Mobile is the new PC and AArch64 is the new x64

[passenger]

On Monday, 10 September 2018 at 13:43:46 UTC, Joakim wrote:
> LDC recently added a linux/AArch64 CI for both its main 
> branches and 64-bit ARM, ie AArch64, builds have been put out 
> for both linux and Android. It does not seem that many are 
> paying attention to this sea change that is going on with 
> computing though, so let me lay out some evidence.
>
> At my workplace six years ago, the developers were all 
> allocated a core i5 ultrabook- likely with 4 GBs of RAM and a 
> 128 GB SSD, though I don't remember those specs- and a 27" 
> 2560X1440 display with which to get our work done. I was pretty 
> happy with the display, the best I'd ever used to that point. 
> I'm guessing the setup cost my employer a couple thousand 
> dollars per developer.
>
> I picked up an Android/AArch64 smartphone earlier this year, 
> with 6 GBs of RAM, 128 GBs of flash, a Snapdragon 835 octa-core 
> CPU, and a 5.5" 2560X1440 display. This is the fastest computer 
> I've ever owned, and it fits in 6 cubic inches and weighs a 
> little more than a third of a pound. It cost me approximately 
> $700.
>
> That is a stunning change in mobile capabilities in just six 
> years, where what used to be a mobile developer workstation now 
> comes packed into a smartphone at a fraction of the cost.
>
> If you think the phone doesn't actually perform, I borrowed a 
> 2015-model Macbook Air with a core i5 and 4 GBs of RAM and 
> built the last pure C++ version of ldc, 0.17, using both cores 
> with `-ninja -j5`. It took two minutes with clang from 
> Homebrew, the same amount of time it takes me to build the same 
> source on my smartphone with clang by running `ninja -j9`.
>
> This phone has been my development hardware since early this 
> year, by pairing it with a $30 bluetooth keyboard and a $5 
> stand to hold it up. I'm typing this long forum post up on it 
> now.
>
> Tech companies are starting to realize this and going after the 
> desktop/laptop PC markets with various 64-bit ARM products:
>
> https://www.engadget.com/2018/08/09/samsung-galaxy-note-9-dex/
> https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2018/08/samsungs-tab-s4-is-both-an-android-tablet-and-a-desktop-computer/
> https://youtube.com/watch?v=uLvIAskVSUM
> https://www.anandtech.com/show/13309/lenovo-yoga-c630-snapdragon-850-windows
>
> That last link notes 25 hours of battery life with a 
> Windows/AArch64 laptop, one of the key benefits of ARM, which 
> is why even Microsoft has come around.
>
> Yes, I know, these devices won't replace your quad-core Xeon 
> workstation with 32-64 GBs of RAM anytime soon, but most people 
> don't need anywhere near that level of compute. That's why PC 
> sales keep dropping while mobile sales are now 6-7X that per 
> year:
>
> https://www.businessinsider.com/PC-sales-are-continuing-to-slump-fewer-are-sold-now-than-when-the-iPhone-launched/articleshow/62547330.cms
> https://www.androidauthority.com/smartphone-sales-idc-2018-871363/
>
> Most of those mobile devices running iOS have AArch64 CPUs, and 
> google said last December that "over 40% of Android devices 
> coming online have 64-bit support," which is why they're 
> requiring apps with native libraries to support it by next fall:
>
> https://android-developers.googleblog.com/2017/12/improving-app-security-and-performance.html
>
> D now has mostly working AArch64 support, with the ldc 1.11 
> release last month:
>
> https://github.com/ldc-developers/ldc/releases/tag/v1.11.0
>
> That is the result of years of intermittent AArch64 patches 
> added by the core teams of ldc and gdc- David, Iain, Kai, 
> Johannes, Dan, and others- to which I recently added some 
> Android patches. You too can pitch in with the few remaining 
> issues or try out the AArch64 support with your own D code.
>
> This company provides a free linux/AArch64 CI for OSS projects, 
> LDC uses it:
>
> http://blog.shippable.com/shippable-arm-packet-deliver-native-ci-cd-for-arm-architecture
>
> Despite all this, D may never do very well on mobile or 
> AArch64, even though I think it's well-suited for that market. 
> But at the very least, you should be looking at mobile and 
> AArch64, as they're taking over the computing market.

Is it possible to develop versus a NVidia Jetson, CUDA included?