snapdragon820
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Apple sues Qualcomm for violating chip patents
The patent lawsuit battle between Apple and Qualcomm isn't about to cool down any time soon. Apple has countersued Qualcomm, alleging that older Snapdragon chips (the 800 and 820) violate eight or more patents for power management in processors. It's keen to point out that this technology predates that from a relevant Qualcomm suit, claiming that it pursued these patents "years" before the ones Qualcomm is wielding in its own case. Apple is pushing for unspecified damages.
ASUS's ZenFone 3 looks and feels twice its price
Intel may have already quit the smartphone market, but its buddy ASUS continues to fight the good fight with a slightly different approach this year. At Computex, the Taiwanese giant announced not just one, but three new Android M smartphones: ZenFone 3, ZenFone 3 Deluxe and ZenFone 3 Ultra. The three share a common design language, though in our opinion, it's the $249 base model that has the best appearance thanks to 2.5D Gorilla Glass on both sides, as well as the spun-metal finish on the back (underneath the glass). Together, these work well with any of the four color options: Shimmer Gold, Aqua Blue, Sapphire Black and Moonlight White. The sandblasted metallic frame around it adds a nice touch too.
Your phone probably won't be Daydream VR-certified
If you can't wait to get your hands on Daydream, Google's new mobile VR platform, then there's some bad news coming. The company's Clay Bavor has conceded to RoadToVR that you'll probably have to buy a new handset for it to work. He says that existing handsets, even high-spec flagships, won't be marked as compatible with the new standard. While the firm has told developers to use the Nexus 6P as the platform to work for, it seems clear that not even the handset that's used to build Daydream apps will be certified. Then again, we give it a week before someone finds that it'll work on current devices anyway.
Lenovo's ZUK phone puts other Chinese flagships to shame
ZUK, a Chinese smartphone brand that you may have already forgotten about, has recently joined the ranks of Moto and Vibe to become Lenovo's latest mobile sub-brand. That wasn't the plan when Lenovo started restructuring its mobile division last year, but now it's included the startup to make its earlier investment worthwhile. Which is a good move, given how awesome and good-looking the freshly-announced ZUK Z2 Pro turned out to be. The company emphasized that its new 5.2-inch device makes full use of Qualcomm's 2.15GHz, quad-core Snapdragon 820, so it also comes with speedy UFS 2.0 storage of up to 128GB, LPDDR4 RAM of up to 6GB, USB 3.1 connectivity with Type-C port, Cat 6 LTE, dual Nano SIM slots and Quick Charge 3.0 -- you'll want that for the big 3,100 mAh battery.
The Pico Neo is a dumb VR headset with a smart controller
We're still not sure what the future of VR looks like. Oculus, HTC and Valve are focusing on systems based around powerful gaming PCs. Sony will use its PlayStation 4 as a standardized base for PSVR. Samsung wants you to slot a flagship phone in front of your eyes. Chinese company Pico has a different idea. Its Pico Neo is an all-in-one system that offers an Oculus-like headset, but gets all of its computing power from a controller.
Vivo Xplay5 boasts 6GB RAM and a familiar curved screen
If you need an excuse to acquire a new exotic Chinese smartphone, then how about 6GB of RAM? Not only is Vivo's new Xplay5 the first mobile device to announce this spec, but it's also the second non-Samsung device — following the BlackBerry Priv — to pack a screen that's curved on both sides. Judging by its familiar metallic design, you'd easily think that the Xplay5 is the bastard child of the Galaxy S6 Edge (front) and the iPhone (back) after a one night stand in Dongguan (the S7 Edge's chamfer isn't as shiny). Despite the unfortunate similarities, this is still a surprisingly decent product in terms of hardware and specs -- much like how its predecessor, the Xplay3S, managed to wow us a little over two years ago.
Meet the world's first phone with a Snapdragon 820 chipset
Just a few years ago, we might have scoffed at the idea of buying a smartphone from a Chinese OEM. Now, with companies like Huawei and ZTE showing us that smartphone pedigree matters less than ambition and execution, things are totally different. That's exactly the opening China's LeTV is trying to capitalize on with its new Le Max Pro. Not only is it the world's first phone to run Qualcomm's Snapdragon 820 chipset, it's also the company's first attempt to break into the absolutely insane US market.
How Qualcomm's Snapdragon 820 will improve next year's gadgets
Qualcomm officially unveiled its latest mobile chip, the Snapdragon 820, at a media event in New York City this morning. But, given that the company has been divulging details about the 820 for the past few months, you wouldn't be blamed for thinking that it was announced long ago. We already know that the Snapdragon 820's Adreno 530 GPU is around 40 percent faster than the 810's graphics (making it ideal for VR); it will deliver LTE speeds of up to 600 Mbps and support 802.11ad WiFi; it's significantly more power-efficient; and it'll use machine learning to fight malware right on your device. So what's left to announce? Not much, it turns out. But Qualcomm did give us a look at how the 820's new features could be applied to devices in 2016.
