What is an ARM processor?

ARM - an acronym for: Advanced RISC Machines

The processor originated in England in 1984. At its inception ARM stood for Acorn RISC
Machine. The first ARM reliant systems include the Acorn: BBC Micro, Masters, and the
Archimedes. During this early period they were used mostly for British educational systems,
and therefore, were not widely available or known outside England. However in 1987 the
ARM became the first commercial RISC processor.
In 1990, the research section of Acorn separated from the parent company and formed:
ARM Ltd. (Advanced RISC Machines Limited).
Other historical notables are that the Macintosh Apple ][GS was run by an ARM processor,
as was the ill-fated Newton portable note-taking device. (Not ill-fated because of the
processor but because of the market timing)
What is a RISC machine anyways? A brief overview
It is worthwhile to go over this concept since RISC is implied in the name! It also
lends itself to the discussion of where some of the hardware choices, as well as
claims that are made on this type of processor's performance, came from.RISC is an
acronym standing for "Reduced Instruction Set Computer", contrasted with a CISC
machine (Complex Instruction Set Computer).
RISC claims of simplicity in comparison to CISC:
Fixed 32-bit instruction size instead of variable
Large register bank of GPR 32-bit registers
Easier to prototype and put together
RISC Organization:
Hard-wired instruction decode logic instead of microcoded ROMs to decode
Pipelined execution
Possible single cycle execution
RISC Advantages
Smaller die sizes
Shorter time to develop
Possible higher performance than CISC
High clock rate with single cycle
RISC Disadvantages
Generally less code density than CISC
Cannot execute x86 code, at least not without some sort of conversion and
performance drawback
Advanced RISC Machine (ARM)

What Does Advanced RISC Machine (ARM) Mean?

Advanced RISC Machine (ARM) is a processor architecture based on a 32-bit
reduced instruction set (RISC) computer. Licensed worldwide, the ARM architecture
is the most commonly implemented 32-bit instruction set architecture. ARM
architecture is implemented on Windows, Unix, and Unix-like operating systems,
including Apple iOS, Android, BSD, Inferno, Solaris, WebOS, Plan 9 and GNU/Linux.
Advanced RISC Machine was originally known as Acorn RISC Machine.
ARM features include:
Load/store-based architecture
Single-cycle instruction execution
Consistent 16x32 bit register file
Link register
Easy decoding and pipelining
Power-indexed addressing modes
Fixed 32-bit instruction set
ARM Processor
What Does ARM Processor Mean?
An ARM processor is a specific type of computer processor designed according to
a model developed by ARM Holdings PLC. This processor design is described as a
reduced instruction set computing (RISC) design, where a simplified central
processing unit (CPU) design accommodates higher performance.
what make the ARM architecture so special?
The sales pitch goes something like this, "The ARM architecture has the best MIPS
to Watts ratio as well as best MIPS to $ ratio in the industry; the smallest CPU die
size; all the necessary computing capability coupled with low power consumption
of which a highly flexible and customizable set of processors are available with
options to choose from, all at a low cost."

"What does that all really mean?"

The fact that it is a simple hardware design and the fact that many things can be left off the
chip, such as a FP multiplier as options, coupled with the fact that it is a RISC pipeline
architecture all lend themselves to creating a chip with a very small die size.Small die size
translates into low cost since much of the cost of a chip is proportional to the die area.
Having small die area and simple pipeline construction allows the other major benefit of
the ARM chip. Designers are able to use less hardware and make better hardware decisions
to reduce the processor's power consumption.
The small size, low cost, and low power usage leads to one of the most common uses for
an ARM processor today, embedded applications. Embedded environments like cell phones
or PDAs (Personal Digital Assistants) require those benefits that this architecture provides.
Sure, there has to be a trade-off between performance, cost, and size. But, the ARM fits
into this category nicely. It has very small die size, its performance, although not on the
cutting edge, is more than adequate for the tasks at hand, and most importantly, it is cheap
and low in power consumption.
how can it have performance, low wattage, and simplicity, all at a low cost?
An Important factor that contributes to making such a claim true is its simple design using
a not-so-fancy 5 stage pipeline. But, other contributing factors are as follows below.
ARM makers have been able to apply an instruction set called Thumb, which takes 32-bit
instructions and compresses them down to 16-bits. This tactic enables programs to be
coded much more densely than standard RISC instruction sets, not to mention cutting
some portions of the hardware down in size.
Processors enabled to take advantage of Thumb also allow 32-bit instructions to run on
the same processor. In fact, 16-bit and 32-bit instructions can be mixed together and the
hardware will be able to decode and decompress at the same time without a performance
hit, thus maintaining powerful computing capabilities.
Cost is minimized by having a simple, small structure with many configurations available.
Small means less silicon, higher yield per wafer.
A simple pipeline and instruction set makes it easier to learn, optimize, and build, again
saving on cost.