Qualcomm introduced its next-generation Snapdragon 810 and 808 processors — its highest performance mobile processors to date — aimed at flagship smartphones and tablets. The new devices integrate 4th Generation Cat 6 LTE Advanced multimode modem together with support for the Qualcomm RF360 Front End Solution, and support 3x 20MHz Carrier Aggregation, enabling speeds of up to 300 Mbps. Both processors are designed in 20nm technology node with Cat 6 LTE, advanced multimedia features and 64-bit capability. The Snapdragon 810 and 808 processors are anticipated to begin sampling in the second half of 2014 and expected to be available in commercial devices by the first half of 2015.
Qualcomm provided the following highlights:
- Native 4K Ultra HD interface and video, along with an upgraded camera suite using gyro-stabilization and 3D noise reduction for producing high quality 4K video at 30 frames per second and 1080p video at 120 frames per second. The combined 14-bit dual Image Signal Processors (ISPs) are capable of supporting 1.2GP/s throughput and image sensors up to 55MP. Advanced imaging software helps enable advanced mobile camera features, including enhanced exposure, white balance and fast low light focus.
- Combined 64-bit quad core ARM Cortex-A57 CPUs and Cortex-A53 CPUs.
- New Qualcomm Adreno 430 graphics processing unit (GPU), which is designed for 4K displays, provides support for OpenGL ES 3.1 plus hardware tessellation, geometry shaders and programmable blending.
- The Snapdragon 810 processor introduces high speed LPDDR4 memory.
- Frame buffer compression and external 4K display support via HDMI1.4.
- First mobile platform to implement Qualcomm VIVE 2-stream 802.11ac with multi-user MIMO
- Support for Bluetooth 4.1, USB 3.0, NFC and the latest Qualcomm IZat location core for ubiquitous and highly accurate location services.
Both chipsets are fully software compatible with the 64-bit ARMv8-A instruction set. The primary differences of the Snapdragon 808 processor include:
- Designed for WQXGA (2560×1600) displays, the new Adreno 418 GPU provides support for OpenGL ES 3.1 plus hardware tessellation, geometry shaders, programmable blending. It is designed to support up to 20% faster graphics performance than its predecessor, the Adreno 330 GPU. The Adreno 418 GPU also enables a new level of GPU security for secure composition and management of premium video and other multimedia.
- Configured with two ARM Cortex-A57 cores paired with a quad Cortex-A53 CPU.
- 12-bit dual Image Signal Processors.
- LPDDR3 memory.
- Frame buffer compression and external 4K display support via HDMI1.4.