We’ve known the main features of Amlogic S905Y2 and S905X2 processors namely an upgrade to an Arm Mali-G31MP2 GPU with OpenGLES 3.1, and support for USB 3.0
The S905X2 SoC is specially designed for TV Box, for example: H96 Max X2. The S905Y2 SoC is designed for OTT 4K HDMI dongles / HDMI Sticks, for example: X96S.
| S905X SoC | S905Y2 SoC | S905X2 SoC | |
| Ultra Low Power | —– | Always On MCU and wake on voice | Always On MCU and wake on voice |
| CPU | Quad-Core Cortex-A53, 13800 DMIPS | Quad-Core Cortex-A53, 18,400 DMIPS | Quad-Core Cortex-A53, 18,400 DMIPS |
| GPU | ARM Mali-450 MP3, 750MHz | ARM Mali-G31 MP2, 850MHz | ARM Mali-G31 MP2, 850MHz |
| Security | Secure boot, TEE, HW crypto, OTP, TRNG, Key ladder, Video Watermarking | Secure boot, TEE, HW crypto, OTP, TRNG, Key ladder, Video Watermarking | Secure boot, TEE, HW crypto, OTP, TRNG, Key ladder, Video Watermarking |
| Memory | 16/32-bit DDR3/4, LPDDR2/3, Up to 3GB, DDR2400 | 32-bit DDR3/4, LPDDR3/4, Up to 4GB, DDR3200 | 32-bit DDR3/4, LPDDR3/4, Up to 4GB, DDR3200 |
| Storage | NAND Flash@BCH60, eMMC 5.0, SD, SPI NOR | SLC NAND Flash, eMMC 50, SD, SPI NOR/NAND | SLC NAND Flash, eMMC 50, SD, SPI NOR/NAND |
| Video Decoder | 4Kp60 10b H.265, 4Kp60 VP9 Profile 2, 4Kp30 H.264 | 4Kp75 10b H.265, VP9 Profile 2, AVS2 4Kp30 H.264 | 4Kp75 10b H.265, VP9 Profile 2, AVS2 4Kp30 H.264 |
| Video Encoder | 1080p60 H.264 | 1080p60 H.264, H.265 | 1080p60 H.264, H.265 |
| PQ Engine | Basic PQ | 8-th Gen TruLife Image Engine | 8-th Gen TruLife Image Engine |
| Ethernet | 10/100 MAC + PHY | —– | 10/100/1000 MAC + 10/100 PHY |
| USB/PCI-e | 2x USB 2.0 | 2x USB 2.0 + USB 3.0 / PCIe Gen-2 | 2x USB 2.0 + USB 3.0 / PCIe Gen-2 |
| Audio | Stereo DACs, SPDIF-out, PDM, 2x L2S out | Stereo DACs, SPDIF-out, 8x L2S in, 8x L2S out, 8x PD | Stereo DACs, SPDIF-out, 8x L2S in, 8x L2S out, 8x PD |
| Video Output | 4Kp60 HDMI 2.0b, CVBS | 4Kp60 HDMI 2.1 | 4Kp60 HDMI 2.1, CVBS |
| Video Input | —- | TS in | DVP, TS in |
| HDR | HDR10, HLG | HDR10, HLG, Dolby Vision, TCH Prime | HDR10, HLG, Dolby Vision, TCH Prime |
| Package | 13mm x 13mm BGA | 10.9mm x 10.9mm BGA | 14mm x 14mm BGA |
| Technology | 28nm | 12nm | 12nm |
There actually more differences than I expected. Going from top to bottom in the comparison table above, the new processors feature an ultra-low power MCU core to be used for wake-word detection, and possibly other features. We did not get CPU frequency numbers per say, but since Amlogic released DMIPS values and Cortex A53 core scores 2.3 DMIPS/MHz, we can easily derive it:
*Amlogic S905X – 13,800 DMIPS / 4 cores / 2.3 DMIPS/MHz = 1500 MHz
*Amlogic S905X2 / S905Y2 – 18,400 DMIPS / 4 cores / 2.3 DMIPS/MHz = 2000 MHz
Bear in mind those are still numbers from a document, and actual testing will be require to find out whether Amlogic massaged the numbers once again. The Mali-G31 GPU is closed at up to 850 MHz, against 750 MHz with the Mali-450 GPU in S905X.
The memory interface has improved as well with the new SoCs supporting LPDDR3/4 up to 3200 MHz, and up to 4GB RAM, but we already knew that part thanks to TV boxes announcement. There’s also a small change for storage interfaces with NAND SLC and SPI NAND flash now supported, but I’m not sure this is a significant change since most systems should be relying on eMMC flash.
The hardware video decoder can now handle 4K videos up to 75 Hz instead of just 60 Hz (why? probably just because it can unless I missed something), and adds support for AVS2 that should mostly/only matter for the Chinese market. There’s also an enhanced video post-processing engine called “8th Gen TruLife Image Engine”. S905X supported HDR10 and HLG high-dynamic range solutions, and the new processors add Dolby Vision and TCH Prime (which I never heard of). Video output is indeed HDMI 2.1 as reported on some products page, but of course without 8K video support. S905X2 also includes a CVBS interface for composite audio. as well as a DVP camera interface, but not S905Y2, which makes sense due to the latter targeting HDMI TV sticks.
For the same reason, Ethernet is gone on Amlogic S905Y2, while Amlogic S905X2 comes with both a Gigabit Ethernet MAC, and a Fast Ethernet PHY. Both new processors also add USB 3.0 and PCIe Gen-2 interfaces, as well as TS input interface for digital TV tuners. S905Y2 and S905X2 have been designed for smart voice application, and beside the wake-word MCU, they also support 8x microphone arrays via I2S and PDM interfaces.
There was a somewhat heated discussion about the manufacturing process last time, and we finally know the answer: S905X2 & S905Y2 are manufactured using a 12nn process. S905Y2 has the smaller package (10.9×10.9mm BGA) of the three processors, while S905X2 is a bit bigger even compared to S905X due to the extra features with a 14x14mm BGA package.