Qualcomm outs Snapdragon 800 and 600, its new processors for high-end smartphones and tablets

Chip giant Qualcomm has taken the wraps off its next push on mobile after it announced two new additions to its Snapdragon processors series. The firm says the 800 and 600 processors are 75 and 40 percent better performing than its latest S4 Pro — which powers devices like the Google Nexus 4 and the LG Optimus G — while it has made improvements to data speeds, multimedia capabilities and more.

The two new chips move Qualcomm to 28nm High Performance for mobile (HPm) technology. That smaller size will give the chips “exceptionally” low power consumption rates, which are always a key point when buying or using a device. Qualcomm is an LTE specialist and, as you’d expect, the 800 allows enhanced data transfer rates of up to 150Mbps, while supporting new the Wi-Fi connectivity standard 802.11ac, USB 3.0, Bluetooth and more.

Both chips have been redesigned with a new architecture, components and technologies to bring performance and efficiency improvements. That new architecture — featuring a quad-core Krait 400 CPU — sees the 800 weighs in with speeds of up to 2.3 GHz per core. The 600 processor, on the other hand, features a new Krait 300 quad-core CPU which brings speeds of up to 1.9GHz.

Maps and location continue to be a big deal for smartphone owners and, with that in mind, Qualcomm is also introducing another important technology: IZat. This brings together multiple tracking systems to provide a “highly accurate navigation platform for auto and pedestrian applications”.

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The 800 also see improvements to multimedia capabilities. Devices can record, play and display in UltraHD video — even from a phone — and the chips support display resolutions of up to 2560×2048. Other changes also include the addition of audio with DTS-HD and Dolby Digital Plus.

Qualcomm already powers a raft of the world’s top smartphone and tablet devices. Qualcomm CEO Paul Jacobs discussed ‘the Internet of everything’, which suggests that the chips may be present in a range of other areas — including cars, wearable technology and more. The firm is not forgetting other devices, however and Jacobs said that new technology will be released for lower-end devices, although the performance and features will not be on par with the top-end 800 and 600 processors.

The new Snapdragon 800 and 600 processors are currently in sampling. Devices featuring the Snapdragon 600 are expected to hit the market in the second quarter of 2013, the 800 is expected to come to market by mid-2013.