SANTA CLARA, Calif. – Nvidia is investing heavily in its operations now because it has some “once in a lifetime opportunities” in mobile computing these days, said Jen-Hsun Huang, the chief executive of the world’s biggest standalone graphics chip maker, Thursday in a talk at the company’s investor day.

Huang said that those investments are timely because the “PC business declined more in the last quarter than in the last 20 years. Obviously, the computer industry is changing.”

Nvidia has made PC graphics chips since 1993. It is the only standalone survivor in that business, and it competes against processor giants such as Intel, Advanced Micro Devices (ADM), ARM, and Imagination Technologies (including MIPS).

He said that Nvidia’s Tegra business is at break-even, even as the company ratchets up the investment to more than $300 million a year. Overall, Nvidia research and development has reached $1.2 billion annually. About $880 million of that is core investment in chip design, while $10 million each is focused on new opportunities including Grid systems and the Project Shield handheld gaming system.

“We increased our operating expenses to invest in once in a lifetime opportunities,” Huang said. “These investments are so timely and they must happen now. So our first half is rather muted. We’ll have growth in the second half. The disruption of the traditional market literally happened overnight. That’s why it’s so important for us to keep our foot on the gas.”

This year, Nvidia is investing heavily in the first half in the hopes of achieving growth in the second half, Huang said. He pulled in investments in Tegra 4i, a mobile graphics processor with built-in LTE modem. That investment, he said, “was a good decision by all measures.” That pushed out the debut of Tegra 4 by a quarter, from the first to the second quarter. As a result, Tegra sales will be flat for the year, he said.

Overall, “the exciting thing is the market opportunity ahead of us,” Huang said. The total available market for Tegra chips (with $300 million investment) is $10 billion. The opportunity for Grid computing is $10 billion, and the traditional graphics processing unit (GPU) market opportunity is $6 billion, Huang said. Huang said he thinks the computing business, if not PCs, will continue to grow.

Huang said that GPUs are Nvidia’s “crown jewels,” generating billions of dollars in revenues on the PC thanks to PC gamers and other enthusiasts. Nvidia is in the process of “mobilizing” those crown jewels in products such as Tegra. About three billion devices with graphics chips will be shipping by 2015, at a 12 percent compound annual growth rate. Nvidia is gunning for a sizable share of that.

Huang mentioned that Nvidia has more than 5,000 patents, mostly related to computer graphics. Nvidia is investing in games, enterprise, and computing devices.

With Grid computing, Nvidia is taking that business into the cloud, enabling remote graphics processing and it will lead to multiple users on a single graphics chip.  But Huang said the competition was fierce.

“The opportunities are enormous, but so are the threats,” he said. “Some day, every single processor we make will be a Tegra. But this is not about us growing into mobile devices only. This is about inventing the future of computing.”

At the close of the talk, Huang said that Nvidia will return $1 billion this fiscal year to shareholders in the form of stock buybacks and dividend payments, including $100 million in stock being repurchased this quarter. This will bring to $1.2 billion the total capital returned to shareholders since the company announced its quarterly dividend program in November.

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GamesBeat 2013 is our fifth annual conference on disruption in the video game market. You'll get 360-degree perspectives from top gaming executives, developers, and analysts on what’s to come in the industry. Our theme this year is “The Battle Royal.” Check out full event details here, and grab your early-bird tickets here!

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July 9-10, 2013
San Francisco, CA

Early Bird Tickets on Sale

Mounting its biggest challenge to market leader Qualcomm, Nvidia is introducing its first mobile processor with integrated wireless data technology. The company says the result will be smartphones with killer processing power and 3D graphics.

The new Tegra 4i has the highest performance of any single-chip smartphone processor, according to Santa Clara, Calif.-based Nvidia. The chip represents the maker’s big chance to grab market share in smartphones as it shifts from its mainstay business of developing graphics chips for personal computers to creating chips for mobile devices.

Nvidia is announcing the chip ahead of the Mobile World Congress event in Barcelona, where the Tegra 4i will be on display. It will also have sample smartphone designs to make it easier for customers to adopt it. As you can see from the above picture, the Tegra 4i is smaller than the Tegra 4 chip for tablets and superphones.

But the competition is tough. Qualcomm is introducing its 600 and 800 series Snapdragon processors in the coming months, and it has lots of design wins. Those processors have high-end 3D graphics and high-speed LTE data networking that can deliver 150-megabits-a-second data access (once such networks emerge).