Qualcomm's Snapdragon 820 packs 600Mbps LTE and smarter charging
Qualcomm's Snapdragon 820 hype train is getting to be a bit much (just ship the thing, already!), but you might want to take notice of the latest news if you're big on data speeds -- or simply want to charge your phone in a hurry. The company has revealed that its future system-on-a-chip will include the first processor to support super-fast 600Mbps LTE-Advanced, blowing past the 450Mbps record from before. It'll upload at a brisk 150Mbps, too, and this chip is the first to support unlicensed LTE (aka LTE-U). Oh, and did we mention that it'll allow for multi-gigabit 802.11ad WiFi? You probably won't get to use much of this technology in the near term, but it's good to have a ton of futureproofing.
Qualcomm's Snapdragon 820 is twice as friendly to your battery
Qualcomm is clearly bent on drumming up hype for its Snapdragon 820 chip by drip-feeding facts, but its latest revelation is a big one. The company has revealed that the Kryo CPU at the heart of the chip is up to twice as power-efficient as the Snapdragon 810, even though it's up to two times faster. While that doesn't necessarily translate to twice the battery life, it does promise significantly better performance without a hit to your phone's longevity.
Qualcomm's Snapdragon 820 uses machine learning to fight malware
The trouble with security software is that it's always racing to catch up with new viruses and malware. They typically check against a database of known issues to protect you, which isn't very useful for brand spanking new attacks. Qualcomm is trying to fix that with its Smart Protect technology, which uses machine learning to keep an eye out for potential security issues in real time. Instead of relying on a static list of threats to protect you, it'll actually watch out for suspicious app behavior. Smart Protect will debut on Qualcomm's upcoming Snapdragon 820 mobile processor, details of which it's slowly leaking out. We already know the Snapdragon 820 will have faster graphics capabilities, for example, making it ideal for VR solutions. Naturally, Qualcomm is also offering an API for the new Smart Protect feature, allowing security software companies to take advantage of the new chip's heightened awareness.
Qualcomm Snapdragon 820's GPU is primed for VR
Confirming earlier reports, Qualcomm announced today that the graphics processor in its next flagship mobile CPU, the Snapdragon 820, will be around 40 percent faster than its predecessor. And while that's obviously going to lead to even more complex games, Qualcomm is also envisioning a much more diverse future for its latest Snapdragon and its Adreno 530 GPU. Specifically, it's looking at "next-generation uses of virtual reality, augmented reality computer vision," according to Qualcomm's senior marketing manager Adam Kerin. That shouldn't be too surprising, given the rise of mobile VR solutions over the past year, including Samsung's Gear VR and even Google Cardboard. Even more so than mobile games, VR will push both desktop and mobile hardware to its limits -- it might end up being a legitimate use for 4K screens on phones, for example -- so it's best to be ready.
Qualcomm's Snapdragon 820 specs leak: 35 percent faster than 810
The cat appears to be out of the bag for Qualcomm's next major mobile chip, the Snapdragon 820. Analyst Pan Jiutang posted some slides on Weibo detailing pretty much all of the important information about the new processor, ahead of Qualcomm's expected launch later this month. First, the big stuff: The 820's newer Hydra CPU is apparently 35 percent faster than the 810, Qualcomm's current high-end processor, and its Adreno 530 graphics processor is 40 percent faster while also being 30 percent more power efficient. Additionally, the chip's 14 nanometer manufacturing process should also make it more efficient than the 20nm 810. The 820s' improvements are all fairly standard, and quite honestly most people won't even see the performance differences with its predecessors. But it should open the door for even more complex games on smartphones and tablets, as well as more apps that might need more horsepower than today's chips.
Qualcomm's next chips will help smartphones think for themselves
Qualcomm teased the prospect of smartphones that learn a couple of years ago, and it's now much closer to making them a practical reality. The chip designer has revealed its next big mobile processor, the Snapdragon 820, will be one of the first that can handle its Zeroth cognitive computing platform. In short, it'll let your phone learn about you (and the world around you) to take action on its own. You should see photo apps that detect whole scenes, security tools that protect against unknown viruses and interfaces that depend more on expressions and head movement than button taps. It gets more ambitious than that, though. Zeroth allows for always-on sensors that detect your surroundings (such as through motion or sound) and help your phone anticipate what you want.
