Samsung unveils Exynos 5422 octa-core and Exynos 5260 hexa-core chipsets

The South Korean manufacturer detailed the update to the popular Exynos 5420 octa-core chipset on the Galaxy Note 3, the new Exynos 5422, which is also equipped with eight cores: four big cores (up to 2.1GHz ARM Cortex A15) for heavy tasks and four small cores (up to 1.5GHz ARM Cortex A7) for lighter tasks.

Notably, the Exynos 5422 is based on the same architecture as the Exynos 5420, which was announced last year. However, the Exynos 5422 supports higher clock speeds than the Exynos 5420.

The Samsung Exynos 5422 chipset supports higher resolution displays that require a high rate of data calculation and bandwidth, such as WQHD (2560 x 1440) and WQXGA (2560 x 1600). Additionally, the new Exynos 5422 also comes with advanced Multi Format Codec (MFC) that supports up to 4K UHD resolution, according to Samsung Tomorrow. It is expected to be the processor powering the Exynos-variant of the new Galaxy S5 flagship, though Samsung has not yet confirmed this.

Another addition to the Samsung's Exynos family is the Exynos 5 Hexa or the Exynos 5260, is seen in the Galaxy Note 3 Neo, which features six CPU cores: two 1.7GHz ARM Cortex A15 cores and four 1.3GHz ARM Cortex A7 cores.

As per Samsung, the Exynos 5 Hexa supports WQXGA (2560 x 1600) display resolution and also supports full-HD (1080p) playback at up to 60 frames-per-second (fps).

Samsung further revealed that the samples of the processor are scheduled for mass production in the first quarter of 2014, while the Exynos 5260 is currently in mass production.

In addition, Samsung also announced the 16-megpixel and 13-megapixel ISOCELL CMOS image sensors and company's third generation NFC chip solutions for expanding mobile payment ecosystem.