Qualcomm today unveiled three new chipsets for its mid-tier and budget platforms: the Snapdragon 632, Snapdragon 439, and Snapdragon 429. Aimed at mass-market smartphones, they feature enhanced AI capabilities along with improved connectivity, GPU performance, and power efficiency.
The Snapdragon 632 is the most powerful of the lot, it features 40 percent higher performance compared to Qualcomm’s popular Snapdragon 626 chipset thanks to its Kryo 250 CPU. This is the first time that Qualcomm is bringing its Kryo CPU to its budget chipset. It packs an Adreno 506 GPU, an X9 LTE modem with Carrier Aggregation support, support for FHD+ resolution displays, and an ISP that supports dual 13MP cameras or a single 24MP camera. The chipset is the successor to the popular Snapdragon 625/626 from last year which featured in many of the popular mid-range devices released last year. The Snapdragon 439 and 429 chipsets are meant for the low-end smartphones. They come with AI capabilities aimed at improving the overall voice, camera, and security experience. They are also based on the 14nm FinFET processor and offer a 25 percent improvement in performance and efficiency when compared to Snapdragon 430 and 425 chipsets. The Snapdragon 439 is an octa-core chip with an Adreno 505 GPU offering 20 percent improved graphical performance. The Snapdragon 429 features the Adreno 504 GPU which offers a 50 percent improvement in graphical performance. The Snapdragon 439 chip can support a single 21MP camera or a dual 8/8MP camera, while the Snapdragon 429 is limited to a 16MP single camera or an 8 + 8MP dual-camera setup. Both chipsets feature an X6 LTE modem. All the three chipsets unveiled by Qualcomm today is software compatible with the company’s existing Snapdragon 626, 625, and 450 mobile platforms, with the Snapdragon 439 and 429 being both pin and software compatible with each other. This will allow OEMs to easily adopt these chipsets into their already existing smartphones under development. Qualcomm says devices with its new chipsets are expected to launch in the second half of this year.
