Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 SoC launched

It is also the company’s first 64-bit CPU that uses the ARMv8-A instruction set – Qualcomm had settled for non-custom Cortex-A57 and Cortex-A53 cores on the Snapdragon 810.

Qualcomm has launched its Snapdragon 820 system-on-chip (SoC), company’s latest addition to the 800-series of chipsets.

Kyro CPU is Qualcomm’s first custom designed 64-bit quad-core processor. That’s a bit less than what Qualcomm is promising: It expects 2x jump in performance and power efficiency in the snapdragon 820 compared to the Snapdragon 810. It uses Qualcomm’s Symphony System Manager as a resource management tool for task scheduling and power management.

On the graphics front, you will get Adreno 530 GPU which according to Qualcomm offers 40% improvement in graphics performance, compute capabilities and power usage vis-a-vis the Adreno 430 GPU. The X12 LTE chip features 3 times faster peak uploads and 33% faster peak downloads. Qualcomm has also employed its Hexagon 680 DSP to improve performance and battery life by activating an ultra low-power mode with always-on sensors as well as low-power image processing. The Quick Charge 2.0 from Snapdragon 810 is upgraded to Quick Charge 3.0 which is 4X faster than normal chargers and 38% more efficient compared to Quick Charge 2.0. Made on the 14nm process, Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 supports Cat 12 LTE, meaning download speeds can hit up to 600Mbps and upload speeds can go up to 150Mbps.

But the new Exynos M1 cores aren’t all that’s new with the Exynos 8890; Samsung has also incorporated an integrated LTE modem – something that Samsung has supported for quite a few time on its lower-end chips.

Other features include Qualcomm Haven Security Suite that comprise Qualcomm SecureMSM hardware and software; Snapdragon StudioAccess Content Protection; Qualcomm SafeSwitch theft prevention solution; Qualcomm Snapdragon Sense ID 3D fingerprint technology, and Qualcomm Snapdragon Smart Protect.