SailfishOS 64bit advantage over 32bit ?

asked 2014-12-03 01:54:12 +0300

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updated 2014-12-03 01:58:10 +0300

Please clarify advantage SailfishOS 2.x (64bit) over Sailfish 1.x (32bit) for end user ?

Actually with the specs of the Jolla tablet memory 2GB and storage 32Gb,
I won't see any advantage except loose power and resource with 64bit over 32bit without knowledge of advantage of 64bit instructions added and not available for 32bit plateform are really exploited with new tablet ?

i see spec CPU is 64bit with 4 core that explain OS 64bit, right
but is backward compatible 32bit like all Intel is'nt true any more ?

I can understand for futur device with more memory and storage but in mean time, there actually no need 64bit OS at all is'nt true ?

it should require 64bit only if memory >4Gb and storage >2Tb is really require this power is n't true ? This a tablet mobile not a full computer with a lot of resource !

if it can be used as full computer with exernal monitor 4K i can understand power requirement but i think is not actually the case if i'm not wrong.

i know some marketing people push developers/customers to forward on 64bit even is useless or won't be necessary for the device.

Maybe i miss some real advantage requirement of 64bit even on low memory device of state 2GB RAM ? waiting real feedback, no joke. Open light on the knowledge for forward.

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Comments

Yes, that why Android isn't 64bit yet too unless it has to support more than 4GB memory.

proyb2 ( 2014-12-03 02:28:30 +0300 )edit

1

I haven't read any where that Sailfish OS 2 would be 64bit. I highly doubt it.

Also, Android isn't 64bit either.

javispedro ( 2014-12-03 22:46:00 +0300 )edit

@javispedro, actually Android Lollipop is available as both 32bit and 64bit.

nick75 ( 2015-02-13 11:33:27 +0300 )edit

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answered 2014-12-03 02:29:29 +0300

DDH87

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The quickest answer is. "You'll never know the difference." But that is not the full truth.

Some complex computing processes will be done quicker. The best know is encryption/decryption. The basics are explained in this video. But in a comment on the video one person had a more complex reply. You can read that here.

So there is not a "correct" answer. But 64-bit has advantages.

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answered 2014-12-03 02:05:28 +0300

shmerl
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updated 2014-12-03 02:08:55 +0300

64 bit calculations with native 64 bit integers are actually faster than emulating them in 32 bit. I.e. for example when you use int64_t and so on, regardless what the memory size is.

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answered 2014-12-03 08:49:54 +0300

penpen
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updated 2014-12-03 09:21:11 +0300

x86's 32-bit instruction set is akward and dated compared to where we are in the industry. It is like nowadays using Commodore VIC-20 from 1980s with a 6502 processor. In x86's 64-bit mode for example you get much larger and general register set to use which reduces the need for expensive stack operations. For new software you don't anymore want to use x86's dated 16-bit and 32-bit modes. Let the old modes to die.

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answered 2014-12-03 04:43:08 +0300

MartinK
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Two words: 64-bit UEFI - many Linux distros only support 64-bit UEFI as 32-bit UEFI is used very seldom.

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answered 2014-12-03 06:10:48 +0300

flint
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There's another completely different point: The 64bit mode is probably more often used than the 32bit mode on Intel x86 architectures already now (see e.g. here for the number of submissions for i386(32bit) and amd64(64bit) architectures over the last years). And the use will only change more in favor of the 64bit mode. When the 64bit mode is more often used it's also better tested and better maintained. From my experience on Linux PCs the 32bit kernel already has more issues than the 64bit kernel. So I would prefer at least a 64bit kernel on the tablet. The same is probably true for the user land, but maybe to a lesser extend.