Amlogic's chips are today used in many Google TV devices including Chromecast and the next-generation Amlogic S905X5 is more powerful with support for VRR, QMS, VVC, and more.
While TV displays running Android TV or Google TV are powered mainly by MediaTek chips or sometimes Realtek, media players and sticks are typically powered by Amlogic chips.
For example, Chromecast (4K) is powered by Amlogic's S905X3 while the latest box from Mecool utilizes the newer S905X4.
The latest hardware iteration from Amlogic is S905X5, which was revealed as part of a reference box design by Sei Robotics at the IBC 2023 show.
X5 will eventually power consumer Google TV devices, perhaps even the next Chromecast 4K.
The reference box design revealed by SEI Robotics at IBC 2023. Photo: Sei Robotics
What to expect
While we do not have complete hardware specifications for the S905X5 yet, the reveal of the reference design confirms it is built on a 6nm processor node, resulting in a 50% reduction in power consumption while maintaining the same performance.
The reference box supports HEVC, AV1 and VVC (H.266) video decoding as well as new HDMI 2.1 features such as VRR (Variable Refresh Rate), eARC (enhanced Audio Return Channel) and QMS (Quick Media Switching).
A word of caution here: Just because Amlogic S905X5 enables these new video and HDMI 2.1 features, it does not guarantee that every consumer device using this chip will support all of the features.
Also read: First look: Chromecast and Android 12's frame rate matching is a work in progress
It is also equipped with an NPU for super-resolution upscaling.
We will return with more details later.
- Source: Sei Robotics via AndroidTVBox
