
Another significant improvement is the Snapdragon 845’s image signal processor (ISP), the Spectra 280 ISP. This ISP is the core of what allows Qualcomm to enable its OEMs to have such great camera experiences. With the new Spectra ISP, there is a much stronger focus on pixel quality and color volume, which results in more accurate, more vibrant and more lifelike photos and video. Qualcomm is going to be the first with Ultra HD Premium video recording, which translates to being able to capture 4K HDR video footage. Qualcomm is leading the charge with video once again, as it was with the first 4K video capture, and it's great to see the company empowering the ecosystem by helping to seed it with user-generated HDR content. The new Spectra 280 ISP will allow next year’s smartphones that are already equipped with HDR-capable displays to also record videos in HDR as well, which will improve the user experience.
In addition to the new CPU, GPU, and ISP, Qualcomm has also integrated a new Hexagon 685 DSP, designed to help accelerate many different types of workloads at low power (including voice and image recognition). These workloads include AI inference, but because of the way Qualcomm's Snapdragon processors perform AI inference, there isn't one specific processor for AI. The whole chip is used to accelerate AI inference—as a result, Qualcomm can support more AI frameworks in mobile than anyone else does, at blazing real-time speed. Qualcomm is at the forefront of AI and machine learning, and the company has been too busy working on it to tell anyone how much it’s already accomplished. In fact, there's so much to talk about there, that we'll have to save it for another blog.
In case all these improvements weren't enough, Qualcomm also decided to include a new Secure Processing Unit: a new ‘secure vault' where Qualcomm isolates all of the mission-critical security functions from the rest of the SoC. These security functions include digital key management for user passwords, application data, and other sensitive user information, such as biometric data. Hackers are always finding ways to defeat the previous generation of secure software and hardware; it was likely necessary for Qualcomm to implement this new Secure Processing Unit. The need is particularly evident when you consider how much payment data and biometric user data is passing through smartphones today.
Last but certainly not least, Qualcomm also upgraded the connectivity on the Snapdragon 845. Connectivity is Qualcomm's bread and butter, and it wouldn't be Qualcomm if it didn't slap its latest LTE modem inside of the Snapdragon 845. The Snapdragon 845 features the company's latest Snapdragon X20 LTE modem, which is capable of peak speeds 20% faster than the X16 Gigabit-Class LTE modem in the Snapdragon 835. The Snapdragon 845, with the Snapdragon X20 Gigabit LTE modem inside, is capable of peak speeds of up to 1.2 Gbps—with the help of technologies like 4x4 MIMO, LAA and 5x CA. While it allows for many different configurations that could achieve 1.2 Gbps, it will still be difficult achieve in most markets without the requisite available spectrum and lots of LAA.
Qualcomm claims it can achieve 1 Gbps with as little as 10 MHz of available licensed spectrum (when combined with unlicensed), but that seems like a stretch. What is notable, however, is that the Snapdragon X20 inside of the Snapdragon 845 also brings dual SIM, dual VoLTE capability to the platform, making both SIMs equal in ability. Also, with the new Bluetooth TruWireless technology, Qualcomm has solved a major pain point with Bluetooth connectivity—Snapdragon 845 allows virtually infinite Bluetooth connections. This should change how many users’ phones will interact with the numerous Bluetooth devices around them.
When you look at all of the essential improvements and performance uplifts that the Snapdragon 845 is bringing to market, you start to realize how significant this little chip is. We’re seeing 30% performance improvements on the SoC almost across the board. There's no doubt that the next generation of smartphones featuring Qualcomm's new processor is going to put this past year's to shame—especially when you consider sheer performance, AI capabilities, and visual quality improvements. 2018 is looking promising for flagship phones.