Still, Nvidia says its chip is half the size of its competitor’s, which means it will likely be cheaper and consume less power, resulting in longer battery life. Nvidia claims that the Tegra 4i can generate performance per square millimeter that is 2.5 times better than the Snapdragon 800 series chip. The 4i’s raw performance is also faster, and it delivers blazing fast Web browsing, Nvidia said.

Nvidia’s chip is sampling now, and a few phones could feature it later this year. But more smartphones with the chip should debut in the spring of 2014. Qualcomm, by contrast, said devices with its 800 series chip could appear mid-year.

“The Nvidia Tegra 4i looks competitive on a performance-per-mm2 basis, but until we see third-party tests between Qualcomm’s Snapdragon and Nvidia’s Tegra 4i, no one knows for certain,” said Patrick Moorhead, president of analyst firm Moor Insights & Strategy. “Qualcomm did provide enough performance details at CES where one could derive a reasonable competitive estimate. If the Tegra 4i performance estimates do stand, then Nvidia could be very competitive, particularly in China and southeast Asia, where performance at a cost level means a lot.”

Moorhead added, “Nvidia’s biggest differentiator with the 4i is its integrated and software-upgradable LTE modem combined with its graphics brand.  This could be the first significant threat to Qualcomm in that it’s the first time a high performance system-on-a-chip with integrated LTE is available from someone other than Qualcomm.”

The Tegra 4i, previously code-named Project Grey, has 60 custom graphics cores for 3D graphics and four heavy-duty microprocessor cores to handle computing tasks. It also has a version of Nvidia’s i500 LTE modem, optimized for integration with the processor. The modem can deliver up to 150 megabits per second LTE data service.

The processor uses ARM’s newest and most power-efficient core, the 2.3-gigahertz R4 Cortex-A9 central processing unit. Nvidia also added a fifth lightweight core to handle small tasks while saving on battery life.

Nvidia says the design enables an “extremely power-efficient, compact, high-performance mobile processor that enables smartphone performance and capability previously available only in expensive superphones.”

Phil Carmack, senior vice president of the mobile business at Nvidia, said, “Nvidia is delivering for the first time a single, integrated processor that powers all the major functions of a smartphone. Tegra 4i phones will provide amazing computing power, world-class phone capabilities, and exceptionally long battery life.”

ARM and Nvidia jointly designed the new CPU, basing it on the ARM Cortex-9 processor. Tom Cronk, executive vice president at ARM, said the project focused on driving performance, efficiency, and improvements in streaming and responsiveness.

The Tegra 4i has lesser graphics capabilities than the 72-graphics-core Tegra 4 introduced in January for tablet computers and Nvidia’s Project Shield mobile gaming device. But it’s still a powerhouse, with more than five times the number of graphics cores as last year’s Tegra 3 processor.

Nvidia says the graphics processing can deliver “high-quality, console-quality gaming experiences and full 1080p high-definition displays.”

The LTE modem is an optimized version of Nvidia’s i500 software-defined radio chip, with LTE and network-upgrade technology. The 4i mobile processor’s camera includes the Computational Photography Architecture first seen in the Tegra 4. The advanced features include high-dynamic range, where the camera can take a good picture even it contains bright and shadowy parts.

The camera also has tap-to-track functions and panoramic photos with high-dynamic range.

To spur adoption, Nvidia introduced its Phoenix reference smartphone platform — a design that phone makers can use as a model for their own smartphones. The platform’s purpose is to help customers get to the market quicker.

July 9-10, 2013
San Francisco, CA

Early Bird Tickets on Sale

After failing with Palm’s intriguing WebOS platform, HP is now looking to Android for a future tablet and smartphone. But at this point, will it really matter?

The company is reportedly focusing its efforts first on an Android tablet running Nvidia’s powerful new Tegra 4 processor, two sources tell ReadWrite. The sources also say HP is working on an Android smartphone, but that likely won’t happen this year according to recent comment from chief executive Meg Whitman.

With Tegra 4 in tow, HP’s future Android tablet likely won’t be a cheap offering like the Nexus 7 or Kindle Fire. It’s a chip meant for more powerful tablets that will directly compete against the iPad. Unfortunately for HP, no high-end Android tablet has taken off so far. Android’s surge in tablet market share is mostly coming from the cheaper offerings.

