Samsung объявил о запуске производства 16-Гбит памяти GDDR6

Samsung Electronics в сегодняшнем пресс-релизе сообщает, что корпорация приступила к массовому выпуску первой в индустрии 16-Гбит памяти GDDR6. Модули GDDR6 будут задействованы для выпуска игровых устройств, графических адаптеров, автомобильной электроники, сетевого оборудования и систем с искусственным интеллектом.
Техногигант не сомневается в своевременности появления на рынке нового типа памяти, которая будет широко востребована индустрией и усилит позиции Samsung в среде производителей всех типов микросхем DRAM.
Для производства чипов GDDR6 используется техпроцесс с нормами класса 10 нм. Некоторые специалисты, судя по косвенным признакам, считают, что это может быть техпроцесс с нормами 18 нм, который относится к первому поколению техпроцессов Samsung 10-нм класса. В то же время корпорация начала выпуск микросхем памяти с использованием второго поколения техпроцесса 10-нм класса. По заявлению Samsung, эффективность производства чипов GDDR6 с нормами класса 10 нм выросла на 30 % по сравнению с объёмами производства 8-Гбит чипов GDDR5, выпускаемых с нормами класса 20 нм. Если бы чипы GDDR6 выпускались с использованием техпроцесса второго 10-нм поколения, то выход продукции оказался бы значительно больше.
Также интересно отметить, что память GDDR6, которая пошла в серию, обладает большей пропускной способностью, чем образцы, показанные на CES 2018 и заслужившие награду выставки. Так, на CES 2018 Samsung показал 16-Гбит GDDR6 с пропускной способностью 16Гбит/с на контакт, а в серию пошла память с ПСП 18Гбит/с на контакт. Общая пропускная способность 16-Гбит чипа GDDR6, тем самым, достигает 72 Гбайт/с. Это более чем в 2 раза быстрее, если сравнивать новинку с 8-Гбит GDDR5 со скоростью 8 Гбит/с на контакт.
И, наконец, память GDDR6 работает при напряжении питания 1,35В, что на 35% меньше напряжения питания памяти GDDR5 (1,55 В). Память с низким питанием будет меньше потреблять и, что важно для игровых адаптеров, будет потенциально лучше разгоняться с учётом повышения питания при разгоне.

Samsung Electronics Starts Producing Industry’s First 16-Gigabit GDDR6 for Advanced Graphics Systems

New 16Gb GDDR6 offers twice the speed and density levels of currently available GDDR5 to address growing needs of advanced graphics market

Samsung Electronics, the world leader in advanced memory technology, today announced that it has started mass production of the industry’s first 16-gigabit (Gb) Graphics Double Data Rate 6 (GDDR6) memory for use in advanced graphics processing for gaming devices and graphics cards as well as automotive, network and artificial intelligence systems.
“Beginning with this early production of the industry’s first 16Gb GDDR6, we will offer a comprehensive graphics DRAM line-up, with the highest performance and densities, in a very timely manner,” said Jinman Han, senior vice president, Memory Product Planning & Application Engineering at Samsung Electronics. “By introducing next-generation GDDR6 products, we will strengthen our presence in the gaming and graphics card markets and accommodate the growing need for advanced graphics memory in automotive and network systems.
Built on Samsung’s advanced 10-nanomter (nm) class* process technology, the new GDDR6 memory comes in a 16Gb density, which doubles that of the company’s 20-nanometer 8Gb GDDR5 memory. The new solution performs at an 18-gigabits-per-second (Gbps) pin speed with data transfers of 72 gigabytes per second (GBps), which represents a more than two-fold increase over 8Gb GDDR5 with its 8Gbps pin speed.
Using an innovative, low-power circuit design, the new GDDR6 operates at 1.35V to lower energy consumption approximately 35 percent over the widely used GDDR5 at 1.55V. The 10nm-class 16Gb GDDR6 also brings about a 30 percent manufacturing productivity gain compared to the 20nm 8Gb GDDR5.
Samsung’s immediate production of GDDR6 will play a critical role in early launches of next-generation graphics cards and systems. With all of its improvements in density, performance and energy efficiency, the 16Gb GDDR6 will be widely used in rapidly growing fields such as 8K Ultra HD video processing, virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR) and artificial intelligence.
With extensive graphics memory lineups including the new 18Gbps 16Gb GDDR6 and recently introduced 2.4Gbps 8GB HBM2, Samsung expects to dramatically accelerate growth of premium memory market over the next several years.

