Rockchip (Fuzhou Rockchip Electronics Co., Ltd.) is a Chinese fabless semiconductor company based in Fuzhou, Fujian province. It has offices in Shanghai, Beijing, Shenzhen, Hangzhou and Hong Kong. It designs system on a chip (SoC) products, using the ARM architecture licensed from ARM Holdings for the majority of its projects.
Rockchip was one of the top 50 fabless IC suppliers in 2018. The company established cooperation with Google, Microsoft and Intel. On 27 May 2014, Intel announced an agreement with Rockchip to adopt the Intel architecture for entry-level tablets.
Rockchip is a supplier of SoCs to Chinese white-box tablet manufacturers as well as supplying OEMs such as Asus, HP, Samsung and Toshiba. Rockchip has been providing SoC products for tablets & PCs, streaming media TV boxes, AI audio & vision, IoT hardware since founded in 2001.
Products
Featured Products
The RK3588 is Rockchip's current flagship SoC. It has feature-reduced versions, including RK3582, RK3588S, and RK3588S2.
The RK3399 is Rockchip's previous flagship SoC, and predecessor of the RK3588.
Dual Cortex-A72 and Quad Cortex-A53 and Mali-T860MP4 GPU, provide computing and multi-media performance, interfaces and peripherals. The GPU supports OpenGL ES 3.2, Vulkan 1.0, OpenCL 1.1/1.2, and OpenVX 1.0, while the AI interfaces support TensorFlow Lite/AndroidNN.
RK3399 Linux source code and hardware documents are on GitHub and Rockchip's open-source Wiki. RK3399CPUGPUMemoryVideo DecoderVideo EncoderDisplay InterfaceISP Camera Sensor InterfaceUSBDigital Audio InterfaceDual Cortex-A72 + Quad Cortex-A53, 64-bitMali-T860Dual-channel DDR3-1866/DDR3L-1866/LPDDR3-1866/LPDDR4, eMMC 5.1 Up to 4KP60 H.265/H.264/VP9Up to 1080P30 H.264HDMI 2.0, 2x MIPI DSI, eDP 13M Dual-channel MIPI CSI-2 receive interfaceDual USB 3.0 with Type-C supported1× I²S/PCM (2ch), 2× I²S (8ch), S/PDIF
RK3566 is a successor to the RK3288 and outperforms it significantly, with a quad-core Arm Cortex-A55 CPU and an Arm Mali-G52 GPU. Boards based on it are expected to be on sale in early 2021 from manufacturers like Pine64 and Boardcon.
RK3566CPUGPUExternal Memory Interface Video DecoderVideo EncoderDisplay InterfaceISPCamera Sensor Interface USBDigital Audio InterfaceQuad-core ARM Cortex-A55 with Neon and FPU, 22 nm process, up to 2.0 GHzMali-G52DDR4/DDR3/DDR3L/LPDDR4/LPDDR4X/LPDDR34KP60 H.264/H.265/VP91080P60 H.264, H.265LVDS/MIPI DSI, HDMI 2.0, eDP, E Ink8M with HDRMIPI-CSI2, 1x4-lane/2×2-laneUSB 2.0 Host, USB2.0 OTG1× USB 3.0 Host8ch PDM, SPDIF
RK3288 is a high-performance IoT platform, Quad-core Cortex-A17 CPU and Mali-T760MP4 GPU, 4K video decoding and 4K display out. It is applied to products of various industries including Vending Machine, Commercial Display, Medical Equipment, Gaming, Intelligent POS, Interactive Printer, Robot and Industrial Computer.
