Marvell’s ARMADA 1500 CPU to power next-gen Google TV

[Corey]

Google has teamed up with Marvell for the next-generation Google TV platform. Marvell’s ARMADA 1500 dual-core chipset will be featured within future products and will debut at next week’s Consumer Electronics Show. The ARMADA-based Foresight Platform is designed to deliver superior 3D video and graphics with rich audio and TV-friendly Web content. The dual-core chip will also deliver PC-like processing power with advanced cell-phone like power management for more energy efficiency. ”I believe this is a major breakthrough movement and it’s just the beginning of our bigger vision,” Marvell co-founder Wel Dai said in a statement. ”The same forces that are revolutionizing today’s television experience will transform numerous vertical applications for small businesses and large enterprises, enhancing the way we all work, connect with each other and collaborate globally.” Everyone remembers the initial launch of Google TV, especially the lackluster performance and future abandonment of the Logitech Revue, so Marvell and Google have their work cut out for them. Read on for a copy of the full press release.

Marvell and Google Team Up to Transform TV into the Command Center for the ‘Connected Lifestyle’

Marvell’s new revolutionary ARMADA-based “Foresight Platform” powers new Google TV, offers best of television and multimedia experience for the new generation of Smart TVs, set-top boxes, Blu-ray players, and beyond

SANTA CLARA, Calif. – January 5, 2012 – Representing a major breakthrough in the convergence of TV, gaming, streaming video, popular web apps and social media, Marvell (Nasdaq: MRVL), a worldwide leader in integrated silicon solutions, today announced that the new Foresight Platform, powered by the Marvell® ARMADA™ 1500 HD Media System-on-a-Chip (SoC), has been designed into the next generation of Google TVs debuting at CES 2012. Google chose the ARMADA 1500 Foresight Platform for its one-of-a-kind ability to deliver the full continuum of rich multimedia entertainment on single-chip architecture. Using Marvell’s award-winning Qdeo™ video processing technology, the ARMADA-based Foresight Platform is designed to deliver superior 3D video, impressively rich audio, striking 3D graphics and TV-friendly Web content.

“Marvell and Google have teamed up to change home entertainment forever – transforming the TV into the command center for our connected lifestyle. Marvell and Google are fundamentally changing the relationship between the producers and consumers of content – from Hollywood to Madison Avenue to publishing and major news networks – creating a dynamic, two-way experience featuring real-time global news, social network, entertainment and information,” said Weili Dai, Co-founder of Marvell. “I believe this is a major breakthrough movement and it’s just the beginning of our bigger vision. The same forces that are revolutionizing today’s television experience will transform numerous vertical applications for small businesses and large enterprises, enhancing the way we all work, connect with each other and collaborate globally.”

“The Google and Marvell teams have been working closely together to bring our combined software and chipset technologies to market to grow the Google TV ecosystem of manufacturers and devices. Marvell-powered Google TV solutions will enable powerful products to be brought to market at attractive prices,” said Mario Queiroz, VP, Product Management Google TV.

For consumers, today’s digital home offers an endless choice of devices and content. For OEMs and service providers, it’s an all-out sprint to create offerings that perform noticeably better than competitors and at mass-market prices. The Connected TV Marketing Association (CTVMA) estimates 123 million connected TVs will be sold worldwide in 2014. Those consumers will expect access to the services they love – Netflix, Pandora, YouTube, Skype, Picasa and many more – in a lightning-fast, crystal-clear and resource-friendly package.

Powerful, energy-efficient, ultra-scalable and immensely affordable, the ARMADA 1500 contains Marvell’s highest-performing ARM v6/7-compatible PJ4B SMP super-scalar dual-core CPU. The chip is designed to enable PC-like processing power to support Web browsing with support for Flash™ and other key technologies – with the aid of more than 6000 Dhrystone MIPS of computing horsepower, FPU v3.0, 512KB of L2 cache and WMMX2. The Foresight Platform is energy efficient and has advanced cell-phone like power management.

The ARMADA 1500 also contains Marvell’s award-winning Qdeo video processing for state-of-the-art HD and 3D video, including scaling, noise reduction, de-interlacing, low bit-rate internet video enhancement and FRC and color/contrast enhancement. The chip offers VMeta™, a multi-format video decoder/encoder/transcoder that can decode up to two simultaneous 1080p streams as well as a host of other video formats and containers. These features make the Foresight Platform ideal for Google TV, which requires tremendous processing power for its numerous applications at a cost effective price point.

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About Marvell

Marvell (NASDAQ: MRVL) is a world leader in the development of storage, communications and consumer silicon solutions. Marvell’s diverse product portfolio includes switching, transceiver, communications controller, wireless and storage solutions that power the entire communications infrastructure, including enterprise, metro, home and storage networking. As used in this release, the term “Marvell” refers to Marvell Technology Group Ltd. and its subsidiaries. For more information, visit Marvell.com.

 

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