It’s great to be a little brother. I’m speaking a bit out of turn on this, as I am an older brother that carries a bias, but I definitely think younger siblings have it made.
A few of my observations on the characteristics of younger brothers:
- Older brothers bravely forge a path helping to define boundaries and convey lesson-learning (generously assisted and guided by their parents), as well as allow younger brothers to greatly benefit from their investments (clothes, toys).
- Younger brothers also bring something new and different to the table – they strive to carve their own unique skill sets that often balance both a competitive and easy-going nature. They are also fiercely loyal to their families.
- Finally, and this I know to be true, little brothers are spoiled.
As I think about TI’s newly announced “Jacinto 6 Eco” infotainment processor, I can’t help but be drawn to the similarities of this device as the “little brother” to the “Jacinto 6” device first announced at CES in 2013:
Path-forging:
- “Jacinto 6 Eco” offers software and pin-compatibility with “Jacinto 6” family of devices as a result of being a direct subset of the “Jacinto 6.” Manufacturers designing infotainment systems can develop products for a broad range of vehicles from entry- to mid-level, all the way to luxury on the same platform, leveraging investments across products, ultimately reducing costs and time to market.
Lesson-learning:
- “Jacinto 6 Eco” offers the ability to bring class-leading functionality and use-cases from the last-generation premium platforms to the current-generation entry- to mid-level platforms. Consumers are now demanding increasingly responsive user interfaces with large displays and low-latency speech interaction. These features are now more available than ever through “Jacinto 6 Eco’s” cost-effective performance and BOM integration. The BOM integration opportunities include integration of vehicle interfaces (without auxiliary Cortex M4 cores together with CAN, MOST Media Local Bus (MLB), Ethernet AVB), software-defined radio integration (AM/FM/RDS, HD Radio™, DAB, and DRM) and advanced audio post-processing capabilities on the C66x DSP, both of which can reduce the need for additional components or cost in other parts of the system.
Unique:
- I most closely align this characteristic with the scalability that “Jacinto 6 Eco” offers to the “Jacinto 6” family. Both “Jacinto 6” and “Jacinto 6 Eco” are built on the same architecture, offering software- and pin-to-pin-compatibility with the broadest array and highly scalable architecture of ARM® Cortex™-A15-based devices for automotive applications. Specifically, with “Jacinto 6 Eco” (single ARM Cortex A15, single Imagination Technologies' POWERVR™ SGX544, single 32-bit DDR2/3 interface) and “Jacinto 6” (dual-core ARM Cortex-A15, dual SGX544, dual 32-bit DDR2/3 interface) offer a CPU range of 2,800 to more than 10,000 Dhrystone Million Instruction Per Second (DMIPS).
Spoiled:
- This might be a stretch… but “Jacinto 6 Eco” will enable a level of digital life integration for drivers through seamless integration with mobile devices while still providing a premium infotainment experience without the premium price tag. With the ability to “mirror” the capability and applications on your smartphone courtesy of TI’s IVA-HD video co-processor supporting 1080p high-definition video streaming, you can integrate your mobile office and latest capabilities of your phone with your car’s built-in capabilities. Talk about pampering.
Notice how I’ve avoided the middle child comparisons? I don’t think either of us could have handled those analogies! For more information on “Jacinto 6 Eco” and the “Jacinto 6” family of devices please be sure to look for more posts on Behind the Wheel.