Introducing the Qualcomm Snapdragon 653, 626, and 427: Qualcomm Announces Successors to Popular Mid-Range SoCs

It has been a good year for Qualcomm so far — the Snapdragon 65x series has garnered rave reviews for providing stellar performance in the mid-range market segment, and the Snapdragon 820 has received an improved critical reception over the Snapdragon 810. To build on the successful year, Qualcomm has announced the successors to some of its popular SoC lineups for the midrange and entry-level market segments, the Snapdragon 653, 626, and 427.

First up is the new Qualcomm Snapdragon 653 SoC, which as you may have guessed, is an incremental upgrade over the Snapdragon 652. When compared to its predecessor, the Snapdragon 653 provides an improvement of up to 10% higher performance and twice the addressable memory, with support for 8GB of RAM now. Further, the Snapdragon 653 is using the new X9 LTE modem which is found in the Snapdragon 625, an improvement over the X8 LTE modem found in the 652. The X9 LTE modem is still a Category 7 modem for downlink, same as the X8, however it does bring some extra features, namely the addition of Ultra HD Voice (EVS) over VoLTE (which was only supported by the X8 LTE modem on certain SoCs), Snapdragon Upload+, and Category 13 LTE uplink. Interestingly, the Snapdragon 653 also adds support for Qualcomm's Clear Sight dual camera technology, which is a fad that has been mostly limited to flagship devices. Only a couple devices like the Honor 8 and LG V20 have dual cameras so far, and even fewer utilize both cameras at the same time in the way that Qualcomm Clear Sight does. The Snapdragon 653 continues to use a 4xA72 + 4xA53 core combination on a 28 nm process with an Adreno 510 GPU and LPDDR3 RAM, like the Snapdragon 652 before it, however it increases the clock speed of the A72 cores to 1.95 GHz and has support for 802.11ac MU-MIMO.

The extremely power efficient Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 from the lower mid-range is also seeing an upgrade with the Snapdragon 626 coming into the picture. Qualcomm promises an increase in performance of up to 10% over the 625, although the Cortex-A53 cores used in the Snapdragon 625 are not known for being particularly powerful. The Snapdragon 626 also adds support for dual cameras, and uses the X9 LTE modem as well. The Snapdragon 626 continues to use an 8xA53 core configuration on a 14 nm process with an Adreno 506 and USB 3.0 support, but it increases the clock speed to 2.2 GHz and has support for Bluetooth 4.2.

Towards the low end of the market, the Qualcomm Snapdragon 425 is seeing an upgrade in the form of the Snapdragon 427. The biggest improvement is the modem on this SoC, which is now an X9 LTE modem with support for Category 7 LTE downlink and Category 13 LTE uplink. This is a substantial improvement over the X6 LTE modem that was used in the Snapdragon 425 and 430, which was only capable of Category 4 and 5 downlink and uplink. Qualcomm is pushing for adoption of their Clear Sight technology relatively heavily, with even the Snapdragon 427 gaining support, although we remain skeptical about the finesse with which low end devices can handle dual-cameras. The Snapdragon 427 has the same 1.4GHz 4xA53 core design on a 28 nm process as its predecessor has. It also continues to use the Adreno 308 GPU that was found in the Snapdragon 425, which is disappointing to see, as it limits the SoC to OpenGL ES 3.0, which may cause issues with software updates.

With the Snapdragon 653, 626, and 427 all supporting Qualcomm Clear Sight technology, we may start to see dual camera setups trickle down to mid-range, and potentially even low-end, devices by mid 2017. It will be very interesting to see what effects this has on the cameras of mid-range Android phones, as that has historically been an area where they have struggled, and dual camera technology has shown some relatively impressive results.

