GDC08: Better UI, not gaming, is driving 3D mobile
Over 100 3D-enabled devices already in market
Not particularly well known in Europe outside of developer circles, US chip design company Qualcomm is one of the big players when it comes to the silicon that powers phones in North America and Asia.
It's also a keen supporters of better gaming through its BREW technology, which like a higher powered version of Java enables game developers to create more graphically rich products.
So we were interested to hear Qualcomm's views about gaming and the 3D graphics hardware that's now being integrated into many phones (see here for a demonstration of why dedicated 3D hardware is important).
David Ligon, a staff product manager at Qualcomm and a self-confessed veteran of mobile graphics, said it was user interface (UI) and mapping/navigation services, not gaming, that were the big drivers for handset manufacturers to include 3D hardware in their new phones, however.
"This is mainly due to the UI of the iPhone," Ligon explained. "Everyone understands they need to offer something like this now."
Other reasons for 3D include the increasing size of phone LCDs, and the falling cost of adding the extra transistors for 3D graphics onto the integrated chips. Ligon said the size of the extra silicon required to add 3D graphics hardware (itself a measure of price) had dropped 85 per cent since 2004.
"There are currently over 100 devices in the market containing 3D graphics hardware and we'll see 3D hardware moving into entry-level phones towards the end of 2008," he predicted.
However Ligon also struck a note of warning that because of the existing installed base of phones, most handsets on the market won't contain 3D graphics hardware, even in the developed western markets where people upgrade their phones relatively quickly for a number of years.
Yet, overall, he said he was positive about the impact of 3D graphics hardware for mobile gaming, pointing out that UI and mapping features were encouraging handset manufacturers to include 3D graphics much faster than they would have done if the main driving force was gaming. Hence this would, in future, kick-start the quality of mobile games as well as providing potential to charge higher prices for these more console-like experiences.
He also predicted it would provide an opportunity for games to be used to demonstrate the value of 3D to consumers. "I know of three carriers who haven't previously pre-loaded games onto their phones who will doing so in 2008," Ligon said.