Given HP’s consistently disastrous earnings over the last few quarters, it can’t afford to spend a significant amount of time on a product that doesn’t have much of a shot at success. When it comes to high-end Android tablets, we need a company that’s going to do something completely new and different — that’s not exactly HP, which is mostly known for its printers and workhorse PCs. Heck, even Android wunderkind Samsung struck out with its most recent high-end tablet.

At this point, HP would be better off focusing on its Windows 8 tablets when it comes to the high end.

Even less is known about HP’s upcoming phone project, but at least this has a chance for success. While an HP Android phone probably won’t compete with Samsung’s Galaxy S series, it could be a way for HP to stake out a presence in developing countries.

Photo: Devindra Hardawar/VentureBeat

With the impending launch of the Ouya and the revelation of Nvidia’s “Project Shield” — two Android-based consoles aiming to rope in hardcore gamers by putting a controller in their hands to play mobile software — I’m left wondering if Android, as a platform, will begin suffering an identity crisis as to what type of games it’s best suited to produce.

Android started life firmly in the mobile-touch games camp, following the paradigm Apple set with iOS and the iPhone. By virtue of Android being a more open operating system, it naturally got pulled in multiple directions at once. Some Android games began taking on the look and feel of console titles, especially when Nvidia began sticking its Tegra chips in phones and tablets.

Games like Shadowgun, which really put some console-quality flair on Android thanks to Tegra 3, were fine to play on a touch screen, but they begged for a controller. A few niche products followed that demand, and some Android tablets supported the use of Sony’s PlayStation 3 DualShock controllers as well as some PC gamepads.

Ouya

Ouya, which was announced in 2012 and is due for launch in March, took the next logical step. It created a console box to run Android on your television and handed you its own proprietary controller for running the show.

Project Shield (not its final name, says Nvidia) builds a unified handheld gaming device with a screen that folds into what looks like a close cousin of an Xbox 360 controller. Powered by Nvidia’s newest powerhouse chip, Tegra 4, the handheld becomes its own console controller when you plug the device into your television.

With Tegra 4, Android platforms can build games that look like high-quality PC titles as evidenced by the recent Project Shield demonstration at the Consumer Electronics Show this year, which included a game demo of a mobile version of the PC mech shooter Hawken that didn’t appear to compromise much of the full experience. But these console or PC-quality games are going to appear on a platform largely regarded for distributing simple, touch-based mobile games.

Both Ouya and Project Shield address the presence of games with touch controls. Ouya’s controller has a built-in touch pad for players to input finger swipes and gestures during gameplay — the same as they would on a tablet or smartphone. Project Shield’s screen is, for all intents and purposes, a fully functioning 5-inch tablet, capable of running the full Android suite.

But that’s hardly the point.

Shadowgun

If I know one thing about the gaming public, it’s that it needs a product with a strong identity to get interested. Strong identities come via games people really want to play. I don’t see that on Android. It’s always been a little too ubiquitous for its own good, and this is a major obstacle in the games industry, where players and developers tend to put themselves in distinct camps and refuse to budge for long periods of time. Ask anyone who would love to play a console version of Diablo III about it.

I see Ouya and Project Shield as attempts to establish homes for Android gaming and, at the same time, bring it closer to the types of console/PC software to which hardcore gamers are attracted. I don’t know if it will work because the console-quality Android games — largely found in Nvidia’s TegraZone substore — are scant. It’s maybe worth giving the $99 Ouya a go, but Project Shield is a tougher sell if its price point gets too far above $199 (Nvidia hasn’t announced a firm price as of this writing).

More power to Ouya and Nvidia as they venture on, but I wouldn’t be surprised if they end up with rough drafts in a larger plan to establish Android as a serious gaming platform.

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GamesBeat 2013 is our fifth annual conference on disruption in the video game market. You'll get 360-degree perspectives from top gaming executives, developers, and analysts on what’s to come in the industry. Our theme this year is “The Battle Royal.” Check out full event details here, and grab your early-bird tickets here!

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VentureBeat has emerged triumphant from CES 2013, with only one writer stricken with a mysterious convention illness. The past week went by like a whirlwind, but now that we have some time (and distance) away from Las Vegas, we can finally sit back and take a look at what worked best at this year’s show.