RK3288 Linux source code and hardware documents are on GitHub and Wiki opensource website. RK3288CPUGPUExternal Memory Interface Video DecoderVideo EncoderDisplay InterfaceISPCamera Sensor Interface USBDigital Audio InterfaceQuad-Core Cortex-A17Mali-T760MP4 GPUDual-channel DDR3/DDR3L/LPDDR2/LPDDR3
SLC/MLC/TLC NAND flash, eMMC 4.5Up to 4KP60 H.265/H.264/VP9Up to 1080P30 H.264HDMI2.0, 2× MIPI DSI, LVDS, eDP, Parallel RGB13MParallel CIF, MIPI CSI-21× USB 2.0 OTG,2× USB 2.0 Host1× I2S(8ch), S/PDIF
RK3326 and PX30 were announced in 2018, marketed for AI. PX30 is a variant of RK3326 targeting the IoT market, supporting dual VOP. Both use Arm's Cortex-A35 CPU and Mali-G31 GPU. FeatureCPUGPU External Memory Interface Video DecoderVideo EncoderDisplay InterfaceISPCamera Sensor Interface USBDigital Audio InterfacePX30Quad-Core Cortex-A35Mali-G31 GPU32-bit DDR4-1600/DDR3-1600/DDR3L-1600/LPDDR3-1600/LPDDR2-1066
MLC NAND, NOR flash, eMMC 4.51080P60 H.264/H.265 1080P30 H.264 MIPI DSI, Parallel RGB, LVDS, *Supports dual VOP8M MIPI CSI and DVP Sensor interfaceUSB 2.0 Host & OTG2× I2S/PCM(2ch)1× I2S/TDM(8ch)1× PDM(8ch)RK3326Quad-Core Cortex-A35Mali-G31 GPU32-bit DDR4-1600/DDR3-1600/DDR3L-1600/LPDDR3-1600/LPDDR2-1066
MLC NAND, NOR flash, eMMC 4.51080P60 H.264/H.265 1080P30 H.264 MIPI DSI, Parallel RGB, LVDS8M MIPI CSI and DVP Sensor interfaceUSB2.0 OTG2× I2S/PCM(2ch)1× I2S/TDM(8ch)1 x PDM(8ch)
RK3308 is an entry-level product line for mainstream devices. The chip has multiple audio input interfaces, and greater energy efficiency, featuring embedded voice activation detection). RK3308CPUAudioMemoryConnectivityQuad-Core Cortex-A35Embedded Audio CODEC with 8xADC,2xDAC16-bit DDR3-1066/DDR3L-1066/DDR2-1066/LPDDR2-1066SLC NAND, eMMC 4.51, Serial NOR flash2x 8ch I2S/TDM, 1x 8ch PDM, 1x 2ch I2S/PCMSPDIF IN/OUT, HDMI ARCSDIO3.0, USB2.0 OTG, USB2.0 Host, I2C, UART, SPI, I2S
The announcement of RV1108 indicated Rockchip's move to AI/computer vision territory.
With CEVA DSP embedded, RV1108 powers smart cameras including 360° Video Camera, IPC, Drone, Car Camcoder, Sport DV, VR, etc. It also has been deployed for new retail and intelligent marketing applications with integrated algorithms. RV1108CPU DSP External Memory Interface Video DecoderVideo EncoderDisplay Interface ISPCamera Sensor Interface USB Digital Audio InterfaceCortex-A7CEVA XM4 DSP 16-bit DDR3/DDR3L
SPI NOR flash, SLC NAND, eMMC1440P30 H.264 1440P30 H.264 HDMI 1.4, MIPI DSI, Parallel RGB, CVBS OUT8M with WDRMIPI CSI-2, CVBS IN1x USB 2.0 OTG 1x USB 2.0 Host2x I2S/PCM (2ch) 1x I2S (8ch)
Early Products RK26xx series - Released 2006.
RK27xx series - Rockchip was first known for their RK27xx series that was very efficient at MP3/MP4 decoding and was integrated in many low-cost personal media player (PMP) products.
RK28xx series
The RK2806 was targeted at PMPs.
The RK2808A is an ARM926EJ-S derivative. Along with the ARM core a DSP coprocessor is included. The native clock speed is 560 MHz. ARM rates the performance of the ARM926EJ-S at 1.1 DMIPS/MHz the performance of the Rockchip 2808 when executing ARM instructions is therefore 660 DMIPS roughly 26% the speed of Apple's A4 processor. The DSP coprocessor can support the real-time decoding of 720p video files at bitrates of up to 2.5 Mbit/s. This chip was the core of many Android and Windows Mobile-based mobile internet devices.
The RK2816 was targeted at PMP devices, and MIDs. It has the same specifications as the RK2806 but also includes HDMI output, Android support, and up to 720p hardware video acceleration.
RK29xx series
The Rockchip RK291x is a family of SoCs based on the ARM Cortex-A8 CPU core. They were presented for the first time at CES 2011. The RK292x are single core SoCs based on ARM Cortex-A9 and were first introduced in 2012.
The RK2918 was the first chip to decode Google WebM VP8 in hardware. It uses a dynamically configurable companion core to process various codecs. It encodes and decodes H.264 at 1080p, and can decode many standard video formats including Xvid, H.263, AVS, MPEG4, RV, and WMV. It includes a Vivante GC800 GPU that is compatible with OpenGL ES 2.0 and OpenVG. The RK2918 is compatible with Android Froyo (2.2), Gingerbread (2.3), HoneyComb (3.x) and Ice Cream Sandwich (4.0). Unofficial support for Ubuntu and other Linux flavours exists. As of 2013, it was targeted at E-readers.
The RK2906 is basically a cost-reduced version of the RK2918, also targeted at E-readers as of 2013.
