Tegra K1 (2014)
Things changed with the release of the Tegra K1. Instead of using a specialized GPU architecture for the Tegra series of products, Nvidia substituted it with a GPU based on its Kepler architecture, which was already in use on the PC. The Kepler architecture performed so much faster than the other competing products in the mobile world that it was sometimes viewed as the mobile GTX Titan. The function was the same, but the raw performance was out of reach of Nvidia's competitors. The Tegra K1 supports OpenGL ES and Direct X 11.2.
Products implementing the Tegra K1 are rare, but Nvidia used it inside its Shield Tablet.
Tegra X1 (2015)
In 2015, Nvidia unveiled an upgraded version of the Tegra K1, known as the Tegra X1 (code-named Erista). The major improvement to the SoC was the switch from the 192 core KG20A based on Kepler to the 256 core (16 TMUs and 16 ROPs) GM20M based on the more energy-efficient Maxwell architecture. The GK20A (Kepler) and 192 cores gave way to GM20M (Maxwell) with 256 cores (and 16 texturing units and 16 units rendering). The clock speed also increased from 852 MHz to 1000 MHz. The Tegra X1 is used inside the Nvidia Shield TV and the Pixel C Google tablet.
Vivante, A Challenger
One of the smaller competitors in the mobile market is Vivante. The American company offers powerful mobile GPUs, but they are rarely used. This is because these GPUs are typically used in embedded devices, and are rarely used inside smartphones. Although these GPUs feature support for DirectX 11 and OpenGL ES 3.x, they receive less support from game developers because of their position in the industry.
DMP PICA200
Let's finish with a look at Japan-based DMP. DMP's GPU technology is not used inside smartphones, but it's found inside many of Nintendo's handheld consoles. DMP's PICA200 is used in the Nintendo 3DS, Nintendo 3DS XL and Nintendo 2DS. The GPU is rather old, initially announced back in 2006, and it has limited API support (OpenGL ES 1.1). Nevertheless, it is sufficient for Nintendo's consoles and the two relatively low-resolution displays they use.
MORE: Best SmartphonesMORE: All Smartphone Content
Micheal Justin Allen Sexton is a Contributing Writer for Tom's Hardware. Follow him on Twitter.