Fitbit Flex

Fitness gadget pioneer Fitbit came out swinging at CES this year, after being overshadowed by Jawbone and Nike’s wristbands. The $99 Fitbit Flex brings most of the company’s health tracking capabilities (sans stair counting) to a device that you can wear with you all day. The Flex makes Fitbit the most versatile health gadget company for consumers. If you don’t like wearing a wristband, you can always opt for the Fitbit One. I’ve found Fitbit’s data management to be the best of all the fitness gadgets, so I’m eager to put the Flex through its paces soon. – Devindra Hardawar

Fujifilm’s sleek X100S camera

While many hot new cameras debuted at CES, one really caught our attention. Fujifim’s X100S digital camera claims to have one of the world’s fastest autofocus on a camera at 0.08 seconds. The X100S is the successor to the well-regarded X100, with sales of 130,000 cameras worldwide since its launch. The outside of the X100S might have a retro look, but the inside is brimming with power. It features a 16.3-megapixel APS-C X-Trans CMOS II sensor and a fast EXR Processor II, both of which should ensure better noise reduction and all-around crisper photos. The X100S runs $1,300 and should be available in late March. — Sean Ludwig

Movea’s indoor smartphone location sensing

Movea showed off a way to use a phone’s existing sensors — an acclerometer, magnetometer, gyroscope, Wi-Fi, and global-positioning system (GPS) satellite data. At the Las Vegas Hotel, Movea’s Dave Rothenberg showed me how his company created software that could calculate a route through the middle of the hotel, up the elevators to the sixth floor, and to the appropriate room.

Rothenberg’s Samsung Galaxy III smartphone showed the path the whole way, though it had to halt a couple of times to fix its bearings. As we rose in the elevator, Movea’s software figured out (using the pressure sensor in the Galaxy III) which floor we were on, and it prompted us to get off when we hit the sixth floor. The company retrieved the indoor map from the hotel’s own blueprints. The system does this in places where there is no GPS signal by estimating the length of your steps, given your height. This won’t work in uncontrolled environments yet, but indoor location isn’t so crazy an idea as phones become equipped with more and more sensors. – Dean Takahashi

Muse’s brain-bending headband

Muse’s Indiegogo-funded headband claims to measure your brain waves related to focus and relaxation. We had previously heard about Muse’s progress, but it was different seeing it in person. I tested it out, and as Muse claims, a program on a screen in front of you shows your brain activity in real time. As I focused more, the app onscreen showed more snow falling down, and as I relaxed more the sky turned clear. What was particularly revealing is that as I talked to different people, my brain activity levels changed, showing that some people engaged with me better than others. – Sean Ludwig

Oculus Rift makes virtual reality … a reality

The Oculus Rift VR headset is in prototype form and the final is expected to ship this March. But it already looks great. Once you put these bulky virtual reality googles on, it immerses you inside a gaming world. When you move your head, the imagery changes rapidly enough to match what you would expect in normal life. I donned the headset and walked around a medieval village built with Epic Games’ Unreal Engine. There was no lag between my movements and the changing imagery, and so I didn’t get motion sickness, as is common with many other virtual-reality headsets.

Some famous game developers such as id Software’s John Carmack and Valve’s Mike Abrash have expressed interest in this. If it gets support from game developers, it might be a really compelling shift in the you play games. For instance, you might hold a controller in your hand. But if you look down inside the game, you’ll see that you’re holding a sword. That adds to the illusion. You can control your movement with the controller, which is so intuitive for gamers so that they can use it without seeing their hands. This is one small step on the way to the virtual reality of the Star Trek Holodeck, where you can’t tell what’s real and what’s not. — Dean Takahashi

Pebble’s smartwatch is finally here

Yes, we love the Pebble smartwatch. It’s gone from a Kickstarter darling to a crowdfunding warning sign to a CES showstopper, all in less then a year. That’s a lot of drama for a watch that connects to your smartphone to display messages and control media.

Mostly, the Pebble’s popularity came from amped-up demand. There have been several attempts at smartwatches, but nobody’s yet managed to make a killer offering. (Apple came the closest with its watch-ready iPod Nano.) But with its simple design and monochrome display, the Pebble managed to capture geek hearts across the web. It makes sense for Pebble to choose CES as its official unveiling: Expect even more killer consumer tech startups to dominate the show in the future. (We’ve already seen quite a few this year.) – Devindra Hardawar

Project Shield: A crazy gamble on gaming hardware

Nvidia’s Project Shield could disrupt the console game business, where new titles typically cost $60. The Android-based portable gaming system lets you play high-quality, free-to-play Tegra Zone games on a 5-inch screen. You can also connect that machine via HDMI to a television and play games on a big screen. [Check out our hands-on video with Project Shield, as well as our exclusive interview with Nvidia's CEO.]

