What are the differences between Mediatek MT6589M, MT6589 and MT6589T SoC

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With the launch of the UMi X2 Turbo many readers have been asking what are the differences between the MT6589 and the newer MT6589T? Keep reading for those answers and more!

The Chinese phone market is exploding thanks to Google’s Android OS and Mediatek’s range of high-power, low-cost processors. Mediatek are a Taiwanese chip manufacturer who have risen to fame and fortune be manufacturing SoC (System on a Chip) solutions aimed primarily at the Chinese phone market. The popularity if Mediatek is expanded past Asia now and companies and customers around the world look to Mediatek low-cost, high-performance processors.

This year Mediatek launched their first quad-core SoC named the MT6589 (MTK6589). The MT6589, and its variants are Cortex A7 28nm chips capable of running at 1.2Ghz. The MT6589 also provides support for up to 13 mega-pixel cameras, 1080p video capture, and 1920 x 1080 FHD LCD displays, making it the perfect chip for this year’s flagship Chinese phones.

3 models of MT6589

Due to popularity Mediatek have launched 2 additional versions of the MT6589, an entry-level MT6589M and an updated MT6589T. Each chip is based on the standard MT6589 however features slightly different specifications. For example the MT6589M only supports 8 mega-pixel cameras, 720p video capture and QHD resolution displays, while the MT6589T (Turbo) runs at a faster 1.5Ghz with a faster 357Mhz GPU.

To make things simpler we have created the below table which highlights the differences between these 3 quad-core Mediatek processors.

	MT6589M	MT6589	MT6589T (Turbo)
CPU	4xCortex-A7, 1.2Ghz 32KB/32KBL1, 1MBL2	4xCortex-A7, 1.2Ghz 32KB/32KBL1, 1MBL2	4xCortex-A7, 1.5Ghz 32KB/32KBL1, 1MBL2
Memory	LPDDR2 533MHz	LPDDR2 533MHz	LPDDR2 533MHz
Camera	8 Mega-pixel ISP	13 Mega-pixel ISP	13 Mega-pixel ISP
Video Decode	720p 30fps	1080p 30fps	1080p 30fps
Video Encode	720p 30fps	1080p 30fps	1080p 30fps
Graphics	IMGSGX544 156Mhz	IMGSGX544 286Mhz	IMGSGX544 357Mhz
Display	qHD 960 x 540	HD1080 1920 x 1080	HD1080 1920 x 1080
Modem	HSPA+ Rel.8, RxD (21Mbps/11Mbps) TD-SCDMA (2.8/2.2)	HSPA+ Rel.8, RxD (21Mbps/11Mbps) TD-SCDMA (2.8/2.2)	HSPA+ Rel.8, RxD (21Mbps/11Mbps) TD-SCDMA (2.8/2.2)
Connectivity	External MT6620/MT6628	External MT6620/MT6628	External MT6620/MT6628

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