Developing a Chip Technology is Complex Process Needs Years of R&D Followed by the Design, Testing And Trials
MediaTek with its tagline of “Incredible In, Incredible Out,” aims at creating a connected ecosystem that can flourish on the capabilities of the ultra-fast 5G network.
Kuldeep Malik | Director – Corporate Sales | MediaTek India in an exclusive interview with Niloy from BISinfotech underlines MediaTek with its tagline of “Incredible In, Incredible Out,” aims at creating a connected ecosystem that can flourish on the capabilities of the ultra-fast 5G network. The tagline is applicable especially to MediaTek Dimensity 5G series of chipsets which are bolstered with smart and intelligent technologies to deliver super-performing capabilities to devices, not just smartphones but also modems, laptops and hotspots. The hotshot also elaborates on the company’s 5G portfolio and their expertise in the SoC domain. Edited Excerpts Below.
Kindly elaborate about your 5G portfolio specifically the Dimensity SoC series?
MediaTek has launched a series of SoCs featuring some of the top innovations and cutting-edge technologies that can contribute towards building a robust 5G smartphone ecosystem. MediaTek Dimensity series is the newest 5G chipset technology that combines a fully integrated 5G modem and a revolutionary power-saving enhancement, MediaTek 5G UltraSave. Built on the latest global standards, these chipsets support all popular network technologies, ensuring enhanced coverage, reliability and competitive performance. They also pack built-in technologies for imaging, video, and gaming, yielding an unrivalled 5G experience to the user.
MediaTek has introduced its popular chipsets from the Dimensity series in India, including the Dimensity 800U, Dimensity 700, and Dimensity 1200, and now the latest 1200AI. Leading OEMs are opting for MediaTek SoCs for their unique, customization capabilities. The latest Dimensity 1200AI is a major breakthrough in this regard, as it allows OEMs to enhance AI capabilities of the device across several elements including camera, display, security and more. Dimensity 1200, the flagship in the Dimensity 5G series, is marked by several enhancements including the 3GHz Ultra-Core in a powerful octa-core CPU, MediaTek HyperEngine 3.0 gaming technology, enhanced MediaTek APU 3.0, MediaTek MiraVision 4K HDR video playback with AIvideo and AV1 video decoding, MediaTek Imagiq staggered 4K HDR video capture, up to 200MP photos and AI-camera. MediaTek 5G Dimensity chipsets build on the capabilities of its predecessors, but feature several major advancements, bringing incredible 5G experience to devices everywhere, not just smartphones but laptops, routers, mobile hotspots and more.
How it is like developing a chip in a 5G world. Challenges you identify in terms of reliability, performance while beholding the power of more connectivity?
Developing a chip technology is complex process involving years of R&D followed by the design, testing and trials. Designing an SoC in a 5G world not only necessitates building capabilities around reliable connectivity and network access, but also demands enhanced performance for features like camera, video playback, gaming capabilities, etc. Perceiving these demands, we have invested hugely in our R&D to bring the most innovative products suitable for the markets worldwide. As the 5G device ecosystem expands, we foresee even greater challenges with regard to meeting the demands of the customers. We anticipate a surge in the demand for devices as 5G gains popularity, especially in countries like India where data consumption is growing at an unpredictable level. The growing volume of data-hungry applications like AR/ VR, gaming and streaming will demand even more powerful chips in the near future. Thus, we need to be able to meet the demand from our customers, not only in terms of supply volume but also on innovations on all fronts.
Kindly elaborate about “Incredible In, Incredible out” – MediaTek’s vision of a connected and smart ecosystem.
MediaTek with its tagline of “Incredible In, Incredible Out,” aims at creating a connected ecosystem that can flourish on the capabilities of the ultra-fast 5G network. The tagline is applicable especially to MediaTek Dimensity 5G series of chipsets which are bolstered with smart and intelligent technologies to deliver super-performing capabilities to devices, not just smartphones but also modems, laptops and hotspots. The “Incredible In” symbolizes the power of the fully integrated in-chip 5G modem, combined with the MediaTek 5G UltraSave, capable of delivering sub-6GHz performance. The “Incredible Out” signifies the infinite possibilities enabled by our advanced chip technologies that support the latest standards and global cellular network technologies, offering incredible coverage, reliability and performance. MediaTek builds technologies keeping humans and their evolving demands in mind.
MediaTek’s upcoming plans for the Indian Market?
As we await the launch of the 5G network in India, MediaTek is investing in 5G technologies with the intent of making them accessible to the entire community in India, thus empowering them with the digital tools required to manage their day-to-day affairs. The ongoing pandemic has taught that technology is the cornerstone to development, so we believe technology exclusion of any kind will lead to discrimination and unfair distribution of the benefits of societal development. Also, anticipating the wider adoption of 5G by late next year. We will also invest more in the marketing/communication efforts to educate end-users about the latest advancements at MediaTek. We plan to engage with industry associates to launch brand connect initiatives wherein the brand can come in direct contact with the end-users who really benefit from these technologies. This will be a great learning platform for us to feel the market pulse and perform better in the coming days. Besides, we will be investing more in R&D, with a focus on emerging technology trends like AIoT, AR/VR and WiFi6.
Experts’ purview it’s not anymore about just leadership in semiconductor but combining the power of network technology with advance 5G R&D. Hence MediaTek’s strength in leading innovations in the indigenous market?
As a leading chipset player, MediaTek believes technology innovation is the most critical aspect to gain an edge in this highly competitive market. Forward-thinking in R&D will help us explore newer possibilities and build momentum around them. When it comes to combining the power of network technology with 5G R&D and modern-day devices, we can say they all are interdependent. Without the presence of a network, devices are not of much use and vice versa. Thus, to succeed in 5G chipset market, we need to fine-tune the technologies to deliver the best customer experience across each element.
From the perspective of 5G, the future holds numerous possibilities for device ecosystem players. From owning smartphones to making our homes smart with 10s and 20s of connected devices, we have come a long way. MediaTek aims at bringing unending possibilities for its users to fulfil their requirements in this fast-evolving century.
System flexibility becomes a critical design challenge. The 5G standard is still evolving with new releases issued periodically and no end in sight. Any comments.
System flexibility is one of the major demands of the industry. To meet the demands, we have launched 5G Open Resource Architecture to open the in-chip resources for device makers, especially for features like camera, display, graphics, AI processing units, sensors, and connectivity sub-systems in select Dimensity 5G chips. Dimensity 1200AI is our latest open resource architecture, which can be seen in the leading brand OnePlus.
MediaTek chip technologies are designed on par with international standards. Our 5G solutions are 3GPP Release 16 compliant, offering comprehensive connectivity across 2G through 5G. They deliver incredible 5G performance at both mmWave and Sub-6 GHz frequencies. Further, we have made several advancements in connectivity realm, especially with features like 5G NR Carrier Aggregation with Mixed Duplex (TDD+FDD) and Dynamic Spectrum Sharing (DSS).
