Big news today from the folks at Qualcomm, who have announced not only a major expansion to the company's Snapdragon GamePack but also news about its Snapdragon S1 and S4 processors and the Gobi 4000 Internet module. First up, the games. Qualcomm has revealed that it'll soon be introducing a number of new games as part of its extended Snapdragon GamePack, including "The Ball" (making its first appearance on mobile devices), "Fight Game Heroes," and "GALAGA Special Edition." Can't go wrong with Galaga, am I right? Additionally, Qualcomm has announced the Snapdragon GameCommand app, which is meant to allow users to find new and featured Snapdragon games and serve as a hub for all of their existing Snapdragon games. Expect all of the aforementioned titles as well as the GameCommand app to hit the Android Market early next year.
Next up we've got word from Qualcomm that it plans to expand its lineup of Snapdragon S4 processors. The new S4 processors are part of the Krait CPU family, which use Qualcomm's next-gen architecture to offer improved performance and power management for increased battery life and an all-around better user experience. The latest additions to the S4 class of processors include the MSM8660A, MSM8260A, MSM8630, MSM8230, MSM8627, MSM8227, APQ8060A, and APQ8030, which join the previously-announced MSM8960, MSM8930 and APQ8064. These new MSM processors also feature Qualcomm wireless modem tech, including EV-DO, HSPA+, and LTE. The new S4 processors are slated to begin appearing in early 2012.
Qualcomm also announced upgrades for some of its Snapdragon S1 processors, which are meant for use with entry-level devices. The MSM7225A, MSM7625A, MSM7227A, and MSM7627A CPUs have all been upgraded to bring better performance.Lastly, Qualcomm took the wraps off of the Gobi 4000 platform, which will allow manufacturers to build products featuring LTE connectivity paired with the ability to fall back on either HSPA+ or EV-DO depending on the chosen flavor of wireless tech. This allows companies to plug a 4000 module into a product and easily give it support for LTE as well as a number of different network types related to the chosen module (HSPA, HSPA+ for one model, EV-DO Rev. A and B for another). Novatel Wireless and Sierra Wireless are now offering devices featuring the Gobi 4000 platform, but don't be surprised to see it also hit Android-based tablets in the future as well.
Overall it seems like Qualcomm had a nice range of announcements today, covering more mainstream stuff with the gaming news and then getting into more technical news with the S1/S4 and Gobi goodness. If you're interested in diving even further into the details, we've got the full press releases straight from Qualcomm available for you down below. As for me? I'm looking forward to firing up Galaga and getting some double ship action going.
Qualcomm Announces Snapdragon GameCommand Application and Exclusive Mobile Games for Android
— Enhanced Snapdragon GamePack and the Snapdragon GameCommand Application Provide Featured Titles and Industry-leading Gaming Experience for Mobile Devices Enabled by Snapdragon Processors —
NEW YORK — November 16, 2011 — Qualcomm Incorporated (NASDAQ: QCOM) today announced today the expansion of its 100+ games Snapdragon GamePack and launch of a new showcase application — Snapdragon™ GameCommand™ — further bolstering the supply of console-quality and casual games for mobile devices featuring Snapdragon processors. The new gaming titles being introduced as part of the extended Snapdragon GamePack and the new Snapdragon GameCommand app are all expected to hit the Android Market in early 2012.
Additions to the Snapdragon GamePack include several new, exclusive gaming titles that will be available through the Android Market, and which will initially be designed to operate exclusively on Android-enabled devices powered by Snapdragon processors. These titles include a number of high-end PC games, such as:
“The Ball” from Tripwire Interactive, which has earned several accolades including PC Gamer’s 2010 Action-Adventure Game of the Year, is built on Epic Games’ Unreal Engine 3 and is debuting for the first time ever on mobile
“Fight Game Heroes” from Khaeon Gamestudio
“GALAGA Special Edition,” the 30th anniversary edition of the perennial arcade favorite from NAMCO BANDAI Games.
While the GamePack is an ever-growing collection of great games, the new Snapdragon GameCommand app provides mobile users a way to quickly find and learn about the latest Snapdragon featured and exclusive games, with the added bonus of being able to keep and access all their favorite games in a single place with one group icon. The Snapdragon GameCommand app also provides gamers with a source for the latest gaming news from some of the most popular gaming news sites.
“Qualcomm has received great user feedback since launching the Snapdragon GamePack, so we are expanding the quantity and quality of games while making them easier to locate through the launch of the Snapdragon GameCommand app,” says Raj Talluri, vice president of product management at Qualcomm. “With more than 60 percent of smartphone users regularly playing games on their mobile devices, the time is right to bring more console-quality and casual games to the Snapdragon platform. We are very excited to put our new Snapdragon GameCommand app and more great gaming titles in the hands of consumers in early 2012.”
