Deep license
Apple's A4
chip is nothing more than an ARM Cortex 8 based chip, a single-core and it looks
a lot like the ultra popular Snapdragon.
The chip is definitely not dual-core as
Apple would have certainly use this fact in its press event as an advantage. This
is what a few sources confirmed and this is how backward compatibility
comes into the game.
If you have
Nexus One or HTC HD2, you will have as much horsepower as with an iPad. This
oversized iPod touch is responsive, reactive, and fast as it can run only one
application at the time. HTC for instance can run tens of applications
simultaneously before it runs out of breath.
HD capability
is something we need to investigate but Apple implies that the device should be
able to play 720p videos. Intel solves its HD incapability with a Broadcom
decoder chip, but we still don’t know what is the case with Apple's device.