI-400.
More than ten partners, including HiSilicon, MediaTek and Rockchip, have already licensed the new components, said ARM, with the first complete Cortex-A72 system on chip (SoC) expected to emerge in 2016.
