Qualcomm has unveiled its 2020 line up of Snapdragon components, which will be featured in numerous products throughout the year and beyond. These include the Snapdragon 865 as its flagship chip, the Snapdragon 765 as its mid-range chip, and the Snapdragon 765G chip, which will have a special emphasis on gaming.
The semiconductor manufacturer has, of course, highlighted 5G among the primary features of its new chips, having detailed at its annual Snapdragon Summit keynote that there are over 230 5G devices either launched or in development using its components.
Overall, Qualcomm expects 2020 will be an even greater year for 5G than 2019 with aims to establish over 200 million 5G connections by the end of 2020 and a goal of 2.8 billion 5G connections by 2025. Qualcomm expects every major market to support mmWave and sub-6 versions of 5G by 2021.
Qualcomm mobile collaborations
Showcasing many of its upcoming collaborations, Qualcomm has made it clear that a top goal of 2020 is to bring 5G from being a premium smartphone feature and trickle it down to the more affordable device tiers. The manufacturer is working with brands including Xiaomi, Oppo, Motorola, and Nokia on devices, which will not only power 5G but will introduce such devices at affordable price points.
Pundits noted that these brands are likely hoping to benefit the way Chinese manufacturer, OnePlus has from working closely with Qualcomm. OnePlus was mobile industry darling in 2019 after announcing its major collaboration with Qualcomm at the Snapdragon Summit in 2018. Keeping to its promise, the device maker announced several 5G smartphones throughout the year, including the OnePlus 7T McLaren, which recently released in the U.S. as a T-Mobile exclusive.
Qualcomm powered 5G smartphones
Xiaomi has already confirmed that its upcoming Xiaomi Mi 10 will be the first smartphone to run the Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 chip. The brand plans to release over ten 5G smartphones in 2020, including the Redmi K30, which will feature the Snapdragon 765G chip.
Other devices slated to run the Snapdragon 865 include an Oppo flagship and a ZTE Axon premium model. The Oppo Reno 3 Pro 5G may feature the Snapdragon 765G. HMD has confirmed that the next model of its penta-camera Nokia PureView smartphone will feature the Snapdragon 765. Motorola has stated its intent to reenter the premium flagship market, starting in early 202 with Snapdragon 865 devices, in addition to having its budget models feature the midrange processor.
There are also several largely rumored devices that may feature the Snapdragon 865 chip, including the Samsung Galaxy S11 and LG G9 earlier in the year, and the Samsung Galaxy Note 11, OnePlus 8, and Google Pixel 5 later in the year.
Apple’s 5G plans with Qualcomm
In addition to the Snapdragon SoC itself, Qualcomm also showcased its X55 modem and RF module, which are the keys to 5G connectivity on all of these devices. Qualcomm will be working closely with Apple to bring these components to at least one iPhone in 2020. Most of Apple’s other processing components are, of course, proprietary.
Other Qualcomm Snapdragon highlights
Even with 5G as a major proponent on its upcoming components, the 2020 Qualcomm Snapdragon chips are gearing up to be processing powerhouses, bringing a number of new features and upgrades to mobile devices.
Fingerprint sensor
Alongside its chips, Qualcomm unveiled its “3D Sonic Max” ultrasonic fingerprint sensor, which features a 17x larger recognition area at 30.6×19.2mm dimensions. The area allows for dual fingerprint authentication to improve security and accuracy. Qualcomm claims the sensor is 1::1,000,000 accurate, compared to 1::50,000 on older scanner generations, to combat easy spoofing, among other common fingerprint sensor highlights. Reports suggest that Apple may use this component on its 2020 iPhones, in addition to Qualcomm’s many Android partners.
Cameras
The latest Qualcomm Spectra 480 ISP (image sensing processor) in the Snapdragon 865, in particular, will allow for 200-megapixel photos and 8K video recording with processing speeds of two gigapixels per second. Xiaomi is expected to take advantage of this support, especially after having released devices with 108-megapixel cameras in 2019. Cameras will also be able to capture 4K HDR video and 64-megapixel photos simultaneously.
Gaming
The latest Adreno 650 GPU in the Snapdragon 865, in particular, is slated to bring further improved gaming quality to 2020 smartphones, even after Qualcomm released the gaming-focused Snapdragon 855+ and Snapdragon 730G chips in 2019. Supporting technologies, such as Game Color Plus and display refresh rates up to 144Hz, mobile gaming is expected to take yet another step closer to the quality of desktop gaming.
Connectivity and Artificial Intelligence
The Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 is enabled with Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth 5.1 for next-generation wireless connectivity, as well as aptX Voice, aptX Adaptive, and TWS for improved voice calling and music playback. Its 5th generation AI engine is powered enabled such features as language transcription, translation, and playback.
