Google’s first in-house chipset for Pixels, Tensor, was introduced two years ago. With Tensor, Google used its AI expertise to create a ‘Pixel’ experience. Now, we are on to the third generation of
Tensor
chip, which will power the upcoming
Pixel 8
series of phones.
According to a report from Android Authority, the upcoming
Tensor G3
will feature significant upgrades such as modern cores, support for the latest storage standard, a new GPU, and more.
New core configuration for Tensor G3
The
Google Tensor
G3, codenamed Zuma, is said to have a new core layout of 1+4+4, unlike the previous two generations of Tensor chops, which had layouts of 2+2+4.
The primary core will be the Cortex-X3, and it will be clocked at 3.0GHz. The mid-cores will be four Cortex-A715, each clocked at 2.45GHz, an upgrade from the Cortex-A78 in the Tensor G2. For the smaller cores, there will be four Cortex-A510 cores at 2.15GHz, an improvement from the past Tensor generations.
These cores are from last year, so the Tensor G3 will still be slightly behind the likes of Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 and Dimensity 9300, on paper.
The CPU upgrade for the Tensor G3 should improve the overall performance and efficiency of the Pixel 8 series, including support for ARMv9 for enhanced security. Memory Tagging Extensions (MTE) from Arm will be implemented to prevent memory-based attacks.
Google will also remove 32-bit support, which has already been phased out on Pixel 7. The new chip will also improve the Pixel 8’s storage capabilities, allowing for faster and more efficient UFS 4.0 storage, similar to recent high-end smartphones.
Google Tensor G3 to come with
Immortalis
GPU
Furthermore, the GPU will see a significant upgrade with Arm’s new Immortalis GPU, specifically the Mali-G715, which provides a considerable upgrade, including support for ray-tracing.
The Pixel 8’s Tensor G3 chip will have a “BigWave” block for better video decoding and encoding, including AV1 encoding for up to 4k30. The chip can support up to 8k30 encoding, but it’s unclear if it will be included. A new TPU upgrade, “Rio,” will increase clock speed to 1.1GHz, and a new DSP, “callisto,” will assist with image processing.
Despite these upgrades, the Pixel 8’s Tensor G3 chip modem will remain the same as the previous model.
The Google Tensor G3 chip is expected to be a 4nm chip produced by
Samsung
‘s process.
The Pixel 8 series is anticipated to launch in October 2023.