Additionally, all three of these new SoCs support Quick Charge 3.0, helping solidify support for fast charging across Qualcomm's entire product lineup. This further increase in SoC support for Qualcomm Quick Charge will make it easier to find devices and accessories that can fast charge, even at the low end of the market. The Qualcomm Snapdragon 653 and the Snapdragon 626 will be commercially available by the end of 2016, while the Snapdragon 427 is expected to be commercially available in devices in early 2017.

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Samsung Galaxy Note 7 Batteries Were Tested Within the Company

Now that the Galaxy Note 7 has been discontinued permanently, everyone wants to know what caused the issue with the batteries. Not only has Samsung launched an internal investigation into the issue, but the South Korean government has also jumped in with an investigation of their own. A lot of people seem to have their own theory as to what happened with the batteries, but no one has been able to present evidence to prove their case.

Some publications are putting the blame on the rounded edges of the Galaxy Note 7. The theory here is, that due to the rounded corners on the phone, there is a high probability that the battery cells will bend and make contact with another cell. Others have suggested that a tweak made to the hardware to increase the charge time is the underlying cause of the issue. This theory indicates that the batteries themselves were safe, but the way they were being charged was the culprit.

Again, there are multiple theories floating around but none have been proven as of right now. Interestingly enough though, a new report from The Wall Street Journal talks about how Samsung was in charge of the testing process for these batteries. This is unique because other smartphone OEMs use a 3rd-party lab to test whether or not the batteries used in their devices are safe or not.

In order to sell a smartphone in the United States, a handset OEM must have their batteries tested at one of the 28 labs certified by the U.S. wireless industry's trade group. According to CTIA, Samsung is the only manufacturer to use in-house battery-testing facilities. Both Lenovo and Nokia have operated CTIA-certified battery labs in the past, but both say their labs are in the process of being closed down. Further, Samsung's in-house testing had not revealed any issues with the Note 7 batteries.

Samsung says they are "working around the clock" to figure out what caused the issue with the Galaxy Note 7, and also plans to make "significant changes" in its quality-assurance processes. The company declined to comment whether it plans to use third-party labs for battery testing.

Source: The Wall Street Journal

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Samsung Starts Mass Production of SoCs With 10nm FinFET Technology

Samsung has announced today that the company has started mass production of 10nm FinFET based System-on-Chips. The South Korean OEM claims that their SoC is the first one produced with such technology.

In comparison to its 14 nm predecessor, Samsung's new 10nm FinFET process (10LPE) adopts an advanced 3D transistor structure with additional enhancements in both process technology and design enablement. As a result, users should get a 27-percent performance boost, while the power consumption is expected to be reduced by a whopping 40 percent. In plain English and simpler context, this means that future Samsung devices should be more powerful while consuming less battery.

Company's Executive Vice President Jong Shik Yoon finds Samsung a leader in advanced process technology. According to him, the South Korean company will continue to deliver top-notch products to its customers. It's understandable that Samsung faces really strong competition in Qualcomm and MediaTek, with both the chipmakers craving to maintain their great market positions.

Newly announced chips will not be the only produced in the 10nm process. Samsung will also produce a second generation of system-on-chips (10LPP) "with performance boost". From what we learn, production for the same should commence in the second half of 2017.

According to the official press announcement, the company will sport its new chips in digital devices launching early next year. We have to remind that Samsung has recently ceased to produce the Galaxy Note 7 due to hardware defects. So while this new technology provides good opportunity to make up for lost reputation, it is all the more important to take one's time and do things right. We hope the upcoming SoCs help bridge the performance gap that the Android market sees when compared to Apple's SoCs.

What are your thoughts on the beginning of production on the 10nm process? Let us know in the comments below!

Source: Samsung

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Xiaomi Rumored to Feature Its Own SoC in “Meri”

China's biggest OEM — Xiaomi, is rumored to use their own in-house SoC in its upcoming phone models. In-house chips will reportedly be used in lower-priced devices in the last two-quarters of 2017, which sound like good testing platforms for the OEM before it moves on to higher performance devices.

