If you want to create some pretty apps, look to Nvidia.
The company, best known for its graphics processors in PCs and laptops, has during the past year branched out into the mobile world with its ARM-based Tegra processor, specifically designed for mobile devices such as phones and tablets. The company has quickly gone from an outsider to a niche player, serving high-end devices.
Its Tegra 3 quad-core processor is found in a handful of top-tier products, including the Asus Transformer Prime, the first tablet with Google's Ice Cream Sandwich variant, as well as international versions of HTC's One X.
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How one mobile startup looks to help you avoid waiting in linehere. That includes tips, articles, and e-mail feedback to programmers looking to take advantage of Nvidia.
The company will also help developers improve their code. For example, some developers will have code that renders graphics too many times, according to Matt Webbling, director of product marketing for Nvidia's Tegra division. Nvidia can come and streamline that code so it is less processor-intensive.
"There's a lot of un-optimized code out there," he said.
In some cases, Nvidia will just hand out chunks of code to give a developer a certain capability accessed through Tegra, the company said.
Nvidia has high hopes for the future capabilities of Tegra. Dan Vivoli, head of marketing for the company, believes the graphics on a mobile device will be on par with the current generation of console systems by the next year and a half and surpass consoles within the next few years.
While Tegra 3 is already out in a few devices, the company plans to launch an updated and alternate version of the chip later this year. As if the current slate of high-end apps aren't pretty enough.