The OMAP3440 is based on an 800MHz ARM Cortex-A8 core. Launched in October of 2005, the Cortex-A8 core was positioned as burning similar power to ARM11, while delivering two-to-three times better performance.

TI has previously sampled three other SoCs based on the Cortex-A8, as shown in the table below. Compared to the earlier 3430, the 3440 appears little changed other than in supporting a slightly different companion chip, and in supporting HD as opposed to DVD-quality video.


TI OMAP3 SoC feature comparison chart

Along with the A8 core and graphics hardware claimed capable of supporting HD video, the OMAP3440 integrates a shared memory controller, several external Flash and RAM interfaces, and lots of on-chip peripheral interfaces, as shown in the diagram below. Touted benefits of the SoC include "robust" Web browsing, the ability to view HD content in full-screen mode, and to enjoy multimedia content in "any" format.


OMAP3440 (l) and OMAP3430 (r) function block diagram
(Click to enlarge)

The OMAP3440 becomes the second ARM-based SoC targeting HD video on Windows Mobile phones and MIDs to be announced this week. Nvidia's APX 2500 uses an ARM11 core, ultra-low-power GeForce graphics, and is said to support ARM's MPCore interconnect technology.

Availability

The OMAP3440 will sample in Q2, 2008, TI said.

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