If Android games aren’t your taste, you can also play PC games that you have downloaded from Valve’s Steam digitial distribution service to your PC. And since Nvidia has invested heavily in its cloud-based GeForce Gaming Grid, you’ll be able to play cloud games on it too. The system is open, and you can expect a new model to debut every year. Nvidia is targeting hardcore gamers who want free-to-play games on their TVs.

It might be a narrow niche, given the crowded space. But Nvidia says the system is perfect for traveling people who want to access their own games from hotel rooms. You’ll be able to play any Android apps via the Shield, and you’re also have plenty of horsepower with the system’s Tegra 4 processor.  If this takes off, Nvidia will open up gaming and lower the cost of playing for consumers. – Dean Takahashi

Tegra 4 brings desktop power to mobile

Nvidia’s Tegra 4 mobile processor will be the brains of a new generation of mobile devices. It has 72 graphics cores, compared to just 12 on a Tegra 3. That isn’t nearly as many as the 3,072 on Nvidia’s top PC graphics chip, but the power consumption of Tegra 4 is far less than a desktop chip. Visually, this means you’ll be able to play high-definition games on a TV screen or a small screen with a Tegra 4-based mobile device. And if you have a 4K TV and 4K content, Tegra 4 will be able to run that too.

The chip has four microprocessor cores, plus a smaller core that operates in power-saving mode. The chip will be small since it will be built with a 28-nanometer manufacturing process. The new process also allows Nvidia to cut power consumption by as much as 45 percent.

Qualcomm chief executive Paul Jacobs says the graphics in the Snapdragon 800 series will beat Nvidia’s, to which Nvidia CEO Jen-Hsun Huang replied, “Pretty brash words. We’ll see, I guess.” – Dean Takahashi

Qualcomm’s batshit insane keynote

At first I was bewildered by Qualcomm’s zany keynote, thanks to the trio of terrible actors pretending to be “born mobile” youths. Then I felt embarrassed for Qualcomm CEO Paul Jacobs when he was upstaged by Steve Ballmer. But eventually, I’ve come around to see this monstrous event as something truly wonderful. It may not have done much to encapsulate what Qualcomm is actually doing to innovate the mobile industry, but it sure was memorable.

How could you forget a keynote that featured cameos from Big Bird, film director Guillermo del Toro (who showed off some fun and gory clips from Blade II in 4K), a finale concert by Maroon 5, and a video message from Desmond Tutu. Indeed, Qualcomm’s CES keynote transcends description — and at one point, seemingly space and time. — Devindra Hardawar

Xi3′s Piston ‘Steam Box’

The Xi3 Piston is a cool modular computer, even if it isn’t exactly what Valve will launch with its Linux-based Steam Box. Rumors are rife that the Piston is indeed the living room game console that Valve will eventually launch. Valve has invested in Xi3, and Valve chief executive Gabe Newell confirmed that Valve is making its own open game machine.

The Xi3 Piston has a 3.2-GHz quad-core microprocessor and 384 programmable graphics cores. It comes with 8GB of DDR main memory. It can support three monitors natively and two mini-display ports, and it comes with 64 GB to 1TB of storage, depending on price. It has plenty of other ports, but the box remains tiny, modular, and upgradeable. Piston consumes only 40 watts, compared to 1,000 watts for some of the high-end game PCs. That means it doesn’t need a noisy fan, and you should be able to play kick-ass games on it. – Dean Takahashi

Nvidia chief executive Jen-Hsun Huang demonstrated a cool new game called Dead Trigger 2 running on a mobile device with the company’s new Tegra 4 chip.

The demo shows a scene in the first-person shooter game where a gunner fires a powerful gun at a giant ogre, filling the ogre with so much lead that it topples over in a heap. The quality of the graphics looks awesome for a mobile device, matching what you usually see on a game console or a PC. Take a look at the video below.

Huang showed off the technology at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas tonight.

IMAG2656 from VentureBeat on Vimeo.

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GamesBeat 2013 is our fifth annual conference on disruption in the video game market. You'll get 360-degree perspectives from top gaming executives, developers, and analysts on what’s to come in the industry. Our theme this year is “The Battle Royal.” Check out full event details here, and grab your early-bird tickets here!

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Nvidia chief executive Jen-Hsun Huang announced something that looked pretty awesome tonight. He unveiled Project Shield, an Android tablet computer running Nvidia’s new Tegra 4 processor, accompanied by a game controller designed for hardcore gaming fans.

