Qualcomm unveils Snapdragon 835 to power immersive AR and VR experiences

USA: At CES, Qualcomm has unveiled the Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 processor with X16 LTE, the first mobile platform to be commercially manufactured using the 10nm FinFET process node. It is designed to simultaneously meet the high performance demands, thermal limits and power efficiency constraints of the next-generation virtual and augmented reality (VR/AR) designs.

The Snapdragon 835 is designed to support next-generation entertainment experiences and connected cloud services for premium-tier consumer and enterprise devices, including smartphones, VR/AR head-mounted displays, IP cameras, tablets, mobile PCs and other devices running a variety of OS's including Android and Windows 10 with support for legacy Win32 apps.

"Our new flagship Snapdragon processor is designed to meet the demanding requirements of mobile virtual reality and ubiquitous connectivity while supporting a variety of thin and light mobile designs," said Cristiano Amon, executive vice president, Qualcomm Technologies, Inc., and president, QCT. "The Snapdragon 835 has an unprecedented level of technology integration that supports superior battery life, improved multimedia, and exceptional photography with gigabit class speeds for fast, immersive experiences."

The Snapdragon 835 supports Daydream, Google's platform for high quality, mobile VR. Many improvements are also made to enhance visual quality, sound quality and intuitive interactions. OEMs and software developers using machine learning can now enable rich experiences such as intelligent photography, strong security and privacy protection, smart automobiles and personal assistants, and responsive and true-to-life VR and AR.

Key components of the Snapdragon 835 processor include an integrated X16 LTE modem for Gigabit Class LTE connectivity, integrated 2x2 802.11ac Wave 2 Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 5, and optional 802.11ad for Multi-gigabit connectivity.

Improved processing power and performance is supported with new Qualcomm Kryo 280 CPU and Qualcomm Hexagon 682 DSP, which includes support for TensorFlow for machine learning and Halide for image processing.

The Snapdragon 835 also includes substantial enhancements to the Qualcomm Adreno visual processing subsystem, including the new Adreno 540 GPU and Qualcomm Spectra 180 image sensor processor (ISP) for next-generation camera capabilities. Also new in Snapdragon 835 is the Qualcomm Haven security platform with enhanced security for biometrics and device attestation.

The Snapdragon 835 is expected to ship in commercial devices in the first half of 2017.