[Arm-netbook] Future CPU cards

[David Boddie]

Not wanting to revisit the discussion about the A20 but, instead, think about
other processors that might perform better in the comparison table on this
page: http://rhombus-tech.net/crowdsupply/

I have no idea if it's even reasonable to discuss these as possible options,
so don't all jump on me at once. :-)

For example, the i.MX 6UltraLite could be interesting because it doesn't, as
far as I can tell, contain a GPU:

https://www.nxp.com/iMX6UltraLite

I suppose some might think of it as the runt of the i.MX6 litter for that
reason. ;-)

Some of the other processor families seem to be quite frugal with regards to
power consumption, and can still support reasonable display resolutions.
I'm thinking of the i.MX507, but perhaps also the i.MX512:

https://www.nxp.com/products/microcontrollers-and-processors/arm-
processors/i.mx-applications-processors/i.mx50-processors/multimedia-
applications-processors-low-power-optimization-integrated-electronic-paper-
display-epd-arm-cortex-a8-core:i.MX507

I have an eReader that uses an i.MX507, so I'm probably a bit biased towards
that processor.

https://www.nxp.com/products/microcontrollers-and-processors/arm-
processors/i.mx-applications-processors/i.mx51-processors/applications-
processors-high-performance-low-power-arm-cortex-a8-core:i.MX512

I realise that these also require support ICs, so perhaps that might make
them unattractive.

Anyway, something to think about.

David

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[Stephen Paul Weber]

And the GPU in the main i.MX6 line is better and better supported by the ‎Libre drivers all the time (that's the chip in my Novena, so I have some hands-on experience with the GPU).

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[Luke Kenneth Casson Leighton]

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crowd-funded eco-conscious hardware: https://www.crowdsupply.com/eoma68


On Sun, Jul 31, 2016 at 4:45 PM, Stephen Paul Weber

Post by Stephen Paul Weber
And the GPU in the main i.MX6 line is better and better supported by the ‎Libre drivers all the time (that's the chip in my Novena, so I have some hands-on experience with the GPU).

if they'd removed the VPU it would be better...

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[Stephen Paul Weber]

Post by Luke Kenneth Casson Leighton

Post by Stephen Paul Weber
And the GPU in the main i.MX6 line is better and better supported by the ‎Libre drivers all the time (that's the chip in my Novena, so I have some hands-on experience with the GPU).

if they'd removed the VPU it would be better...

Since I don't have the blob loaded, I don't really notice it :)

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[Luke Kenneth Casson Leighton]

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On Sun, Jul 31, 2016 at 4:51 PM, Stephen Paul Weber

Post by Stephen Paul Weber

Post by Luke Kenneth Casson Leighton

Post by Stephen Paul Weber
And the GPU in the main i.MX6 line is better and better supported by the ‎Libre drivers all the time (that's the chip in my Novena, so I have some hands-on experience with the GPU).

if they'd removed the VPU it would be better...

Since I don't have the blob loaded, I don't really notice it :)

oh look! you could apply for RYF Certification on that... :)

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[Manuel A. Fernandez Montecelo]

Post by David Boddie
Not wanting to revisit the discussion about the A20 but, instead, think about
other processors that might perform better in the comparison table on this
page: http://rhombus-tech.net/crowdsupply/
I have no idea if it's even reasonable to discuss these as possible options,
so don't all jump on me at once. :-)

(I have very little saying in the matter, so this is just my opinion).

As much nicer as other ARM 32-bits chipsets might turn out to be, I
don't think that they bring substantial changes to the table. Of
course, if there are thousands of cards to be sold and they're easy to
design... sure, why not? But personally I wouldn't find them very
compelling.

If the current campaign and everything else go well, I think that the
next step for CPU-cards ("next" not meaning "immediate" -- just "next
step in evolution", which might mean years of wall clock time) should be
to attempt 64-bit options, either ARM or MIPS (or quasi-MIPS like
Loongson).

To go forward into the "freedom trail" while keeping to "tried and
true", maybe SuperH sh4 (32-bits) is worth a shot now that the patents
are expiring and while the toolchain and things like the Debian port are
still almost 100% functional. Maybe the people at 0pf.org will get
designs with the 64-bit version at some point in the next few
months/years. But support for the 64-bits SH-5 has been recently
removed from GCC, so it doesn't look very good in that regard.

I'd also vouch for RISC-V (64-bits) or OpenRISC (32-bits), but Luke
explained the problem with OpenRISC in the thread on slashdot, and
RISC-V designs are not available yet.

I'm hopeful about RISC-V, though :-)


Cheers.

[Luke Kenneth Casson Leighton]

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On Sun, Jul 31, 2016 at 6:29 PM, Manuel A. Fernandez Montecelo

Post by Manuel A. Fernandez Montecelo
If the current campaign and everything else go well, I think that the
next step for CPU-cards ("next" not meaning "immediate" -- just "next
step in evolution", which might mean years of wall clock time) should be
to attempt 64-bit options, either ARM or MIPS (or quasi-MIPS like
Loongson).

Samsung's octa-core, same one used in the nanopi3. investigating.

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