MIPS Technologies expects to see the first 4G Android handset on its CPU architecture hit the market by 2011.

The segment is currently ruled by ARM, but MIPS clearly wants to get its foot in the door. It did not say much about the device it has planned but the IP licensing firm also revealed that a new customer in APAC is now developing a MIPS-based mobile processor for 3G/4G base stations. MIPS and SySDSoft have been working on an LTE protocol stack ported to Android.

The Benchmark results of the SySDSoft LTE protocol stack running on MIPS-Based Android and Linux platforms can manage the top range of CAT4 data throughput with small packet sizes, low CPU operating frequency and low power. According to Digitimes they have managed the highest-performance results for such small packet sizes running on a 350MHz core.

Meanwhile MIPS also announced symmetric multiprocessing (SMP) support for the Android platform running on MIPS-based multicore SoCs. This means that MIPS32 multi-threaded and multiprocessor cores can bring rich web and multimedia content to smartphones to Android. ViXS Systems and Silicon Integrated System (SiS) are also apparently interested in using Android on the MIPS architecture to create next-generation connected entertainment devices. SiS wants to shove it onto Internet device (MID) applications, while ViXS was seen at Computex 2010 putting Android on its MIPS-based XCode 4200 family of integrated chipsets for digital home products including Blu-ray disc players, and IPTV/cable/satellite set-top boxes.