We are just starting to see Nvidia’s Tegra 2 as the platform of choice for several upcoming tablet computers, but it seems a couple of successors are already on the way. According to a recently leaked roadmap, the graphics firm will launch a 1.2GHz dual-core chip that'll be marketed as 3D-capable and is allegedly due for shipping as early as spring this year. The alleged “Tegra 2 3D” is based on the ARM Cortex A9 core and will enable stereoscopic images and video on mobile devices, with speculation pointing at LG's G-Slate as the first out the gate with Nvidia's new chip.

It’s not clear yet whether the 3D technology which these Nvidia’s chips will bring in will require users to wear glasses to watch 3D content or not, but at least the LG device that's rumored to carry them is not expected to require eyewear.


Nvidia reportedly plans to announce its upgraded system-on-chip in February during a company presentation at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, along with an all-new Tegra 3 platform that should make its debut towards the end of the year. Claimed to be the world's first quad-core mobile solution, Tegra 3 will feature up to four Cortex-A9 cores clocked at up to 1.5 GHz, three times the graphics performance of its predecessor, an ULP (ultra-low power) CPU mode, and will support Blu-ray video and displays with a maximum resolution of 1920 x 1200 pixels.

Both will be available in tablet and smartphone flavors. Check out BSN for an in-depth look at Nvidia’s plans going forward, including a so-called Maxwell chip that the company hopes will go down in history as the world's first consumer solution that will effortlessly run full-blown operating systems entirely off a GPU core.