We were given a lot of promises about what the era of 5G would do for connectivity, but for the most part, none of that has come to pass. You still can’t download a movie in seconds before hopping on a plane, and IoT devices still connect to Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. Qualcomm’s latest Snapdragon modem might signal that the wireless industry can deliver on those promises. The Snapdragon X75 implements myriad new technologies from the latest 3GPP standards release, making 5G on next-gen phones faster and more efficient.
This will be the first modem supporting 3GPP release 18, which is the beginning of the so-called “5G Advanced” phase. The specifications included in this release will finally make promised 5G features around mobile, IoT, and fixed wireless possible. Qualcomm’s new modem saves space by using a single transceiver for sub-6GHz and millimeter wave (mmWave) 5G signals, reducing circuit board usage by 25%. The new architecture also uses up to 20% less power. Sluggish 5G uploads could be addressed with the X75 as well. The modem supports 5G uplink MIMO (multiple-input multiple-output), supporting two simultaneous data streams using a technology called Frequency Division Duplex (FDD).
Perhaps the most important change in the X75 is support for 5G carrier aggregation. This technology allows the modem to combine multiple frequencies to transmit data faster. Carrier aggregation on LTE networks boosted speeds from tens to hundreds of megabits per second, and we could see similar increases with 5G carrier aggregation. The X75 supports up to five-carrier sub-6GHz aggregation and up to ten-carrier aggregation for mmWave.
And because this is 2023, the new Qualcomm modem also has a healthy dose of AI optimization. Qualcomm says the second-gen AI accelerator on the chip improves location accuracy, allowing the device to connect to the best tower. That should mean a more reliable connection, even in complex, congested urban environments. AI will also improve mmWave beam management to make this finicky but fast type of signal more reliable, and the same goes for Qualcomm’s upcoming satellite connectivity features.
The Snapdragon X75 is the successor to the Snapdragon X70, which has just started arriving in devices as part of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chip. Presumably, the X75 will handle connectivity on the Gen 3 chip starting at the tail end of 2023. The Snapdragon X75 is currently in testing and will begin appearing in devices later in 2023.
Now read:
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