Android-run phones are about as unusual as Apple devices starting with ‘i’, unless we count the Apple TV. This next camera applications processor from Ambarella is dubbed the iOne. What’s atypical about it is the fact that the iOne SoC can be expected to support a category of smart cameras based on Android.

The SoC is projected to enable up to 32MP still image processing and high-speed capture of 5MP images at 30fps. It’s claimed to be the first ever low-power 1080p60 decoder accommodating full 3D HD decoding on a mobile OS platform. We’re also looking at 3D photoand video capture with the addition of Ambarella’s S3D pre-processor for stereoscopic HD video and still image shooting with this development.
“Coupling our proven video and imaging processing expertise with the Android platform enables next generation cameras to take a significant leap forward in user experiences and capabilities. The iOne will fundamentally change the way consumers capture, create and share visual content. We are very excited about the possibilities,” trilled Fermi Wang, Ambarella CEO.

A smart camera based on Android and embedding the iOne will be able to work with a number of interfaces including dual CMOS sensor inputs, SATA, Gigabit Ethernet, analog video out, transport stream and much more. Apart from strong support for GPS, Bluetooth, FM, Mobile TV and Wi’Fi 802.11n, the processor can offer concurrent encoding of a full HD 1080p30 stream and a second stream for uploading to the internet or streaming via Wi-Fi.

The iOne employs a triple ARM CPU architecture that’s designed for low-power mobile media applications. A 533MHz ARM-11 deals with real-time camera tasks and allows a camera boot time of less than a second. At the same time, a dual-core 1GHz ARM Cortex A9 CPU supplies the energy to operate Android applications.

Ambarella’s iOne SoC is currently being shipped in sample quantities to early access customers. So the word on when we can expect to see smart cameras running Android will obviously have to wait a bit.