First PXA290 module spotted on the web

WHILE TRAWLING through the occasionally useful invention that is Wikipedia, I spotted the first public picture of a product based on the Intel Monahans XScale chip that I've come across: Toradex's Colibri PXA290.

Now acquired by Marvell, the PXA290 is the first XScale applications processor to be based on a 90nm process. Both the PXA270 and 255 were based on the ancient 180nm.

Originally planned to launch at a whopping 1.25GHz, and demoed at this speed back in August 2005, Intel seem to have designed this chip in a rather similar fashion to Netburst, ramping the clock speed significantly (nearly double that of its predecessor), but without the performance increasing to the same extent: only 25%.

With the launch clock speed now scaled back to nearer 1GHz, the main improvements over the PXA270 should be in terms of lower TDP (but possibly more leakage and higher standby power if it follows the same model as their x86 processors), support for lower power RAM than the 3.3V SDR the 270 chips used, and more integration on the chip itself.

Toradex confirmed that their smart-looking Colibri would feature on-board flash disk, RAM, Ethernet, and audio, as well as all the interfaces on the PXA290, and would be available in samples some time this autumn, but with volume shipments not coming until 2007, presumably when sales of phones & PDAs based on this start ramping.

System-on-Modules, such as the Colibri and the wireless CM-X270 we mentioned earlier, are unable to be used on their own, needing a 'base board' to put power supplies and connectors on, but with their small size, are great for dropping computer functionality into other products.

Intel earlier dropped the development of the successor to the 2700G 'Marathon' graphics chipset based on PowerVR's core, previously codenamed Stanwood. µ

See also:
Wireless computer shrunk to smaller than a credit card

L'Inqs
Wikipedia XScale entry
Toradex