The Cell Processor and the Future

On the cover of the 30JAN2006 Forbes magazine is the new Cell processor jointly developed between Sony, IBM, and Toshiba. The new Cell chip or '64-bit 8-way supercomputer system on a chip' is what Sony is using for the Playstation 3 (PS3) scheduled to debut this year (2006). The Forbes article, "Holy Chip!" is a great case study into some history of the Cell processor development and reveals some of its possibilities for the future beyond the PS3.

This chip has been in development for the past 5-years and started as an engineering challenge from Sony to IBM back in 2000 just as the Playstation 2 (PS2) was being launched. Sony executives wanted a 1000x increase over what the PS2 could do. Apparently the IBM, Sony, Toshiba team managed to yield a 50x increase over PS2 which pushed the capabilities of all the computer engineers/scientists involved to the limit. I suspect that Cell chip version 2 or some future iteration is probably in development and will attain the original goal of 1000x improvement over PS2 chip, the Emotion Engine, within the next 2-3 years.

The design and architecture of the Cell processor required many years of design and has since pushed and shifted the envelope of chip technology. "IBM's CELL Processor: Preview to Greatness?" If all goes as planned, this chip will not only be the center piece of Sony and Toshiba's digital entertainment devices, it will drive future computers and sensors. In the Forbes article, Raytheon studied the chip for 15-months and made decisions to use it in future weapons systems. The primary reason for this decision is its magnitude of graphics performance over all existing technologies.

The Cell processor can render full 30 frames per second dynamic computer generated full motion images at high-definition resolution in real time! This is significant because photo realistic computer graphics imagery is possible in real-time using the Cell processor. This will open many new doors of innovation for previously unimaginable product possibilities. One of the Cell-based demos developed by Toshiba dubbed "Magic Mirrors" turns your LCD monitor into a virtual real-time mirror! The demo simulates a real-world mirror in a program. This is only possible due to the advances with the Cell processor. Gaming and entertainment will not be the same.

IBM has published reseach papers ("The Cell project at IBM Research") about the Cell Project which is normally not how IBM does business. I guess IBM is making changes for getting the word out on this one long before products exist. Given that Sony will soon have its PS3 on the market.

I'd like to see how the Cell processor will change the personal and supercomputing arenas. Given the fact that the Cell is designed for grids and massive parallel processing, the next few years will be quite interesting as we see new products.

At any rate, there has not been a huge architectural shift in chip design for the past 20-years. The new cell chip required a completely new architectural and design approach over past chip designs. It is definitely innovative and time will tell what type of impact it has on the computing industry.