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Texas Instruments is looking beyond smartphones and tablets for its OMAP chips as it struggles to compete with Qualcomm and handset maker’s own processors. The company is looking at embedded applications such as automotive, industrial, enterprise communication, vision and robotics, to “grow the OMAP footprint beyond mobile.”
TI did manage to score deals with Amazon and Barnes & Noble for their Kindle Fire and NOOK tablets. However, Qualcomm is the industry’s behemoth, offering integrated solutions with cellular radios. Plus, let’s not forget NVidia, which managed to get more-than-decent share of the high-end smartphone/tablet market. On the other hand, major handset manufacturers like Samsung and Apple are now making their own chips.
TI’s fifth generation chips with Cortex-A15 cores are on track and we should see first consumer products using these processors in early 2013. Long-term, however, TI is better off expanding to other markets as we’re not sure how long they’ll be able to compete.
And let’s not forget that NVidia is also looking beyond mobile, having struck deals with BMW and Audi for their in-car infotainment systems.
About The Author
Dusan Belic
Dusan has been using smartphones since their introduction and is now following the latest trends in the industry. The "convergence" is what he's most excited about, and writing about it is the next logical thing to do. He thinks that using a smartphone is what everyone who cares about their time should do. In addition to his interests in mobile phones, Dusan also loves to experiment with the latest web and mobile 2.0 services. The idea of accessing and managing your information from any device no matter where you are simply amazes him. Whether it's an online to-do list, note taking service or a video sharing social network, he's there to try it out. He admits though, he's still searching for the ultimate web-based organizational tool, which "sings" perfectly with the mobile PIM application. Dusan used to run SymbianWatch.com which later became part of IntoMobile. He lives in Serbia, South-East Europe, from where he edits the site on a daily basis.
