Home › News ›

Qualcomm Gets Serious About Smartwatch Chips

Article Comments

Jul 19, 2022, 4:53 PM by Rich Brome

Qualcomm has introduced a new chip designed to power the next generation of smartwatches. The Snapdragon W5+ Gen 1 is a major leap over the company's previous efforts, offering "50% lower power, 2X higher performance, 2X richer features, and 30% smaller size compared to previous generation". Much of the raw efficiency benefit comes from moving to a 4nm manufacturing process, the current state of the art for high-performance chips. The previous generation (Snapdragon Wear 4100+) used a relatively old, inefficient 12nm process. The new chip supports Bluetooth 5.3 and LTE, as well as cameras. It has several new features that enable various low-power modes, and it's paired with an always-on co-processor chip. Qualcomm says the new chip is powerful enough to enable features such as "3D watch faces, rich real-time maps, and even two-way video calls." Qualcomm says that 25 new smartwatches will launch soon using the chip.

Related

Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 is Qualcomm's New Flagship Chip

Nov 30, 2021
Qualcomm has announced the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1, the company's flagship chipset to power 2022's top-end phones. The chip is the successor to the Snapdragon 888, but uses the new single-digit + generation naming scheme the company recently announced.

iPhone 14 Plus Offers a Big Screen For Less

Sep 7, 2022
Apple has revealed the iPhone 14 series, with new features, improved specs, and new size options. In place of a Mini option, the iPhone 14 will come in the same 6.1-inch and 6.7-inch screen size options as the Pro models.

Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 Redefines AI in Flagship Phones

Nov 15, 2022
Qualcomm has announced its newest top-end chip, intended to power most flagship-level Android phones in 2023. As expected, the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 is more powerful and power-efficient across the board (compared to Gen 1), but the most impressive improvements and new features involve AI.

Qualcomm Expands Snapdragon 8 Series to Cover More Price Points

Mar 18, 2024
Qualcomm has revealed the Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 Mobile Platform, an expansion of the 8 series to a slightly more affordable price point. Traditionally, the 8 series (like the new 8 Gen 3) powered top-end "flagship" phones, and the 7 series chips powered "affordable flagship" phones one tier below that.

Two New Snapdragon Chips Will Power 2022's High-end Phones

May 20, 2022
Qualcomm has taken the wraps off the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 and Snapdragon 7 Gen 1. The Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 is, as its name implies, a turbo-charged version of the existing Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 flagship chip.

Comments

This forum is closed.

This forum is closed.

No messages

Page 1 of 1