Last year, when Intel pushed their Atom processors aggressively into the Netbook market, the Atom practically became synonymous with low-power (and low-performance) computing. The processor’s power envelope is very low - within 5 watts typical. However, the letdown is the chipset that the Atom is commonly paired with  - the Intel 945GC series. This chipset is a bit long in the tooth but does its job nevertheless. With an anaemic built-in graphics processor (that has 4 pixel pipelines which rely heavily on host-based processing) and lacklustre overall performance, the 945GC got the job done nevertheless. However, it’s easily the most power-hungry component of a Netbook - the north and south bridges draw 10 watts of power under regular circumstances. Solid-state drives on Netbooks draw less than a watt, while small form factor hard drives draw less than 3 watts.

nVidia showed off their Ion platform that draws approximately the same amount of power as the 945GC chipset, but it has far more capabilities. It was able to playback high-definition videos at up to 1080p resolution. It could actually allow the Atom processor to run 3D games. It could support high-definition audio. In short, the Ion would allow the Atom to be the heart of a home theatre PC that could play back Blu Ray movies and simple 3D games.

It would be some time before nVidia’s Ion platform goes commercial. In the meantime, nVidia has another system-on-a-chip (SoC) for low-power platforms, the Tegra. In contrast to the Ion platform, the Tegra isn’t meant for x86 processors. The Tegra incorporates an ARM architecture processor core, the same type that’s usually found in embedded systems, PDAs and smartphones.

The software base for ARM processors is HUGE. Symbian, Linux and Windows Mobile are all able to run on ARM. The next logical step for HTPCs and Netbooks, that have so far been Atom-centric, is to adopt the ARM architecture due to its much lower overall power consumption (leading to longer battery life and lower heat output).

Two new developments have enabled this development to be fast-tracked. FreeScale has just released their i.MX515 SoC based around the Cortex A8 ARM core that is 3-4 times faster than the ARM11 processors found in many PDAs and smartphones today. In many respects, it’s quite similar to the many ARM processors in portable devices today (based on the ARM instruction set, has a single-core RISC processor, etc.). However, this architectural block diagram shows the full extent of its capabilities:

It comes with the Neon DSP unit for functions similar to MMX and SSE to accelerate algorithms. It comes with hardware encryption. It has dedicated image-processing hardware. It has hardware decoders for high-definition video. It supports OpenGL ES 2.0 and OpenVG 1.1. It has everything necessary for a HTPC and of course, a Netbook.

Another powerful newcomer is Texas Instrument’s OMAP4 SoC. Unlike the simpler i.MX515, it has a dual-core ARM Cortex A9 processor. The Cortex A9 is scalable up to four cores and the OMAP4 might incorporate a quad-core Cortex A9 later. On top of that, this new architecture is up to 4 times faster than the Cortex A8, making it up to 16 times faster than the common ARM11 processors.

The OMAP4 is much more suitable for a Netbook that is able to do more than just web-surfing and casual e-mailing.

It incorporates a punchy PowerVR SGX540 graphics engine that goes along well with its powerful dual-core RISC processor. It can drive display resolutions of up to 1680×1050 but supports full HD decode for 1080p content. It also supports a pretty comprehensive 3D feature set, exceeding OpenGL 2.0 specifications and complying with DirectX 10.1Shader Model 4.1.

And just like the i.MX515, it has dedicated units for image processing, encryption, and lots of other stuff. Both the i.MX515 and OMAP4, however, do not have published power consumption figures. However, with the similar nVidia Tegra weighing in at under 4 watts for a complete system (processor and chipset) excluding the I/O and memory subsystems, these two newcomers should have similar power envelopes.

What does this translate to? Netbooks, HTPCs and compact home servers that are capable enough for office applications, simple 3D gaming and full-HD content playback while consuming a total of less than 10 watts, thus allowing common 3-cell lithium ion battery packs to provide such Netbooks with over 6 hours of batter life, while HTPCs and home servers are able to run passively-cooled all day round without leaving a large dent in the power bill.

Their biggest weakness could be the ARM processor core, as the available operating systems and applications for it are very different compared to what we’re familiar with. However, that hasn’t lowered the popularity of Linux-installed Netbooks throughout the whole of last year, so this should be a moot point.

On the x86 front, we have VIA still struggling to compete with the Atom because they have stupidly priced their platform unreasonably high. Yes, it’s better than the Atom’s platform in every way but at the end of the day, such low-powered compact platforms should also be low-cost. VIA started the Mini-ITX revolution but ironically, they are now the ones left behind.

VIA’s new VX855 Media System Processor (i.e. single-chip “chipset”) might change all that. It supports full-HD content playback, 3D graphics (with the antiquated S3 Chrome series graphics core that only has DirectX 9.0 feature set), high-definition audio, direct video capture and direct display interface. However, its major weak point is that it only supports VIA’s own Nano, C7 and Eden processors.

Some current Netbooks use the VIA platform with the C7 processor, though the VIA Nano would be more interesting. This platform is much more power efficient than the Atom-945GC combo, and has better overall performance while delivering more features that would be great for ultraportables and HTPCs. Looking past the limited CPU support, its main advantage is that the platform is x86-compatible and is able to even run Windows Vista and the upcoming Windows 7, thus guaranteeing broad software support.

Thanks to the Atom, we’re all introduced to small and power-efficient computer. The seed that was sowed in 2008 will be reaped in 2009 and 2010 with these new platforms, and probably I’ll get a Netbook then, based on any of these new platforms. For now, I’m gunning for an Atom all-in-one board for my BitTorrent file server.. it’ll surely be more easy on the electricity bill than my current full-blown PC that runs 24/7 most of the time.