Quad Core Phones The Complete Rundown

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It is hard to believe that quad core phones will hit the market next year (2012) when dual core phones just appeared this year (2011). However, I can tell you without a doubt that they are coming. In case you want to know exactly when, phone manufacturers will probably reveal the phones at the Mobile World Congress, which starts in February. This means that the phones will likely be on sale in March or April. The Processors: NVIDIA Tegra 3: This one will almost certainly be the first processor to be commercially released. Essentially, it has four processing units that run at 1.5 GHz each for a total of 6 GHz. However, this processor also advertises that it will have a secret fifth core that runs at a lower frequency (500 MHz). This core will save power because it will be the only active core during non-intensive tasks. Furthermore, the Tegra 3 will have a 12-core GPU. Qualcomm Krait (Snapdragon S4). This one will feature four processing units that run at 2.5 GHz each for a whopping total of 10 GHz. Furthermore, these processors will be able to change frequency to conserve battery life. Qualcomm has even mocked the "fifth core" idea from NVIDIA. This processor will probably ship next holiday season and have an Adreno graphics core with similar performance to the NVIDIA Tegra 3 graphics. Samsung Exynos 4412. This processor is more of a rumor with minimal specifications available. The Phones: HTC Edge: This will probably be the world's first quad core phone. It will feature NVIDIA's Tegra 3 processor, a 4.7 inch HD display (720 pixels), and an 8 MP camera among other things. HTC Zeta: This phone was almost certainly just a rumor, but it was supposed to feature the Qualcomm Snapdragon S4, a 720p screen, and a 13 MP camera. Asus Padfone: This is quite possibly my favorite one. This phone will have a tablet dock that will allow you to increase the 4.3 inch display of the phone into the 10.1 inch display of the tablet. The tablet will also be able to charge the phone. Other specs of the phone include NVIDIA's Tegra 3 processor and a 5 MP camera. Meizu MX Quad Core Edition. This phone is rumored to be coming out next May and will feature Samsung's Exynos 4412 processor and Android 4.0 (which the other phones will probably have as well). iPhone 5? Finally, as a small teaser, it is rumored that the iPhone 5 could have a quad-core processor.

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