* Editor’s Note: 10nm-class denotes a process technology node somewhere between 10 and 19 nanometers.

Samsung и Google запустят поддержку дополненной реальности в новых смартфонах серий Galaxy S и Glaxy Note

Флагманские смартфоны Samsung Galaxy S8/S8+ и Galaxy Note 8 получат поддержку новейшей технологии дополненной реальности, разработанных южнокорейским техногигантом совместно с компанией Google.
Несмотря на конкуренцию в IT-сфере, Samsung и Google всё же заинтересованы друг в друге по ряду причин, поэтому заключили очередное партнёрское соглашение об использовании игр и приложений с ARCore.
Своё решение об объединении усилий в этом направлении Samsung и Google объясняют высочайшим уровнем конкуренции на рынке в сфере AR-технологий. 
По словам экспертов, эта сделка окажется выгодной для каждой из сторон. Samsung долгое время не занимался технологией AR и теперь намерен ликвидировать разрыв в этой области со своими главными конкурентами в лице Apple. Google, в свою очередь, получит больше дохода, поскольку Samsung является главным поставщиком мобильных Android-девайсов на мировой рынок. 
Специальный пакет для разработчиков по внедрению технологии дополненной реальности уже создан. Ожидается, что ARCore изначально появится в моделях Galaxy S8 и Galaxy Note 8, а позже она будет доступна для всех мобильных устройств южнокорейской корпорации.
В рамках проходящей в эти дни конференции SDC 2017 (Samsung Developer Conference), Samsung представил широкий спектр устройств и программных решений в области виртуальной, дополненной и смешанной реальности. Руководство корпорации уверено, что за этими прогрессивными форматами будущее (как в производственной сфере, так и в сегменте развлечений), поэтому Samsung будет постоянно наращивать усилия для укрепления своих позиций в указанном секторе.
Кроме того, новейшие VR-системы будут интегрированы с интеллектуальным цифровым помощником Bixby, что ещё больше расширит горизонты применения технологий виртуализации.

Unlocking the New Reality

Samsung has a long history as a leading pioneer in developing innovative technology that delivers incredible experiences and immerses users in amazing new realities. By combining our expertise in hardware design and engineering with the incredible advancements of our software, we are driving the digital future and creating previously unimagined opportunities for our developers and consumers alike.
The way we experience the world around us has changed drastically over the course of just a few short years. The rise of mobile technology means we are no longer confined to our physical world. Augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) have added new layers of entertainment, information and education to our lives in ways that we have never experienced before.
And yet, it is still early days. At Samsung, we believe the democratization of this technology will foster a creative environment for developers to create amazing new applications and experiences. As these technologies move to the mainstream, it’s up to the industry leaders to adopt a collaborative and open approach to help AR and VR flourish.

Expanding our Worlds

Samsung introduced Gear VR nearly three years ago. Today, its rapidly expanding ecosystem features more than 1,000 apps, 10,000 high-quality videos through the premium 360-degree immersive Samsung VR service and noteworthy collaborations with top content creators and media brands. As a leader in virtual reality entertainment and devices, Samsung is already at the helm of building the technology for a next-level VR experience, changing how people use their smartphones and experience the world around them.
As the appetite for VR contents continues to grow, so has Samsung’s spirit of innovation. At SDC 2017 we showcased our latest VR solutions to help educate developers on the possibilities that exist when building within Samsung’s VR ecosystem. Samsung has developed a range of leading VR services including:

