It is possible that you do not know all the hardware concepts by heart, but you have heard them at some time and want to know what it is or what it is for. For example, what is arm? What does this term mean or why have you seen it written in specifications or technology news and it is not clear to you what it is.
ARM Holdings is a multinational dedicated to the development of software and the development of semiconductors, but it is also the name given to a type of processor because it was the company that “invented” their design. ARM are the processors used by your mobile phone with Snapdragon but also laptops of some brands… And in the next paragraphs we will explain everything you need to know.
What is ARM
ARM is the name or concept given to the processors developed by the company ARM Holdings for decades. They are processors based on the RISC or Reduced Instruction Set Computer architecture. Or, in Spanish, Reduced Instruction Set Computer. A more simplified design than other processors from brands like Intel or AMD. That is, with a structure that allows smaller processors to be created, but not only do the dimensions change, but they are also low-power processors. They are easy to produce and cheap to produce, which allows them to have all kinds of uses in everyday devices.
This type of processor was developed in the 1980s but it was not very popular until years later, when it managed to gain a foothold and become essential with the arrival of mobile devices thanks to its ability to perform tasks quickly and easily. low energy consumption.
Where is it used and what for?
What are these chips or processors used for? ARM processors are no longer created or manufactured by ARM Holdings but have only created or designed the standard that manufacturers then use for their different devices and adapting them to the corresponding hardware and software needs.
Each brand or manufacturer uses processors with ARM architecture but not all are generally compatible with one or another device, for example. Surely you have heard of Qualcomm and the company is behind many of the processors used for mobile phones… Snapdragon processors are present in many phones, for example. They are in mobile phones but also in some computers and other small devices as well as equipment such as televisions, printers, etc.
ARM vs Intel, what differentiates them?
What are the main differences between ARM and Intel processors? As we have explained, ARM processors are based on RISC architecture but Intel processors are not. Intel processors have CISC architecture, which stands for Complex Instruction Set Computing or, in Spanish, Computer with Complex Instruction Set. The difference between the two is in the way they do their work, in the way one or the other gives instructions.
In the case of RISC processors, they are usually short and simple instructions, but processors with CISC architecture tend to follow more complex and longer instructions.
