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Cortex-A8 Overview
The ARM Cortex
-A8 processor is based on the ARMv7 architecture and has the ability to scale in speed from 600MHz to greater than 1GHz. The Cortex-A8 processor can meet the requirements for power-optimized mobile devices needing operation in less than 300mW; and performance-optimized consumer applications requiring 2000 Dhrystone MIPS. The Cortex-A8 high-performance processor is proven in end devices today. From high-end feature phones to netbooks, DTVs, printers and automotive-infotainment, the Cortex-A8 processor offers a proven high-performance solution with millions of units shipped annually.
The processor is particularly suited to high-performance applications.
- Frequency from 600MHz to 1GHz and above
- High-performance, Superscalar microarchitecture
- NEON technology for multi-media and SIMD processing
- Binary compatibility with ARM926, ARM1136, and ARM1176 Processors
Cortex-A8 Feature | Feature Description |
NEON | 128-bit SIMD engine enables high performance media processing. Using NEON for some Audio, Video, and Graphics workloads eases the burden of supporting more dedicated accelerators across the SoC and enables the system to support the standards of tomorrow |
Optimized Level 1 cache | The Level 1 cache is integrated tightly into the processor with a single-cycle access time. The caches combine minimal access latency with hash way determination to maximize performance and minimize power consumption. |
Integrated Level 2 cache | The Level 2 cache is integrated into the core for ease of integration, power efficiency, and optimal performance. Built using standard compiled RAMs, the cache is configurable from 0K – 1MB. The cache can be built using compiled memories and has programmable delay to accommodate different array characteristics |
Thumb-2 Technology | Delivers the peak performance of traditional ARM code while also providing up to a 30% reduction in memory required to store instructions. |
Dynamic Branch Prediction | To minimize branch wrong prediction penalties, the dynamic branch predictor achieves 95% accuracy across a wide range of industry benchmarks. The Predictor is enabled by branch target and global history buffers. The replay mechanism minimizes miss-predict penalty. |
Memory Management Unit | A full MMU enables the Cortex-A8 to run rich operating systems in a variety of Applications |
Jazelle-RCT Technology | RCT Java-acceleration technology to optimize Just In Time (JIT) and Dynamic Adaptive Compilation (DAC), and reduce memory footprint by up to three times |
Memory System | Optimized for power-efficiency and high-performance. Hash array in the L1 cache limits activation of the memories to when they are likely to be needed. Direct interface between the integrated, configurable L2 cache and the NEON media unit for data streaming. Banked L2 cache design that enables only one bank at a time. Support for multiple outstanding transactions to the L3 memory to fully utilize the CPU. |
TrustZone Technology | Allows for secure transactions and Digital Rights Management (DRM) |
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