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I've heard this 256MB limit that you see on all the smartphones now is because the ARM A8 architecture they are based on only has 256MB of RAM on the die. I th

I've heard this 256MB limit that you see on all the smartphones now is because the ARM A8 architecture they are based on only has 256MB of RAM on the die. I think this is the biggest limitation that these devices have right now. I love my iPad, but it kills me to have the occasional "crash to desktop" just because Safari ran out of memory. My prediction - next year we'll see A9 based smartphones/tablets with 512MB-1GB of RAM and these memory starvation issues will be a thing of the past. It certainly doesn't bode well in the short term for early adopters though. The post PC era is upon us - too bad the hardware (and software) is still in it's infancy.

ergo98 16y ago
>I've heard this 256MB limit that you see on all the smartphones now is because the ARM A8 architecture they are based on only has 256MB of RAM on the die Possible, though the Evo 4G, Nexus One, HTC Dream, among a variety of other Android devices are coming with 512MB these days. One weird thing, though, is that one of the feature notes of Android 2.2 is "HIGHMEM support for RAM >256MB", so not sure how that plays into this.
- masklinn 16y ago
  I believe those phones are on Snapdragon, which is an arch based on the Cortex A8 but not a vanilla A8 is it?
- barake 16y ago
  Android 2.1 and earlier shipped with a kernel that could only see 256MB of RAM, and 2.2 fixes this. A bunch of HTC Passion/Desire/Incredible/Evo users are about to get a performance boost with Dalvik JIT and double the RAM.
drivebyacct 16y ago
You act as if "first movers" ever don't get screwed by Apple. I understand that technology is constantly evolving and that by time I buy a phone, a better one is being produced, but I can't shake the feeling that Apple schedules their releases and features in ways that maximize their revenue. I suppose I can't really blame them for that. It just makes the whole thing seem less "magical" the way some act like Apple is just the most innovative and new company in the whole wide world. Also, I still can't help but laugh at this moniker of the "post PC era". The rest of us are still doing real work in Windows, Mac, Linux and the smartphone/tablets are accessories.
- Tamerlin 16y ago
  It's not entirely inappropriate when you consider how the economics work. Most people who use computers really don't do much beyond browsing the web, reading e-mail, and balancing their checkbooks. Ergo, they consume content and use web apps. Most of the people for whom mobile devices like the iPad are inadequate for doing their job are creating content (e.g. games, movies, books, etc) and web applications. Revenue from the internet is from people using applications, viewing and clicking on ads, and buying content. You don't need a PC for that. We're not quite at the point where an average user doesn't need a personal computer no matter the OS, but we're close.
- illumin8 16y ago
  Did you read what I wrote? I get screwed every time my iPad crashes to desktop because Safari ran out of memory. It's still a great device though and the out of memory situation is rare, so I keep using it.
  - drivebyacct 16y ago
    I don't know why you feel that my post is in anyway attacking you or the scenario that you've repeated.

ergo98 16y ago

>I've heard this 256MB limit that you see on all the smartphones now is because the ARM A8 architecture they are based on only has 256MB of RAM on the die Possible, though the Evo 4G, Nexus One, HTC Dream, among a variety of other Android devices are coming with 512MB these days. One weird thing, though, is that one of the feature notes of Android 2.2 is "HIGHMEM support for RAM >256MB", so not sure how that plays into this.

masklinn 16y ago
I believe those phones are on Snapdragon, which is an arch based on the Cortex A8 but not a vanilla A8 is it?
barake 16y ago
Android 2.1 and earlier shipped with a kernel that could only see 256MB of RAM, and 2.2 fixes this. A bunch of HTC Passion/Desire/Incredible/Evo users are about to get a performance boost with Dalvik JIT and double the RAM.

drivebyacct 16y ago

You act as if "first movers" ever don't get screwed by Apple. I understand that technology is constantly evolving and that by time I buy a phone, a better one is being produced, but I can't shake the feeling that Apple schedules their releases and features in ways that maximize their revenue. I suppose I can't really blame them for that. It just makes the whole thing seem less "magical" the way some act like Apple is just the most innovative and new company in the whole wide world. Also, I still can't help but laugh at this moniker of the "post PC era". The rest of us are still doing real work in Windows, Mac, Linux and the smartphone/tablets are accessories.

Tamerlin 16y ago
It's not entirely inappropriate when you consider how the economics work. Most people who use computers really don't do much beyond browsing the web, reading e-mail, and balancing their checkbooks. Ergo, they consume content and use web apps. Most of the people for whom mobile devices like the iPad are inadequate for doing their job are creating content (e.g. games, movies, books, etc) and web applications. Revenue from the internet is from people using applications, viewing and clicking on ads, and buying content. You don't need a PC for that. We're not quite at the point where an average user doesn't need a personal computer no matter the OS, but we're close.
illumin8 16y ago
Did you read what I wrote? I get screwed every time my iPad crashes to desktop because Safari ran out of memory. It's still a great device though and the out of memory situation is rare, so I keep using it.
- drivebyacct 16y ago
  I don't know why you feel that my post is in anyway attacking you or the scenario that you've repeated.