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CES 2013: Qualcomm Unveils Next-Gen Snapdragon 800 Chips

Powerful new SoCs built for hybrid tablets and laptops can hit 2.3GHz, coming out in second half of 2013, Qualcomm CEO Paul Jacobs says in CES keynote.

January 7, 2013
Paul Jacobs Qualcomm

Qualcomm on Monday unveiled next-generation Snapdragon processors due out in the second half of 2013 that CEO Paul Jacobs called the company's new "flagship" product line for not just smartphones and tablets, but also PCs.

Jacobs delivered the opening keynote at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas—the first time that slot at the annual tech show has gone to anyone other than Microsoft's Bill Gates or Steve Ballmer.

Ballmer, who in 2012 delivered what was billed as Microsoft's last big keynote at CES, apparently couldn't stay away—he wound up joining Jacobs on stage to plug Windows Phone 8 and Windows RT devices powered by Snapdragon chips.

Jacobs made sure to give a shout-out to Google and the Android mobile operating system later in the keynote. Windows Phone 8 may be an exciting play for Microsoft, but there's little doubt that Android is Qualcomm's bread and butter for now and probably for some time to come.

CES 2013 Bug

The next batch of Snapdragons will deliver up to 75 percent better performance than Qualcomm's current menu of SoCs, according to Jacobs. The forthcoming Snapdragon 600 and 800 series of processors are quad-core parts with the fastest chip throttling up to 2.3GHz—which as Jacobs pointed out is a faster clock than you'll find on a lot of laptop CPUs.

Snapdragon, of course, is more than just a CPU. Incorporating ARM-based central processors plus graphics engines and signal processors of Qualcomm's own design, Snapdragon SoCs are fanless and have the low power draws mobile device makers look for, while Qualcomm's wireless IP adds another key level of integration in smartphone and tablet hardware.

Now the company appears to believe Snapdragon is ready for more powerful systems like laptops that currently run almost exclusively on x86-based chips from Intel and Advanced Micro Devices.

The Snapdragon 800 features Qualcomm's new quad-core Krait 400 CPU and latest 4G LTE Cat 4 modem, which combine with the Adreno 330 GPU, Hexagon v5 digital signal processor (DSP) for what the company claims is "up to 75 percent better performance than the Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro processor" currently on the market.

The new parts mark Qualcomm's shift to the 28-nanometer process node for its Krait CPUs, which the company said teams up with dynamic power sensing and control to help keep the Snapdragon 800's thermals down to a dull roar while boosting performance levels. The Adreno 330 delivers double the performance of the current Adreno 320 GPU, according to Qualcomm, while the new Snapdragons now integrate 802.11ac Broad connectivity support for even faster Wi-Fi throughput.

Qualcomm's also touting its new GPU as an UltraHD engine, capable of video capture, playback, and display at four times 1080p pixel density.

The Snapdragon 800 series marks a new avenue for Qualcomm, because these parts run on higher power draws than the chips populating most of today's smartphones and tablets. These are SoCs that seem more likely to find their way into hybrid tablets and perhaps even full-blown laptops.

The 600 series is the product line that looks to truly succeed current Qualcomm chips like the S4 Pro that turn up in many of the world's mobile devices. The 600 Series promises as much as 40 percent better performance than the S4 Pro but with the same power draw, the chip maker said. It's got a quad-core Krait 300 CPU that can hit 1.9GHz and a "speed-enhanced" Adreno 320 GPU.

Snapdragon 600 chips are also coming out sooner than the Snapdragon 800 parts. Jacobs said to expect to see Snapdragon 600-based smartphones and tablets by the second quarter of this year, while the Snapdragon 800s won't be arriving until the second half.

For more from Damon, follow him on Twitter @dpoeter.

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About Damon Poeter

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Damon Poeter

Damon Poeter got his start in journalism working for the English-language daily newspaper The Nation in Bangkok, Thailand. He covered everything from local news to sports and entertainment before settling on technology in the mid-2000s. Prior to joining PCMag, Damon worked at CRN and the Gilroy Dispatch. He has also written for the San Francisco Chronicle and Japan Times, among other newspapers and periodicals.

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