Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Processor was a huge success at Mobile World Congress 2011. It was the highlighting feature of many new devices ranging from smartphones to tablets, but what made Snapdragon the preferred choice for so many device manufacturers, and how will the consumer benefit from it?
Platform
The Snapdragon platform is a simple, yet complex SoC (system on a chip). It combines two independent cores or processors on one chip to carry out complex computing tasks in smartphones and tablets. The two independent cores include Qualcomm’s Scorpion processor for mainstream computing, and an Adreno graphics processor to handle graphics intensive tasks. Therefore, two independent cores do the work faster without stressing each other.
Power Management
The newer Scorpion chips used in the Snapdragon platform help conserve up to 33 per cent more battery life as compared to earlier processors. Also, power management technology allows Snapdragon to switch cores between usage to improve functionality and conserve power.
Better visuals
The independent graphics engine by AMD, also known as Adreno, is optimised for better Flash support, shader performance, and to generally render graphics better, which is its core function. Adreno supports multiple visual standards of image rendering in order to deliver better visuals at faster frame rates of up to 60 frames per second, supporting 3D imaging.
Better features
Snapdragon is in a way future proof, and that is why device manufacturers are betting on it. The Chipset supports all standards of mobile telephony and data connectivity existent today. Along with that it supports up to 2 GB of memory, so more applications can run on the device. The chip further powers the phone to use next generation Wifi, and Bluetooth up to version 4.0. In short, device manufacturers just have to send out patches or upgrades for their devices and the Snapdragon platform will support the additional processing demands.