Qualcomm has confirmed that it is already sampling the first silicon from its latest generation of mobile processors.
According to a Qualcomm rep, the Snapdragon 800 lineup is targeted at premium mobile and compute devices. It includes the new quad core Krait 400 CPU, Adreno 330 GPU, Hexagon v5 DSP and 4G LTE Cat 4 modem.
“Snapdragon 800 processors will deliver up to 75 percent better performance than the Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro processor and the move to 28nm high performance for mobile (HPm) technology node ensures exceptionally low power,” the rep confirmed.
“[Meanwhile], the New Krait 400 CPU in quad configuration, with speeds of up to 2.3 GHz per core offers best-in-class performance per watt, so processor performance can hold up to the more demanding processing and communication requirements of premium mobile devices. Additionally, asynchronous SMP architecture provides dynamic power sensing and control for peak performance per core, while extending battery life without the use of specialized cores.”
Like the 800, Qualcomm’s 600 processor is targeted at high-end mobile devices, delivering up to 40 percent improved performance over the Snapdragon S4 Pro processor at lower power.
“The Qualcomm Snapdragon 600 processor features a new Krait 300 quad-core CPU with speeds up to 1.9GHz, a new speed enhanced Adreno 320 GPU and support for LPDDR3 memory,” said the rep.
“The 600 is sampling now and is expected to be available in commercial devices by second quarter 2013.”
The next-generation of Qualcomm chips will undoubtedly face stiff competition from rival mobile chip designers, including Nvidia (Tegra 4), Samsung (Exynos) and TI.
