NVIDIA Tegra Updates from GTC 2013
With information gleaned from different session at GPU Technology Conference (GTC) 2013, we pieced together a short update on Tegra's developments so far from the unveiling of the Tegra 4 at CES 2013 to its successors in the form of Logan and Parker respectively. There was also a Kayla sideshow too!
NVIDIA Tegra Updates from GTC 2013
With information gleaned from different session at GPU Technology Conference (GTC) 2013, we pieced together a short update on Tegra's developments so far from the unveiling of the Tegra 4 at CES 2013 to its successors in the form of Logan and Parker respectively.
(Image Source: NVIDIA)
To reiterate, the successor to is named Logan and will be released in late 2013; while its successor, the Parker system on chip (SoC) will feature a 64-bit Denver CPU, coupled with a Maxwell GPU. Parker will feature 3D FinFET transistors that will allow the SoC to conserve power without affecting its compute performance. From the performance levels of its roadmap, NVIDIA CEO Huang claimed that the performance of Parker will be 100 times that of Tegra 4; however, according to Moore's Law, its stated performance should be only eight times. He added that by breaking Moore's Law, this is known as disruptive technology due to the nascent state of GP-GPU computing where the industry can continue pushing fabrication technology on both fronts of operating frequency and transistor count.
True to the pioneering spirit of early adopters, he also announced the availability of Kayla that is a development kit that features a board with a Tegra 3 chip and a Kepler GPU, which is hosted on an MXM module on the board.
The low-design Kayla board that features a Tegra SoC with an onboard Kepler GPU.
The board has 3 HDMI ports, dual Gigabit LAN ports as well as a pair of USB 3.0 ports.
This kit is not for sale to the general public but it is made available to developers through the company's value-added resellers (VARs). This is to ensure they get a headstart on application development for ARM-based Tegra SoCs with full CUDA implementation on their GeForce graphics cores. To demonstrate this point, CEO Huang showed a Kayla system, operating on Ubuntu, and running a full CUDA ray-tracing program, a PhysX smoke particle program and an OpenGL rendering program simultaneously. With the launch of Logan, the entire Kayla system will be squeezed onto a chip that size of a ten cent coin!
A screenshot of the Ubuntu OS-based Kayla system that was running programs that showcased its support for CUDA, OpenGL and PhsyX implementations.
Project Shield
Project Shield was first announced at CES 2013 and we had an early experience with the handheld gaming console. It sports a Tegra 4 SoC and is able to play games from the Google Store and its own Tegra Zone.
At the exhibition hall of GTC 2013, we had the chance to witness the streaming of the PC version of Need for Speed: Most Wanted from the GTX 680-based desktop system to a Project Shield device albeit through a wired connection due to Wi-Fi interference. NVIDIA Marketing Manager Jeff Chen said that by using GeForce Experience, the symbiotic link between the devices can be set up at the click of a button as long as they are on the same wireless network. He also mentioned the low device latency as the H.264 video feed from the master device to Project Shield didn't consume much bandwidth, allowing the user to experience gameplay without any stutter or delayed response; however, he did wisely advise to avoid competitive gaming using such a setup and it's more of a convenience feature for casual multi-player gaming.
The Parrot AR.Drone 2.0 can be controlled by Project Shield with the installation of its controller software that is still in unreleased beta version.
We also witnessed Project Shield in action as it was used as a controller for the Parrot AR.Drone 2.0 and we could truly appreciate the benefits of having a pair of analog joysticks as opposes to a conventional touchscreen-based control. The controller software is not available yet and the same could be said of Project Shield as we await its arrival with bated breath!
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