The Snapdragon GamePack, launched in June 2011 at Qualcomm’s Uplinq® mobile developer conference, originally featured more than 100 game titles from some of the industry’s top game development companies, including Advanced Mobile Applications Ltd., Babaroga LLC, Booyah Inc., Com2us USA Inc., Digital Chocolate Inc., Electronic Arts Inc., Eyelead Software S.A., FISHLABS Entertainment GmbH, Glu Mobile Inc., Guild Software Inc., Gameloft Inc., Khaeon Games BV, NAMCO BANDAI Games America Inc., NaturalMotion Games Ltd., Polarbit AB, PopCap Games Inc., HandyGames, Southend Interactive, and Tripwire Interactive LLC. Qualcomm worked closely with them to utilize the advanced graphics capability of the embedded Adreno® GPUs in Snapdragon mobile processors and bring a better gaming experience to mobile users.
“We waited to enter the mobile market until we could bring a top-of-the-line PC game experience to mobile devices,” said Alan Wilson, vice president of Tripwire Interactive. “Snapdragon processors now give us the power to do that.”
“We are looking forward to the launch of the Snapdragon GameCommand app, which will bring our Snapdragon-optimized games directly to consumers and help to eliminate the search process,” said Didier Pippel of Khaeon Gamestudio. “Android has emerged as a prominent medium for gaming, and we are excited to work with Qualcomm to give gamers the mobile experience they deserve.”
“We have been able to maximize the advanced Adreno graphics in our premium 3D games like ‘PAC-MAN Kart Rally,’” said Carlson Choi, vice president of marketing, NAMCO BANDAI Games America Inc. “Our developers and producers are enthusiastically working with Qualcomm’s gaming team to continue to expand the Snapdragon GamePack by bringing some of the industry’s top franchises to the new platform.”
About Qualcomm
Qualcomm Incorporated (NASDAQ: QCOM) is the world leader in 3G and next-generation mobile technologies. For more than 25 years, Qualcomm ideas and inventions have driven the evolution of digital communications, linking people everywhere more closely to information, entertainment and each other. For more information, visit Qualcomm’s website, OnQ blog, Twitter and Facebook pages.Qualcomm Unveils New Snapdragon Mobile Processors Across All Tiers of Smartphones and Tablets
Addition of Next-generation Snapdragon S4 and Snapdragon S1 Mobile Processors Will Power Multiple Smartphones and Tablets in 2012 and Beyond
NEW YORK – November 16, 2011 – Qualcomm Incorporated (NASDAQ: QCOM) announced today the expansion of its Snapdragon S4 class of next-generation mobile processors and the enhancement of its Snapdragon S1 solutions for entry-level smartphones.
The addition of new Snapdragon S4 processors, which are aimed at lowering design, engineering and inventory costs while bringing leading-edge 3G and 4G Internet connection speeds, will allow OEMs to introduce S4-based devices with next-generation mobile architecture throughout their respective device roadmaps—from basic smartphones to high-end smartphones and tablets. The enhanced S4 processors are also optimized for use with a suite of software solutions available from Qualcomm that help enable OEMs to deliver industry-leading feature sets for multimedia, connectivity, camera, display, security, power management, browsing and natural user interface design.
The Krait CPU is the next generation of Qualcomm’s micro architecture and is purpose-built from the ground up for significant mobile performance and power management advantages leading to enhanced user experience and better battery life. The Krait CPU is an essential part of the Snapdragon S4 class of processors. Today, Qualcomm announced several new S4 chipsets, including the MSM8660A, MSM8260A, MSM8630, MSM8230, MSM8627, MSM8227, APQ8060A and APQ8030. These are additional chipsets to the previously announced MSM8960, MSM8930 and APQ8064. Snapdragon S4 MSM processors include Qualcomm’s leading-edge wireless modem technologies, including EV-DO, HSPA+, TD-SCDMA, LTE FDD, LTE TDD and Wi-Fi® standards. Devices based on Snapdragon S4 processors are expected to appear in early 2012.
The Snapdragon S1 product line is driving smartphone growth in all regions, and it offers a significant opportunity for market expansion and migration to 3G. To further this trend, Qualcomm is also announcing an upgrade to four of its existing Snapdragon S1 mobile processors. The MSM7225A, MSM7625A, MSM7227A and MSM7627A have been upgraded to deliver better performance and will enable new mobile experiences for entry-level smartphone users, particularly those transitioning from 2G to 3G.
“Qualcomm is innovating on all fronts and continues to lead the mobile computing era with its roadmap depth, breadth and software support,” said Cristiano Amon, senior vice president of product management, Qualcomm. “Our next-generation hardware, optimized for use with our software suite, facilitates best-in-class performance and power for every smart device segment, from mass-market smartphones to high-performance tablets.”
Qualcomm Snapdragon processors are classified by the S1, S2, S3 and S4 generations of products. The S1 class is meant for entry-level smartphones; the S2 class for high-performance smartphones and tablets; the S3 class for multi-tasking and advanced gaming; and the S4 class for next-generation devices.
