Slashdot Mirror
Why Apple Went 64-Bit With the iPhone 5s
Hugh Pickens DOT Com writes "Adrian Kingsley-Hughes says it's not just because Apple likes bragging about being first and because a 64-bit processor sounds cooler than 32-bits that Apple used the 64-bit A7 chip in the new iPhone 5s. A shift from a 32-bit processor to a 64-bit part paves the way for iPhones to be fitted out with 4GB+ of RAM down the line, but more importantly the move brings iOS and OS X apps much closer. The architecture for 64-bit apps on iOS will be almost identical to the architecture for OS X apps, making it easy to create a common code base that runs in both operating systems. 'Apple has slowly been bringing iOS-like features to Mac OS for years now: think of Launchpad and Gatekeeper,' writes Sascha Segan. 'The ultimate prize, of course, would be to bring the million-plus iOS apps to Macs. Apple could do that with an ARM-compatible virtual machine on Mac hardware, but it would want the VM, the OS and the associated apps to play nicely in the much larger memory space available on Macs. That means moving the whole system over to 64 bit.' By unifying iOS and Mac OS with Xcode developer tools in a 64-bit space, Apple could once again leap ahead of Microsoft and Google, says Segan. Microsoft hasn't yet been able to leverage its desktop strengths to achieve success as a mobile OS. The 64-bit chips for Android devices aren't ready, and neither is Android itself."
iOS and OS X were designed from the GROUND UP to be 64 bit. Contrast this to Android which is still mired in decades old technology that nobody wants any more. Now that Apple has fully covered the market sections with both low and high end phone AND tablets, there is basically no where for Android left to go and it is only a matter of time before you start seeing Android's marketshare going down the tubes. Every one of my hardcore techy friends is already dumping their Android phones for the iPhone 5C and 5S, so its just a matter of time.
Would you do an ass dance in a juicy graveyard? Inquiring minds want to know...
Da derp dee derp da teedly derpee derpee dum. Rated PG-13.
Are you an idiot? iPhone's come with 16GB, 32GB, and 64GB of flash RAM. It would not be hard to make that addressable from iOS. Go to Apple's web page it is right there in front of you! Don't hate Apple just because they got it like that! Google, Samsung, and Microsoft just fired up their photocopiers!