This move is not entirely unexpected, as the Redmi producer planned to join the SoC market for quite some time now. First mentions about it surfaced two years ago when a company called Beijing Pinecone Electronics owned by Xiaomi signed an agreement with Leadcore Technology Ltd. That deal was about designing 4G multiple mode chips.

News about the possible use of the chips was published on Chinese microblogging site Weibo. The first device with an in-house chip will reportedly be the Xiaomi Meri. AnTuTu screenshots from the device point that the phone and the SoC will use a Mali-T860 GPU and come with a 5.46″ Full HD screen. The rest of the spec sheet is still a riddle.

Seems like this news is quite bad for two of the biggest SoC makers in the market currently, Qualcomm and MediaTek, as they were delivering chips for Xiaomi for the last couple of years. It's a big thing as the Chinese OEM sold over 10 million devices in Q2 2016. We hope that Xiaomi will maintain good GPL practices and will release the mandated source for its in-house chip.

What do you think about this move? Would you get a device with a brand new SoC? Let us know in the comments below!

Source: Gizmochina

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Homescreen Critique 06

Are you ready for a fresh batch of new homescreens to check out? It's time for round six of Homescreen Critique with your XDA TV host Taylor. Here are this week's submissions.

The first homescreen comes from XDA user AVEEUX and this is the cleanest homescreen that has been submitted to us so far.

Here are the apps used to create this homescreen.

• Nova Launcher
• KWGT
• C Locker
• Wallpaper link

This homescreen comes from XDA user ZOMGALAMA. This homescreen doesn't look like much but when you tap the center clock widget, a circular menu appears. This homescreen has some cool animations and a really unique navigation system.

Here are the apps used in this homescreen.

• Nova Launcher
• KWGT
• Pixel Launcher

This next setup is from @bms2291 on twitter. It may not be snowing outside yet, but this homescreen definitely brings out the winter season in its design.

The apps used in this homescreen can be found here.

• Zooper Widget
• Simpax Icon Pack
• Nova Launcher

Submit your own homescreen in this thread to be featured in the next video.

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Samsung Chromebook Pro With 12.3″ 2K Display and Pen Leaked

While Samsung may still be rethinking its smartphone strategy for the coming year, they are apparently ready with their next step in the Chromebook market.

The Samsung Chromebook Pro starts off the spec sheet with its 12.3″ 2K (2400 x 1600) display with an aspect ratio of 3:2. Being a Chromebook, the device is of a conventional laptop form factor made of aluminum, but it does incorporate a 360° hinge as well as a stylus (called just "PEN", and no longer called the S Pen), which lends its additional use-case scenarios of a bigger tablet. The laptop is reportedly 13.9mm thin and is 1.08kg light.

The Chromebook Pro comes with a 2GHz hexa-core Rockchip SoC with 2x Cortex-A72 and 4x Cortex-A53 cores, 4GB of RAM and 32GB of internal storage, which is pretty tough to swallow. The device also comes with two USB Type-C ports, an SD card slot and a headphone jack. The battery capacity is not mentioned, but the battery life is claimed to be at 10 hours. And being a Chromebook, it runs on Chrome OS, with the ability to run Android apps via the Google Play Store.

Pricing and release information is unavailable at this stage. The device did go up for preorder on Adorama for a price tag of $499, but the listing has since been pulled down. We will have to wait on Samsung to make the Chromebook Pro official to know more about its availability.

What are your thoughts on the Samsung Chromebook Pro? Let us know in the comments below!

Source: Sammobile

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What’s New in Google Camera 4.2

After a long debate and a rigorous interview with twelve goat monks, I have decide to make a short video showing off the changes in the Google Camera 4.2 update.

This update is meant to be exclusive to the new Pixel phones but a port has been made that allows it to run on other Android devices. To run this mod, you will need an ARM64 Nexus device running Android 7.0 or later.

Download the APK here.

To see the full in depth look at this new update, check out the portal article from Mishaal.

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