Qualcomm Announces New Lower-End Smartphone Chipsets

Qualcomm today announced new smartphone chipsets that address what it calls the mid-tier and mass-volume segments. They’re branded as the Snapdragon 6 Gen 1 and Snapdragon 4 Gen 1, respectively.

“Both Snapdragon 6 and Snapdragon 4 provide upgrades in their respective series to enable advancements in capture, connectivity, entertainment, and AI,” Qualcomm senior director Deepu John says. “These new mobile platforms help our customers to deliver advanced solutions for consumers.”

According to Qualcomm, the Snapdragon 6 Gen 1 is the first 6-series chipset to support capturing 108 MP photos and video using computational HDR via staggered HDR image sensors. It provides 3x the AI performance of its predecessor, 35 percent faster graphics rendering, and up to 40 percent better performance overall. It includes the Snapdragon X62 5G Modem-RF System for “expansive global connectivity” with 2.9 Gbps peak 5G download speeds and 2×2 Wi-Fi 6E, another first for the 6-series.

The Snapdragon 4 Gen 1, meanwhile, brings this low-end chipset down to 4 nm for the first time and offers improved performance—15 percent better for the CPU and 10 percent for graphics—and battery life. Handsets that utilize this chipset can use up to 108 MP camera sensors, another first for this series, and can offer Multi-Frame Noise Reduction. It includes the Snapdragon X51 5G Modem-RF System for 2.5 Gbps peak 5G download speeds, 2×2 Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth.

The first devices based on the Snapdragon 6 Gen 1 will arrive in Q1 2023, Qualcomm says, while devices based on Snapdragon 4 Gen 1 are coming in Q3 2022. You can learn more about each at the Qualcomm website:

Snapdragon 6 Gen 1

Snapdragon 4 Gen 1