Toshiba using the cell processor

apit34356 wrote on 1/11/2008, 3:12 PM

Many individuals slam the PS3 cell as a marginal device, Here's the HD DVD god, Toshiba, stating and using the cell for high-end HD TVs because currently nothing can touch it. And guess who's decoders their using... ;-)
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Toshiba demos Cell-equipped HDTV
CES Toshiba used the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) to explain why it plans to incorporate the PlayStation 3's Cell processor into future LCD TV products.

Tucked away in one corner of Toshiba's cavernous CES stand was a prototype Cell-equipped telly running a range of image processing demos. The Japanese giant showed two key apps: the ability to do multiple picture-in-picture and rather better standard definition upscaling than has been managed in the past.
Toshiba's Cell-fitted HDTV
http://regmedia.co.uk/2008/01/11/tosh_cell_1.jpg

Toshiba's Cell-fitted HDTV
http://regmedia.co.uk/2008/01/11/tosh_cell_2.jpg

Toshiba's pixel resolution enhancement, as the company put it, uses Cell's PowerPC "Power Processing Element" core and up to eight parallel processing "Synergistic Processor Element" engines to run more complex upscaling algorithms than current TVs and hi-def DVD players can handle.

Toshiba mentioned Cell's eight SPEs, but in the past it has said the Cell-based chips it will make and use in consumer electronics kit will have three SPEs. It announced its three-SPE "SpursEngine" chip in October 2007.

The upshot is a marked reduction in the artefacts - like jagged edges on text - that you get when today's HD tellies try to generate 1920 x 1080 pixels out of the 720 x 576 found in a typical standard-definition picture.

It's not hard to imagine the same technology being used to upscale HD pictures to even higher resolutions as TVs start to support the higher picture sizes.

Toshiba's demo certainly looked impressive, but we'd like to see it working in the real world before we make a judgement.

The consumer electronics giant also said Cell's multiple cores and is high bandwidth allow it to decode video streams simultaneously then combine them into a single multi-picture-in-picture image that can be displayed on the screen. ®

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Comments

blink3times wrote on 1/11/2008, 4:18 PM
If I am not mistaken it was Toshiba that assisted Sony in creating the Cell Processor in the first place.... or at least I KNOW that Toshiba had a hand in it.
apit34356 wrote on 1/11/2008, 5:04 PM
The partnership was with IBM, Sony, Toshiba. IBM did the bulk of the design with Sony assisting. Toshiba remained a partner but when MS and Intel joined HD DVD group in a major role, Toshiba was viewed as a secondary liable, slowing the production process by not preforming any production..which slowed volume introduction of the cell unit. about 1 1/2 year ago, IBM and the design team discover a die modification from the Toshiba production review team that increase defects in the scus...... this was claimed to be an accident at first, causing about a year delay in volume production. Later review undercover more questionable die layout changes, this brought in the IBM attys, then later Sony. Toshiba cough up over 2billion, brought 51% of Sony IC plant, guarantee 10 years of future ics project and profits to Sony, IBM sold no plants but demand Toshiba correct their "issues". With the Unix SCO lawsuit( MS money) collapsing against IBM and linux users, Toshiba thought it time to rework some business alliances and that MS and INtel may not the only game in the world and HD. Toshiba probably was used by MS and Intel more that they helped Toshiba with HD DVD
blink3times wrote on 1/11/2008, 5:10 PM
Soooooo....
what's the big deal? If Toshiba had a hand in the development of the Cell then why should they not be able to take advantage of it without criticism?
apit34356 wrote on 1/11/2008, 8:50 PM
Actually, Blink, I'm not criticism them for using the cell, just reporting it. More pointing out Toshiba acknowledgment of the cell. When asked about the group, I revealed more details about the partnership in the creation of the cell and complex relationship it has become with Toshiba also being partners with Intel and MS,(now the cell has been accepted in the "future" supercomputing designs). Toshiba is planning to manu. a pint-size cell for "mobile" and other future consumer products.