Qualcomm today introduced a suite of new modem and radio chips to power the next generation of higher-end 5G phones and devices. The company's new flagship 5G modem chip is the Snapdragon X65 5G Modem-RF System, which is the first in the world to support data rates of up to 10 Gbps. The company also introduced the X62, a chip for slightly more mainstream phones that supports up to 4.4 Gbps. Both chips are made with a cutting-edge, power-efficient 4nm manufacturing process. They support all the features of the company's existing X60 modem, including 5G carrier aggregation (CA) with mmWave and sub-6 GHz bands. The X65 and X62 support the new 3GPP Release 16 standard, or "5G Phase 2", and have an "innovative" architecture that allows new features of the Rel. 16 standard to be added via software update. The company also introduced a full suite of companion RF chips and a new, fourth-generation mmWave antenna module. The new 545 mmWave antenna module supports higher transmit power for extended mmWave 5G coverage. The suite of chips includes a new feature called Qualcomm AI-Enhanced Signal Boost, which brings AI to antenna tuning for the first time. This uses AI to understand radio "context" (hand position, mostly) with 30% better accuracy, allowing better antenna tuning, which in turn means "faster data speeds, better coverage and longer battery life." The Snapdragon X65 and X62 are sampling to manufacturers now and "expected to be in commercially available 5G devices in late 2021."


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