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This is how an software update works in mobile: the GPU vendor writes the driver using a spec (e.g. Vulkan), then submits the driver for conformance testing wit

This is how an software update works in mobile: the GPU vendor writes the driver using a spec (e.g. Vulkan), then submits the driver for conformance testing with Khronos. Once the driver achieves conformance, the driver is made available to chip makers and OEMs. They take the driver and build an Android BSP; the new ROM is then pushed to consumers through an OTA. The GPU vendor has little control or influence over the update process beyond the point of providing the driver.

simoncion 11y ago
Thanks for the info. I don't see how it addresses any of my concerns, especially in light of the following things: * Most Android phones are no longer officially maintained after three years. Many are abandoned much earlier. * In order to get a GPU manufacturer to design and build a new driver, they must have some incentive to do so. For the not-leading-edge parts that I call out in my comment (and that make up the vast bulk of the SoCs in the field today), how do you create incentive for the GPU vendor to spend the time on these older parts? Money? Contracts? Perhaps I'm missing something in your analysis, though.
- alexvoica 11y ago
  I can't speak for all GPU vendors, but Imagination is actively developing a Vulkan driver for PowerVR Rogue GPUs (this is what the demo is running on). Beyond driver availability, I can't guarantee that OEMs and/or chip makers will license that driver and build new firmware with it.
  - simoncion 11y ago
    It seems like your company is doing good work. Kudos! This in no way invalidates my point. Thanks for the info, though. :) As an unrelated aside, you sort of seem to be indirectly addressing statements that I never made. Maybe I'm wrong here, but it kind of looks like you're speaking to a larger point that goes something like "Vulkan on SoCs will fail because noone will ever update their drivers." So, here's how I engage in discussion: I talk to and with people in order to exchange information. I try to be direct, to the point, and say exactly what I mean. Because I am long-winded, I am not always sufficiently terse. Because I am sometimes a mental spaz, I am not always able to put the right words in the right order to convey the right information. However, one thing I avoid like the plague is innuendo or other unspoken implication (except when used for obvious comedic effect). Having to decode hidden meaning in everyday conversation is tiring and tiresome; I've no desire to waste the time and energy of my conversation partners on such things. When I make an accusation, or outline a scenario, the most literal interpretation of my words is the correct one. I don't have hidden agendas, and I welcome clarifying questions. Anything that I leave unsaid in my prose is a thing that I have forgotten or simply doesn't pertain to the current conversation. :)
    - alexvoica 11y ago
      Cool, thanks for the clarification. What I was trying to suggest is that we will encourage all of our partners to adopt Vulkan alongside OpenGL ES on Android, Linux or any other operating system that supports Khronos APIs. However, for some manufacturers, updating might not be an option due to factors like costs, development time, etc. So there is no absolute guarantee that every single device having a PowerVR Rogue GPU will have Vulkan. We can only promote it and hope that it happens since it is a really good API.

simoncion 11y ago

Thanks for the info. I don't see how it addresses any of my concerns, especially in light of the following things: * Most Android phones are no longer officially maintained after three years. Many are abandoned much earlier. * In order to get a GPU manufacturer to design and build a new driver, they must have some incentive to do so. For the not-leading-edge parts that I call out in my comment (and that make up the vast bulk of the SoCs in the field today), how do you create incentive for the GPU vendor to spend the time on these older parts? Money? Contracts? Perhaps I'm missing something in your analysis, though.

alexvoica 11y ago
I can't speak for all GPU vendors, but Imagination is actively developing a Vulkan driver for PowerVR Rogue GPUs (this is what the demo is running on). Beyond driver availability, I can't guarantee that OEMs and/or chip makers will license that driver and build new firmware with it.
- simoncion 11y ago
  It seems like your company is doing good work. Kudos! This in no way invalidates my point. Thanks for the info, though. :) As an unrelated aside, you sort of seem to be indirectly addressing statements that I never made. Maybe I'm wrong here, but it kind of looks like you're speaking to a larger point that goes something like "Vulkan on SoCs will fail because noone will ever update their drivers." So, here's how I engage in discussion: I talk to and with people in order to exchange information. I try to be direct, to the point, and say exactly what I mean. Because I am long-winded, I am not always sufficiently terse. Because I am sometimes a mental spaz, I am not always able to put the right words in the right order to convey the right information. However, one thing I avoid like the plague is innuendo or other unspoken implication (except when used for obvious comedic effect). Having to decode hidden meaning in everyday conversation is tiring and tiresome; I've no desire to waste the time and energy of my conversation partners on such things. When I make an accusation, or outline a scenario, the most literal interpretation of my words is the correct one. I don't have hidden agendas, and I welcome clarifying questions. Anything that I leave unsaid in my prose is a thing that I have forgotten or simply doesn't pertain to the current conversation. :)
  - alexvoica 11y ago
    Cool, thanks for the clarification. What I was trying to suggest is that we will encourage all of our partners to adopt Vulkan alongside OpenGL ES on Android, Linux or any other operating system that supports Khronos APIs. However, for some manufacturers, updating might not be an option due to factors like costs, development time, etc. So there is no absolute guarantee that every single device having a PowerVR Rogue GPU will have Vulkan. We can only promote it and hope that it happens since it is a really good API.