ARM

Processor manufacturer ARM announced its new dual core Cortex-A9 processors capable of breaking the 2GHz barrier and perhaps casting light on future Apple products. Per AppleInsider, the Cortex-A9 MPCore "hard macro implementations" will enable chip makers to create even higher-performance devices from the low-power chips in "high density and thermally constrained environments" that the processors are usually found in, like the iPhone and iPod touch. In addition, the new design consumes less than 250mW per CPU while at peak performance.

There's some cool stuff inside Apple's recently-introduced iPod nano 5G media player, including an incredibly tiny VGA sensor and for those looking to take a gander, the guys at iFixIt have already posted a teardown of the device.

Samsung introduced a new mobile processor core similar to the one in the iPhone 3GS. Nicknamed 'Hummingbird', the chip runs at 1GHz, compared to the 600Mhz chip in the iPhone. Theoretically, such a chip could potentially be used in future iPhone models with only minor changes.

ARM showed off a new chip design that may offer a glimpse at things to come in the iPhone's future at a private event earlier today. At the event, which was part of the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona this week, they showed off their new Cortex-A9 architecture, which uses between two and four cores and is the official successor to the iPhone and iPod touch's ARM11 chipset.

Adobe and ARM have both announced that they will be working together to optimize Adobe Flash Player 10 and Adobe AIR to work on ARM-powered devices. The optimization specifically focuses on the ARM11 family, which just so happens to be what powers our iPhones.

An Intel executive was badmouthing the iPhone's ARM processor yesterday, claiming it wasn't powerful enough to run powerful apps and should've been replaced with an Intel chip instead. Now a higher ranking executive has corrected the comment in a public statement issued on the Intel website.

The main thing holding the iPhone back right now is its under-powered ARM processors, according to Intel. Pankaj Kedia, Director of Ecosystems in the ultra-mobility group of the company, commented at the Intel Developer Forum in Taiwan yesterday that the iPhone's processors aren't powerful enough for intensive apps, and are holding back the cellphone industry.

Apple caused quite a stir when they purchased PA Semi, one of Intel's leading rivals, causing many to wonder if they were ditching Mac chipmaker Intel once and for all. It wasn't until Steve announced that they were going to design their own iPod and iPhone chips that their intentions became clear. Now one Apple employee has offered a small morsel of info on what they're doing.

ARM released a financial report recently in which they announced that they have signed a deal with an "un-named OEM" (original equipment manufacturer) for an architectural licensing deal. This particular kind of license gives the OEM the authority to develop thier own implementations of ARM cores and add custom extentions. They have not stated who the OEM is, but EETimes' Peter Clarke suspects that it's Apple.