Yet another processor company known for having its products inside smartphones has announced a new product that it says will support Microsoft"s Windows 8 operating system. This time its Texas Instruments who in a press release today unveiled its OMAP4470 processor. Texas Instruments has announced that their new product will be able to run "operating systems such as Android, Linux and the next version of Microsoft Windows."
The OMAP4470 processor will be multi-core based and will have speeds up to 1.8 GHz. Texas Instruments says that the processor"s speed will enable "80 percent increase in Web browsing performance, increased memory bandwidth" support for 2048x1536 resolutions and more. It will also support up to three displays. It will use the POWERVR™ SGX544 core from Imagination Technologies for a "2.5x boost in graphics functionality." Products that have used previous versions of the company"s OMAP 4 processors will be able to use "pin-to-pin hardware and software compatibility for maximum re-use and faster time-to-market."
Texas Instruments is targeting products like tablets, smartphones and the ultrathin laptop for its new OMAP4470 processor. It is expected to start the sampling process in the second half of this year. Products with the processor inside are expected to start shipping to stores in the first half of 2012.
Earlier today another smartphone processor maker, Qualcomm, announced that two of its upcoming products would also support Windows 8, showing that Microsoft"s next major operating system is targeting that growing market for phones, tablets and other smaller and lower powered electronic devices.