It’s like a miniature game console that you can carry with you. The Shield is attached directly to the game console that comes with it, so you can carry both devices around easily. You can then attach the Shield via an HDMI cable to your high-definition tablet. And you can then play Android games on a television with a big screen.

In an event at the Rain nightclub in the Palms hotel in Las Vegas on the eve of the Consumer Electronics Show, Huang showed it working with an LG TV with 4K Ultra HD resolution, or 4K by 2K, or four times as much detail as a 1080p HD TV.

Nvidia designed the entertainment device around its Tegra 4 processor, so that you can enjoy it either as a mobile gaming device or a living room game console.

Huang emphasized that one of the prime benefits of the Shield system is that it is open, accessing games on the Android store or the PC. The device has industry-standard input-output ports, including HDMI, micro-USB, and other slots. It also has a customizable tag.

“This is the first time you can see a 4K video coming off of a mobile device,” Huang said, as he played a video from the Android device on the big-screen TV.

The console can play games on Nvidia’s TegraZone site for Android games. Even better, it can play a game that is stored on a PC. You can use the Project Shield game controller to play the game, which then can be streamed to your big-screen TV. Now that’s pretty cool.

“This is the culmination of five years of work,” Huang said. “You can enjoy it on the small display or enjoy the same game on your television.”

Huang showed demos of games such as the newest Need for Speed and Assassin’s Creed III, being played with the Shield controller via the PC, which streamed the game images to the TV.

Huang also showed Shield working with games on Valve’s Steam network, accessible via the  PC. Huang said that Shield will be able to access cloud games via Nvidia’s Grid Gaming System.

“It allows us to enjoy any game on any device on any screen,” he said. “This is untethered gaming.”

After the press event was over, the party started. An Nvidia executive told me that the company itself will make and sell the Shield. It will probably launch the device in the second quarter, with pricing to be determined.

Check out some videos from the event below.

IMAG2658 from VentureBeat on Vimeo.

IMAG2657 from VentureBeat on Vimeo.

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GamesBeat 2013 is our fifth annual conference on disruption in the video game market. You'll get 360-degree perspectives from top gaming executives, developers, and analysts on what’s to come in the industry. Our theme this year is “The Battle Royal.” Check out full event details here, and grab your early-bird tickets here!

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July 9-10, 2013
San Francisco, CA

Early Bird Tickets on Sale

Nvidia announced its Tegra 4 mobile processor tonight at a press event at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. The new chip will be at the heart of a next generation of smartphones and tablets that will be as powerful as laptops and personal computers from just a short time ago.

Jen-Hsun Huang, chief executive of Nvidia, said the chip is the fastest processor in the world for use in tablets and smartphones. The chip has 72 graphics cores and four microprocessor cores. It can process 4G LTE wireless signals and load web pages fast, he said in a press conference at the Rain nightclub in the Palms hotel tonight.

The new Tegra 4-based tablet could load a web page in 27 seconds, compared with 50 seconds for a Google Nexus 10 tablet, which uses a Samsung 5250 chip.

“Tegra 4 is the fastest application processor in the world today,” Huang said.

It is faster than Apple’s A6X processor in the new iPad when it comes to loading web sites, Huang said.

The chip also enables cool photo processing, such as high-dynamic range, where images with both dark and light parts come out clearly. Huang, pictured in the middle, right, demonstrated just how much better pictures with dark subjects in the foreground and bright objects in the background could look.

Tegra 4 is also part of the Project Shield mobile game console that Nvidia introduced this evening.

July 9-10, 2013
San Francisco, CA

Early Bird Tickets on Sale

So far we haven’t heard much about Nvidia’s next-generation mobile processor, code-named Wayne. But Chinese web site Chiphell says it has the specifications for the device, and the Tegra 4 could be very impressive if the leak proves to be true.

The Tegra 4 will have 72 graphics cores and six times the graphics capabilities of the current Tegra 3. It will have 20 times the graphics power of the Tegra 2. The chip will be built with a 28-nanometer manufacturing process, which is more advanced than the current 40-nanometer process being used for the Tegra 3.

The chip will also have good battery life and will power Android devices without melting them down. It will support video playback at a resolution of 2,560 x 1,440 pixels and will have USB 3.0 support and high-speed HDMI connections. With development going full blast, the chip is expected to debut soon. Jen-Hsun Huang, chief executive of Nvidia, will lead a press conference at the 2013 International Consumer Electronics Show in January.