Qualcomm has now announced a mobile chip, which will enable 5G on entry-level smartphones, for the $250 or less market. The Qualcomm Snapdragon 480 5G is slated to power devices set for release in early 2021, according to the component manufacturer. The chips quickly follow the Snapdragon 888 and Snapdragon 678, which were announced in December 2020.
While the past year was prime time for mid-range and affordable premium devices, largely powered by Snapdragon 600 and 700 series chips, the Snapdragon 480 5G will aid in ensuring that the most price-sensitive consumers can still have access to the latest and upcoming mobile technology. The SoC uses Qualcomm’s Snapdragon X51 5G Modem-RF System to enable both mmWave and Sub-6 GHz 5G.
Made with an 8nm process, other major internals on the chip includes the Kryo 460 CPU, Adreno 619 GPU, and Hexagon 686 Processor. Some highlight features include improvement in CPU and GPU performance up to 100 percent and AI performance up to 70 percent compared to the prior 400 series chip. The Snapdragon 480 also introduces Qualcomm’s Quick Charge 4+ technology to this tier of the mobile platform, which will enable devices to a 50 percent increase in power in 15 minutes.
Other prominent connectivity features include FastConnect 6200, dual Wi-Fi antennas, which supports a number of Wi-Fi 6 capabilities, Bluetooth 5.1, Dual-frequency GPS, and NavIC.
Ever popular smartphone functions are camera and entertainment, and the Snapdragon 480 5G aims to level up quality for entry-level devices with the first Spectra 345 ISP. Another first for the 400 series, the chip now only allows for triple-camera support on devices, it also allows for image and video capture from all three lenses simultaneously.
Max camera specs include 64-megapixels for single-lens capture, up to 25-megapixels, and 13-megapixels for dual-lens capture, and 13-megapixels for triple-lens capture, with ultrawide, wide, and telephoto shooters, in addition to 720p video capture from all outfitted lenses at the same time.
For immersion, the chip supports FHD+ displays up to 120fps and Qualcomm aptX audio, enabling ease of viewing HD content with improvements on loading times.
Brands slated to release Snapdragon 480 5G-powered devices include Nokia (HMB Global), OnePlus, OPPO, and Vivo; however, there are no release or pricing specifics at this time. With CES quickly looming, that is sure to change in the next few weeks.
