Qualcomm has announced a new processor called the Snapdragon 2100, which is solely meant for wearable devices. Qualcomm calls this the Snapdragon Wear platform. Most wearables, particularly Android Wear based smartwatches are based on the dual-core version of Qualcomm's Snapdragon 400 processor, which was released way back in 2014, so this marks the first time that the silicon maker has made something from the ground up for wearables.
Like always, Qualcomm touts always-on connectivity and also low power consumption for long battery life. There are two versions of the processor; one which supports only Bluetooth and Wi-Fi, and another with wireless LTE connectivity too. For obvious reasons, the one without LTE needs to be tethered to a host device like a smartphone.
Qualcomm is using a next generation LTE modem which is integrated with low power Wi-Fi and Bluetooth and is engineered in a way that it can be used as a standalone device. Qualcomm says that users can even use it to stream music, answer calls and reply to messages.
Importantly, the main SoC is 30 per cent smaller than previous solutions and also has an ultra-low power sensor hub, which all in all consumes 25 per cent lesser power than previous models.
Qualcomm isn't only targeting smartwatches with this SoC, though it does admit mostly smartwatches are going to use it. "The Snapdragon Wear platform is ideally suited for smartwatches, as well as for kid and elder trackers, sports watches, connected headsets, smart eyewear, and more. Numerous wearables powered by the Snapdragon Wear 2100 processor are already in development; smartwatches are expected to be commercially available in the second half of this year," said Qualcomm's Jim Merrick in a blog post.
So far Android Wear based wearables haven't had a dedicated processor designed for them. Apple, instead, took the lead in this regard when it launched the Apple Watch last year, which came with the custom designed S1 processor, which was designed specifically for the Apple Watch.
0 comments:
Post a Comment