* Samsung VR, a premium video service offering the best in 360 immersive content taking you anywhere from the cockpit of an airplane, to the depths of the ocean or the far reaches of the universe with your Galaxy phone and a Gear VR.
* Samsung Internet VR, a Gear VR-optimized browser that allows users to surf the web and enjoy videos and photos on a large, virtual screen creating an immersive experience as if users were at the theater.
* Samsung PhoneCast VR, a first-of-its-kind application that translates 2D apps into 3D VR through mirroring for improved VR playtime providing an entirely new mobile experience.
* VRB Foto, a fun and social 360 photo sharing solution developed as part of Mobile Platform and Solutions lab of Samsung Research America, which allows users to create and share fun effects on top of 360 photos shot using cameras like Gear 360.
* Black River Studios, a division of Samsung R&D Institute of Amazonia (SIDIA) in Brazil, produces titles for Gear VR and Galaxy devices including Angest, Rock & Rails, and Finding Monsters perfectly suited for the upcoming HMD Odyssey.
* Samsung Gear VR Framework, an open source VR rendering engine with a Java interface for developing mobile VR apps offering a simple and familiar SDK for traditional Android developers without having to know multiple underlying VR SDKs.

Developers can pair these services with leading hardware like the Gear 360, as well as the recently released 360 Round – a new camera featuring 17 lenses able to capture a fully horizontal 360-degree sphere for developing and streaming high-quality 3D content for VR. Additionally, the new Samsung Gear 360 SDK now allows developers to build experiences that control Gear 360 cameras directly from an app while new software updates simplify how photos are shared with Samsung cloud integration. With these world-class hardware and software combinations, developers can create new digital environments that challenge our thinking of what’s possible while driving excitement and ultimately adoption of these new technologies.
As these technologies advance, we at Samsung believe that it’s important for the industry to provide greater access to this rapidly expanding market through an open approach to partnerships and close collaborations that drive valuable experiences for consumers. Our recent partnerships with top content creators like The New York Times gives our customers access to professional VR content while integrations with Microsoft have led to new innovations like the HMD Odyssey headset, considered the most immersive Windows mixed reality headset available. With dual 3.5-inch AMOLED displays, 110-degree field of view, and 360-degree Spatial Sound, the Samsung HMD Odyssey promises a journey to a world of games, videos, and socializing that knows no limits.

Delivering the Promise of AR

Samsung is known for creating technology that breaks the boundaries of what’s currently possible. Augmented reality has introduced a new experience by bridging our digital and physical worlds. During the Samsung Developer Conference (SDC 2017), we shared our vision for the rapidly evolving AR landscape through our partnership with Google to extend the ARCore platform to more Galaxy devices (S8, S8+ and Note8) bringing the best AR experiences to our users. While this is driven by the strengths of our mobile devices, we believe the future of AR will extend beyond the smartphone as we apply advances in machine learning and computer vision to move from recording the world to understanding it.
Consider our Galaxy series, which has redefined standards for mobile cameras with dual-pixel sensors and advanced optics. By adding machine learning and computer vision to the equation, we have transformed the camera into a means of comprehending and contextualizing the world quickly and accurately recognizing the people, places and things in front of them.
That’s where Bixby Vision comes in. We introduced Bixby Vision earlier this year, further expanding our AR capabilities. Bixby Vision offers a new way to understand the world, seamlessly integrated into your smartphone camera. It provides a better understanding of the world through objects, scenes and text. Using the camera app and photo gallery, Bixby Vision uses a hybrid deep learning system that allows it to run on both the device and in the cloud, so it can better identify objects and provide new ways of understanding and engaging with the world around you.
As Samsung continues to build innovative applications and expand the AR capabilities of our devices, we envision a future in which digital experiences like AR break through to wide consumer adoption, providing users with a powerful new experience in their daily lives. Imagine the possibilities beyond gaming and entertainment. Municipalities can install digital signposts which overlay directions for visiting tourists. Businesses have the potential to train new employees on safety procedures for new machines and equipment with virtual guides. The opportunities are endless.

Growing the Ecosystem

While today we experience AR on our phones, at Samsung, we believe that tomorrow, this will go beyond smartphones. To ensure such innovations continue to drive the growth of VR and add to the rapid advancements in AR, Samsung is committed to growing its community of developers and collaborators to expand the presence of new reality experiences in our daily lives. By doing so, we will not only open new business opportunities for our partners, but also provide greater access for all to a rapidly expanding market. Through this extensive ecosystem, we envision a future that creates a seamless transition between the world as we know it, to the new worlds and experiences of the new digital reality.