About Qualcomm
Qualcomm Incorporated (NASDAQ: QCOM) is the world leader in 3G and next-generation mobile technologies. For more than 25 years, Qualcomm ideas and inventions have driven the evolution of digital communications, linking people everywhere more closely to information, entertainment and each other. For more information, visit Qualcomm’s website, OnQ blog, Twitter and Facebook pages.
Qualcomm Announces Commercial Availability of Gobi 4000 Platform for 4G LTE Connectivity
Fourth Generation Gobi Platform Provides High-speed 4G LTE Connectivity with Backward Compatibility to EV-DO and HSPA+ Networks
SAN DIEGO – November 15, 2011 – Qualcomm Incorporated (NASDAQ: QCOM) today announced availability of Gobi™ 4000, its latest addition to the Gobi family of embedded data connectivity platforms. Based on Qualcomm’s leading multimode 3G/4G wireless modems, the MDM9600™ and MDM9200™, and a common software interface (Gobi API) for connection management development, the Gobi 4000 platform allows customers to offer both LTE/HSPA+ and LTE/EV-DO designs to meet the growing demand for embedded 3G/4G connectivity in mobile devices worldwide. Gobi 4000-based modules are now available from Novatel Wireless and Sierra Wireless.
“Embedded modules based on our new Gobi 4000 technology are designed to give consumers an uncompromised mobile connectivity experience, both in terms of download speeds and flexibility,” said Cristiano Amon, senior vice president of product management for Qualcomm CDMA Technologies. “To make Gobi 4000 available to as many consumers as possible, Qualcomm has worked hard to ensure that OEMs can use the platform on many commonly used personal computing, tablet and e-reader operating systems, including Windows® and Android, and hardware architectures, such as our powerful Snapdragon™ dual-core and quad-core processors.”
Qualcomm’s latest Gobi-enabled 4G platform features the Gobi Application Programming Interface (API) with LTE extensions and is compatible with leading connectivity standards, including CDMA2000® 1xEV-DO Rev. A and B, HSPA+, dual-carrier HSPA+, and LTE with integrated backwards compatibility to HSPA and EV-DO. The Gobi 4000 platform also includes software enhancements for select MDM™ chipsets that enable a common software interface to help connect, locate and manage 3G/4G devices regardless of wireless interface and operating system. This interface will help streamline product development efforts, spur application development among third-party software developers, and deliver greater flexibility to device manufacturers.
As one of the largest providers of wireless chipset and software technology in the industry, Qualcomm has a diverse chipset and software product portfolio spanning multiple device classes. System designers now have the flexibility to choose an embedded Gobi 4000 platform for high-speed 4G LTE support, or an embedded Gobi 3000 platform for worldwide 3G connectivity. Qualcomm also offers its family of Snapdragon all-in-one processors with the option for integrated multimode 3G/4G, dual-band Wi-Fi®, Bluetooth, FM radio connectivity and differing numbers of CPU cores for the most power-efficient designs.
“Qualcomm’s Gobi 4000 platform provides the 4G LTE support our customers demand for mobility in Dell’s Latitude E6420 laptops,” said Kirk Schell, executive director and general manager of Dell’s Business Client Product Group. “We look forward to giving our customers fast 4G network connections and increased productivity with the addition of the Gobi 4000 modules to our mobile broadband technology offerings.”
“Combining the performance, security and reliability of our ThinkPad laptops with Qualcomm’s Gobi platform has proven to be a compelling solution for our customers,” said Dilip Bhatia, vice president, ThinkPad Marketing, Lenovo. “We look forward to continuing this tradition of delivering quality broadband mobile computing solutions with the addition of Qualcomm’s Gobi 4000 technology to our ThinkPad laptops’ connectivity options.”
“We are offering multiple 4G LTE platforms incorporating Qualcomm’s Gobi 4000 technology within our Expedite® Module portfolio,” said Rob Hadley, CMO, Novatel Wireless. “With our long-standing tier-one carrier and OEM relationships and our leading design, integration and certification expertise, we are excited to help our customers bring commercial 4G LTE-capable laptops, tablets and the rapidly growing number of other devices requiring 4G connectivity to market.”
“Sierra Wireless has been using Qualcomm’s Gobi technology in our embedded wireless modules for quite some time, including in our AirPrime™ MC7700, MC7710 and MC7750 modules for LTE networks, which we introduced late last year,” said Dan Schieler, senior vice president and general manager, Mobile Computing for Sierra Wireless. “Our customers value the performance and flexibility that Gobi technology offers, and we are pleased to continue our collaboration with Qualcomm to provide the new Gobi 4000 technology in our product line.”
About Qualcomm
Qualcomm Incorporated (NASDAQ: QCOM) is the world leader in 3G and next-generation mobile technologies. For more than 25 years, Qualcomm ideas and inventions have driven the evolution of digital communications, linking people everywhere more closely to information, entertainment and each other. For more information, visit Qualcomm’s website, OnQ blog, Twitter and Facebook pages.
