Introducing Intel® Atom™ x3 (Code-Named “SoFIA”) SoC Processor Series

Introduction

On March 2, 2015, during the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain, one of the announcements Intel made was to introduce the Intel® Atom™ x3 Processor Series, Intel’s first integrated communication platform. Formerly code named “SoFIA”, Intel® Atom™ x3 Processor Series is a low-cost SoC with 64-bit Intel Atom processor cores and integrated cellular baseband modem for smart or feature phones, phablets, and tablets. The SoC will be available in 4G LTE and 3G versions.

Intel® Atom™ x3 Processor Series provides a foundation for full-featured and cost-effective platforms with fast and seamless mobile experiences which meet today’s consumers’ expectations.

This blog will go through the high level features of the Intel® Atom™ x3 platform, especially the features which mobile app developers are interested in.

Please note that the processor series has not been officially released yet, information discussed in this blog post is subject to change without notice.

The Intel® Atom™ x3 Processor Series includes 3 versions (SKUs):  the Intel® Atom™ x3-C3440 processor, the Intel® Atom™ x3-C3130 processor, and the Intel® Atom™ x3-C3230RK processor.

Architectures and Specifications

The Intel® Atom™ x3-C3440 processor includes a 64-bit quad-core Intel® Atom™ CPU and an integrated 4G LTE 5-band modem. The upgraded video can provide 1080p HD playback. The Mali T720 MP2 GPU supports Open GL ES 3.0 and DirectX 9.3. Figure 1 shows the Intel® Atom™ x3-C3440 processor high level box diagram.

              Figure 1The Intel® Atom™ x3-C3440 processor high level block diagram

Besides the C3440 version which supports the 4G LTE technologies, the Intel® Atom™ x3-C3130 processor series also includes 2 SKUs which support 3G mobile technologies:  the Intel® Atom™ x3-C3130 processor and the Intel® Atom™ x3-C3230RK processor, which provide low-cost options with performance.

The Intel® Atom™ x3-C3130 processor features a 64-bit dual-core Intel® Atom™ CPU and an integrated 3G modem. Figure 2 shows its high level box diagram.

        Figure 2 The Intel® Atom™ x3-C3130 processor features a dual-core Intel Atom CPU and an integrated 3G modem.

The Intel® Atom™ x3-C3230RK processor, a collaboration between Intel and Rockchip*, includes a quad-core 64-bit Intel® Atom™ CPU and an integrated 3G modem. Figure 3 describes this SKU’s high level architecture.

        Figure 3 The Intel® Atom™ x3-C3230RK processor includes a quad-core Intel Atom CPU and an integrated 3G modem. During Intel Developer Forum in Shenzhen, China on April 8, 2015, Intel and Rockchip* announced devices based on  the Intel® Atom™ x3-C3230RK processor are expected in market later in Q2, 2015

On the graphics side, the Intel® Atom™ x3-C3130 processor includes a Mali* 400MP2 GPU, and the Intel® Atom™ x3-C3230RK processor includes a Mali* 450 MP4 GPU. Both processors support up to OpenGL ES 2.0.

As a summary, Figure 4 shows a comparison table for the 3 Intel® Atom™ x3 processor SKUs.