Qualcomm recently announced the Snapdragon 480, the first 5G mobile platform in the 4-Series, which includes Qualcomm’s 8nm processing technology, Quick Charge 4+, 2×2 Wi-Fi 6-ready and 2×2 Wi-Fi 6-ready, and the Snapdragon X51 5G RF modem system, among others. It supports FHD+ 120hz displays, features the processor Qualcomm Kryo 460 and Qualcomm Adreno 619 GPU to increase CPU and GPU performance by up to 100 percent, and the latest Qualcomm artificial intelligence engine with a 70 percent performance increase over Snapdragon 460.
It features the Snapdragon X51 5G modem RF system for 5G coverage, comes with Wi-Fi 6 and integrated Bluetooth 5.1 with advanced audio via Qualcomm FastConnect 6200, supports dual-frequency GNSS (L1 and L5) for increased location accuracy and reliability, and supports Indian Constellation Navigation (NavIC).
Qualcomm Snapdragon 480 Highlights:
- 2x Kryo 540 (A76) main processors up to 2 GHz, 6 Kryo 560 (A55) high-performance processors up to 1.8 GHz
- 8nm Process technology
- RF system integrated into Qualcomm’s Snapdragon X51 5G modem
- Download speeds up to 2.5 Gbps (5 Gbps), 800 Mbps (LTE) / Upload speeds up to 660 Mbps (5 Gbps), 210 Mbps (LTE), 5 Gbps standalone (SA) and non-autonomous (NSA), FDD, TDD, dynamic spectrum sharing
- mmWave: 200 MHz bandwidth, 2×2 MIMO at 6 GHz: 100 MHz bandwidth, 4×4 MIMO, Qualcomm 5G PowerSave, Qualcomm Smart Transmit technology, Qualcomm Wideband Envelope Tracking, Qualcomm Signal Boost adaptive antenna tuning
- Qualcomm Adreno 619 GPU, OpenGL ES 3.2, OpenCL 2.0 FP, Vulkan 1.1
- H.264 (AVC), H.265 (HEVC) VP8 and VP9 playback
- Qualcomm Aqstic audio codec (up to WCD9385), Total Harmonic Distortion + Noise (THD+N), Playback: -108dB, native DSD support, PCM up to 384kHz/32-bit, tunable Golden Ears filter.
- Up to 25 megapixels + 13 megapixels for dual camera, up to 64 megapixels for single camera, Qualcomm Spectra 345 (14-bit Triple IPP) image sensor processor, 1080p Single video recording @ 60fps, 1080p Dual video recording @ 30fps, 720p Triple video recording @ 30fps, 720p Slow motion video recording @ 120fps
- Device Display support: FHD+ with 120hz refresh rate
- Qualcomm Hexagon 686 Processor, Hexagon Scalar Accelerator, Qualcomm Hexagon Vector eXtensions (HVX)
- LPDDR4x 2133MHz, 2x16bit memory
- 802.11ax (Wi-Fi 6-ready), built-in 802.11ac Wave 2 x 2 MU-MIMO, 2.4GHz, 5GHz, Bluetooth 5.1, NFC
- Dual-frequency support, GPS, Glonass, BeiDou, Galileo, QZSS, NavIC,
and SBAS - eMMC, UFS 2.2, USB-C
- Qualcomm Quick Charge 4+ technology
What All has Improved with the New Snapdragon 480 Processor
Qualcomm produces many powerful chips for all types of smartphones, but its latest processor has focused on low-cost phones, hoping to bring them significant upgrades. As a successor to last year’s Snapdragon 460, the Snapdragon 480 not only has a significant performance increase but is also the first 4-series chipset to offer 5G capabilities.
The RF system of the Snapdragon 480’s X51 5G modem supports multiple spectra, modes, and 5G bands – everything a wireless data lover needs. It’s also compatible with Wi-Fi 6, so you can take advantage of the latest connectivity options at an affordable price.
Perhaps even more useful than the 5G is the significant improvement over the previous generation Snapdragon 460 chipset in raw performance. According to Qualcomm, the Snapdragon 480 with an improved Kryo 460 processor and Adreno 619 GPU can perform 2x as well. It also brings the first triple ISP to the 4 Series to improve camera support and performance.
The Snapdragon 480 still has a few firsts up its sleeve. It is the first processor in the range that is built on an 8-nanometer processor and introduces the Quick Charge 4+ technology in the 4 series. A number of OEMs seem enthusiastic about the new chipset, with manufacturers such as Nokia and OnePlus already praising it. Qualcomm says the first commercial devices based on the 480 will be announced early this year. So we shouldn’t wait too long to try out the new platform for ourselves.
The devices including smartphones based on Snapdragon 480 will be launched in early 2021. HMD Global, OnePlus, OPPO and Vivo are among the OEMs that will announce smartphones with the Snapdragon 480.
