Two years ago, Arm introduced its Total Compute Solutions (TCS) platform to assist chip designers in tackling the growing complexities of system-on-a-chip engineering. Now, at Computex in Taiwan, Arm has unveiled the latest iteration of this platform, specifically tailored to meet the increasing requirements of mobile computing devices and use cases.
The TCS23 platform brings together Arm’s latest IP products, which encompass their fifth-generation GPU architecture and fourth-generation CPU architecture. Notable additions to the GPU family include the Immortalis-G720, Mali-G720, and Mali-G620, while the Armv9.2 processor architecture introduces the Cortex-X4, Cortex-A720, and Cortex-A520 CPUs. Additionally, Arm presents the new DynamIQ Shared Unit (DSU-120), known for delivering significant performance, efficiency, and power enhancements.
Chris Bergey, Senior Vice President and General Manager of the Client Line of Business at Arm, emphasized that the platform update and the new generation architecture cater to the increasing demand for visual computing. With graphics-intensive visual computing making its way to mobile devices and approximately 9 million developers worldwide focusing on visual computing use cases, this update aims to enhance the mobile experience.
Bryan Chang, General Manager of the ASUS Phone Business Unit, summed up why Arm’s focus on mobile is so crucial: “Arm brought out an army of mobile device OEMs and developers to talk about how excited they are for the TCS 23 platform before Computex.” The most popular gaming platform today is the smartphone, as players seek ever-greater performance and features to enhance their gaming experience. “Mobile gaming has increasingly become the world’s preferred form of gaming,” says the report.
According to Bergey, Arm has concentrated its efforts on redefining certain aspects of the graphics pipeline in the latest-generation GPU architecture to reduce memory bandwidth in order to better support new high-geometry games and real-time 3D applications, bringing, among other advantages, “a console-like experience to mobile.” Deferred Vertex Shading, a new graphics feature, is another way that the new GPU architecture promotes improved overall performance.
As we continue to push the limits of visual computing, the new Immortalis-G720 is Arm’s most effective and productive GPU ever, he claimed. As compared to the previous generation, it “delivers 15% performance and efficiency improvements as well as a 40% uplift in system-level efficiency, leading to higher quality graphics for more immersive visual experiences.”
In terms of CPUs, Bergey stated that the new Arm Cortex-X4, the company’s fourth-generation Cortex-X core, is essential to the development of a new Armv9 Cortex CPU compute cluster. This cluster offers a 15% performance improvement over third-generation technology and a power-efficient microarchitecture that uses 40% less power than the Cortex of the previous generation. According to him, as more AI and machine learning-based applications are introduced to mobile devices, this all leads to better, quicker, and more responsive user interfaces and application launch experiences.
“Our new CPU cluster provides performance when you want it and efficiency when you need it,” stated Bergey.
