英特尔联手瑞芯微打造x86架构平板芯片

x86巨头英特尔在移动市场一路高调进攻。5月27日晚间，英特尔宣布将与中国ARM移动芯片设计商瑞芯微电子（Rockchip）合作，为平板电脑设计x86 SoC芯片。 这一对虽然看起来完全不搭，但似乎是一个双赢的组合。英特尔与中国平板企业的合作越来越深入，而瑞芯微优势在于芯片里集成的3G通信功能，这是其他开发ARM架构的竞争对手所不具备的，比如全志。 英特尔和瑞芯微本次的产品目标是入门级Android移动设备，支持3G，将在2015年7月前实现大批量出货。英特尔首席执行官Brian Krzanich在周一的电话会议上表示，该款芯片将基于英特尔处理器架构和3G通信协议，并有可能使用瑞芯微的图形处理和连接模块。 合作双方将为英特尔SoFIA产品家族增添新产品，包括将于今年底出货的双核3G版本，以及2015年的四核LTE版本。更重要的是，英特尔希望借此机会，得到瑞芯微的部分客户资源——那些中国平板电脑OEM和ODM厂商。 “这（中国）可能是平板电脑增长最快的市场，这么巨大的增长，大概没有一家公司能独立满足它。 ” Krzanich说。 “对于低端目标市场，瑞芯微可以用ARM Mali取代英特尔的图形核心，减少芯片面积，”Tirias研究所的资深分析师、市场观察家Kevin Krewell说。 虽然与瑞芯微的交易不是排他性的，但英特尔目前还没有与其他公司有类似的设计与销售计划，他说。 与瑞芯微合作设计芯片架构的详细财务条款仍在商讨中。英特尔的SoFIA SoC产品一直在台积电（TSMC）代工，随后会慢慢转向英特尔自己的工厂，预计在2016年实现自己生产。 根据国际数据公司（International Data Corp.），瑞芯微与全志在2013年并列平板应用处理器出货第一，每家都出货约4000万个移动应用处理器。目前瑞芯微的产品线包括了10款基于ARM的SoC，从四核A17架构到Cortex M3都有。 英特尔可能根本不需要派额外的工程师来支援这件事，而且可以在中国发展培养一批做移动x86的工程师，一位分析师表示。 “我认为英特尔本可以在自己内部就完成这款芯片的设计，之所以大费周章，只是市场营销上的一些考虑。”Insight64的市场观察家Nathan Brookwood说到，“启示在收购英飞凌时，基于ARM架构和英飞凌通讯协议的多核Sofia芯片就已经在设计中了。” “英特尔对于进入平板电脑这个大市场非常认真，”Kevin Krewell表示，“但与一家ARM架构的对手一起合作，来拓展x86平板业务——这是一个不寻常的举动。瑞芯微被称为成本最低的ARM平板电脑芯片厂商之一。” 英特尔期望2013年实现10万台平板、以及千万片芯片出货量的突破，Krzanich说，英特尔希望今年能出货4000万颗SoC，其中第一季度达到500万颗。英特尔目前在90款Android和Windows平板电脑上拥有Design Win，他补充说。 三星Galaxy 3已经在使用英特尔的7160独立LTE芯片，这是一个支持载波聚合的版本，将在本季度出货，Krzanich说。 本文授权编译自EE Times，版权所有，谢绝转载 编译：Luffy Liu 参考英文原文：Intel, Rockchip Co-Design Tablet SoC，by Rick Merritt

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{pagination} Intel, Rockchip Co-Design Tablet SoC Rick Merritt SAN JOSE, Calif. – In a sign of Intel's aggressive pursuit of the mobile market, the x86 giant will co-design an integrated tablet SoC with Rockchip, a China-based designer of ARM-based SoCs. Although an unusual pairing of rivals, the deal appears to be a win/win. Intel gets deeper access to China's tablet makers and Rockchip gets a part with integrated 3G communications, something ARM currently cannot provide Rockchip's rivals such as AllWinner. Intel and Rockchip will ship in volume before July 2015 a quad-core 3G SoC aimed at entry-level tablets. It will use Intel's Atom processors and 3G silicon and may use graphics and connectivity blocks from Rockchip, said Intel chief executive Brian Krzanich in a conference call Monday. The part fills a hole in Intel's Sofia product family which includes a dual-core 3G part shipping late this year and a quad core LTE version in 2015. More importantly, Intel aims to get access to Rockchip's customers, OEM and ODM tablet makers in China. "This is probably the fastest growing segment of the tablet market -- there is so much growth probably no one company can support it," Krzanich said. "For the low end of the market they are targeting, Rockchip could replace the Intel graphics core with ARM Mali to reduce die area," said Kevin Krewell, a senior analyst with market watcher Tirias Research Although the Rockchip deal is not exclusive, Intel currently has no plans in the works for similar cooperative design and sales deals, he said. Financial terms of the Rockchip deal and details of the co-designed chip's architecture are still being worked out. Like the other Sofia SoCs, the chip will be made at TSMC and transitioned to Intel's fabs, probably in 2016. Rockchip tied with China's Allwinner in 2013, each shipping about 40 million mobile apps processors, according to International Data Corp. Today it has a family of 10 ARM-based SoCs, ranging from a quad core A17 to Cortex M3 device. Intel probably did not need the extra engineering help, but may see a side benefit in getting engineers in China to work on mobile x86 designs, said one analyst. "I think Intel could have done this design with its own internal design resources -- I see it more as a marketing play than a development play," said Nathan Brookwood, principal of market watcher Insight64. The Sofia chip is based on a multicore ARM design Infineon's communications unit was working on when Intel acquired the group, Brookwood said. "Intel is very serious about entering the volume tablet business," said Krewell of Tirias. "This is a very unusual move by Intel, though, partnering with an ARM-based competitor to build the Intel tablet business -- Rockchip is known as one of the lowest-cost vendors of ARM-based tablet SoCs," he added. Intel exceeded its goal of shipping 10 million tablet chips in 2013 by 500,000 units, Krzanich said. It hopes to ship 40 million tablet SoCs this year, and shipped 5 million in the first quarter, he said. Intel now has design wins in 90 Android and Windows tablets, he added. The Samsung Galaxy 3 Note is already using Intel's 7160 standalone LTE chip. A version of the chip supporting carrier aggregation ships this quarter, he said.