The Rockchip RK2926 and RK2928 feature a single core ARM Cortex A9 running at a speed up to 1.0 GHz. It replaces the Vivante GC800 GPU of the older RK291x series with an ARM Mali-400 GPU. As of 2013, the RK2926 was targeted at tablets, while the RK2928 was targeted at tablets and Android TV dongles and boxes.
The RK3066 is a high-performance dual-core ARM Cortex-A9 mobile processor similar to the Samsung Exynos 4 Dual Core chip. In terms of performance, the RK3066 is between the Samsung Exynos 4210 and the Samsung Exynos 4212. As of 2013, it was targeted at tablets and Android TV dongles and boxes. It has been a popular choice for both tablets and other devices since 2012.
The RK3068 is a version of the RK3066 specifically targeted at Android TV dongles and boxes. Its package is much smaller than the RK3066.
The RK3028 is a low-cost dual-core ARM Cortex-A9-based processor clocked at 1.0 GHz with ARM Mali-400 GPU. It is pin-compatible with the RK2928. It is used in a few kids tablets and low-cost Android HDMI TV dongles.
The RK3026 is an updated ultra-low-end dual-core ARM Cortex-A9-based tablet processor clocked at 1.0 GHz with ARM Mali-400 MP2 GPU. Manufactured at 40 nm, it is pin-compatible with the RK2926. It features 1080p H.264 video encoding and 1080p decoding in multiple formats. Supporting Android 4.4, it has been adopted for low-end tablets in 2014.
The RK3036 is a low-cost dual-core ARM Cortex-A7-based processor released in Q4 2014 for smart set-top boxes with support for H.265 video decoding.
RK31xx series
The RK3188 was the first product in the RK31xx series, announced for production in the 2nd quarter of 2013. The RK3188 features a quad-core ARM Cortex-A9 clocked up to 1.6 GHz frequency. It is targeted at tablets and Android TV dongles and boxes, and has been a popular choice for both tablets and other devices requiring good performance.
28 nm HKMG process at GlobalFoundries Quad-core ARM Cortex-A9, up to 1.6 GHz 512 KB L2 cache Mali-400 MP4 GPU, up to 600 MHz (typically 533 MHz) supporting OpenGL ES 1.1/2.0, OpenVG 1.1 High-performance dedicated 2D processor DDR3, DDR3L, LPDDR2 support Dual-panel display up to 2048×1536 resolution
The RK3188T is a lower-clocked version of the RK3188, with the CPU cores running at a maximum speed of 1.4 GHz instead of 1.6 GHz. The Mali-400MP4 GPU is also clocked at a lower speed. As of early 2014, many devices advertised as using a RK3188 with a maximum clock speed of 1.6 GHz actually have a RK3188T with clock speed limited to 1.4 GHz. Operating system ROMs specifically made for the RK3188 may not work correctly with a RK3188T.
The RK3168, first shown in April 2013, is a dual-core Cortex A9-based CPU, also manufactured using the 28 nm process. It is targeted at low-end tablets. The chip has seen only limited use as of May 2014.
The RK3126 is an entry-level tablet processor introduced in Q4 2014. Manufactured using a 40 nm process, it features a quad-core Cortex-A7 CPU up to 1.3 GHz and a Mali-400 MP2 GPU. It is pin-compatible with RK3026 and RK2926.
40 nm process Quad-core ARM Cortex-A7, up to 1.3 GHz Mali-400 MP2 GPU High-performance dedicated 2D processor DDR3, DDR3L memory interface 1080p multi-format video decoding and 1080p video encoding for H.264
The RK3128 is a higher-end variant of RK3126, also to be introduced in Q4 2014, that features more integrated external interfaces, including CVBS, HDMI, Ethernet MAC, S/PDIF, Audio DAC, and USB. It targets more fully featured tablets and set-top boxes.
RK32xx series
Rockchip has announced the RK3288 for production in the second quarter of 2014. Recent information suggests that the chip uses a quad-core ARM Cortex-A17 CPU, although technically ARM Cortex-A12, which as of October 1, 2014, ARM has decided to also refer to as Cortex-A17 because the latest production version of Cortex-A12 performs at a similar performance level as Cortex-A17.
28 nm HKMG process. Quad-core ARM Cortex-A17, up to 1.8 GHz Quad-core ARM Mali-T760 MP4 (also incorrectly called Mali-T764) GPU clocked at 600 MHz supporting OpenGL ES 1.1/2.0/3.0/3.1, OpenCL 1.1, Renderscript, Direct3D 11.1 High-performance dedicated 2D processor 1080P video encoding for H.264 and VP8, MVC 4K H.264 and 10-bit H.265 video decode, 1080p multi-video decode Supports 4Kx2K H.265 resolution Dual-channel DDR3, DDR3L, LPDDR2, LPDDR3 Up to 3840×2160 display output, HDMI 2.0
RK3288 controversy