Near optimal configurable adder tree for arbitrary shaped 2D block sum of absolute differences (SAD) calculation engine

Embodiments of a near optimal configurable adder tree for arbitrary shaped 2D block sum of absolute differences (SAD) calculation engine are generally described herein. Other embodiments may be described and claimed. In some embodiments, a configurable two-dimensional adder tree architecture for computing a sum of absolute differences (SAD) for various block sizes up to 16 by 16 comprises a first stage of one-dimensional adder trees and a second stage of one-dimensional adder trees, wherein each one-dimensional adder tree comprises an input routing network, a plurality of adder units, and an output routing network.