Qualcomm has made a name for themselves pushing the boundaries of mobile processing with their successful Snapdragon processors. However, the company has – until now – left commercial hardware to their many partners. The company is changing things up with their latest announcement: a Smartphone for Snapdragon Insiders.
The company seems to be taking a page out of Google’s book and is introducing a concept smartphone built from the ground up to highlight their processors. Designed by ASUS, the Smartphone for Snapdragon Insiders brings the full potential of the Snapdragon 888 Mobile Platform. The smartphone comes with compatibility for the latest connectivity standards: WiFi 6E, 5G support for both mmWave and sub 6 bandwidths and Bluetooth 5.2. Together with the connectivity, Qualcomm is removing any bottlenecks in performance by equipping the smartphone with 16GB of RAM and 512GB of onboard UFS 3.1 memory. The processor and top of the line storage promises some of the best read and write speeds.
Cameras Augmented by Qualcomm’s Triple ISP Technology & AI
The Smartphone for Snapdragon Insiders comes with Qualcomm’s vision for the best camera experience on its platform. It comes with a 64-megapixel Sony IMX686 sensor with quad bayer technology; an aperture of f/1.8 and a effective focal length of 26.6mm with a 78.3° field of view; and four axis optical image stabilization. The triple sensor setup comes complemented with a secondary 12-megapixel Sony IMX363 sensor. This sensor has a f/2.2 aperture and an effective focal length of 14.3mm with support for macro shots. An 8-megapixel telephoto sensor with 3x optical zoom and upto 12x hybrid zoom completes the triplet of cameras. On the front is a 24-megapixel sensor.
Qualcomm is touting the camera setup as a professional grade camera featuring AI augmentations that allow the camera to take good low light shots and intelligently focus and identify the best shot. Additionally, AI auto zoom allows your subject to be the focus of the shot while bringing you closer to the action. You can even shoot video in 4k and 8K resolutions. This is made possible by the Qualcomm Spectra 580 ISP which has gigapixel processing speeds.
Audiophile Experience Powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Sound Technology
The new Qualcomm smartphone is also one of the first to feature Snapdragon Sound technology. The new optimizations allow users to wirelessly stream high quality, 24-bit audio with bitrates of up to 96KHz. Snapdragon Sound also enhances audio from end to end for a more robust sound with clear highs and boomy bass. It also enables super wideband voice for clear, true to life audio when making calls.
Of course, since Snapdragon Sound is focused on wireless audio, Qualcomm is including a set of wireless earphones by Master & Dynamic in the box with the Smartphone. The MW08SI comes with active noise cancelling and is powered by Qualcomm’s QCC5141 low power Bluetooth Audio SoC. It is able to do ultra low latency bluetooth streaming with true high resolution audio quality. It even has augmentations for better connectivity in environments with dense RF interference.
Desktop Gaming Experience on the Go
The Smartphone for Snapdragon Insiders comes with the Adreno 660 GPU which is touted to bring 35% faster graphics rendering. Variable Rate Shading brings an additional 30% boost in performance as well. This experience is augmented by the 6.78-inch Samsung AMOLED display. It comes with a Full HD+ resolution of 2448×1080 pixels with a response rate of 1ms and 144Hz refresh rate. The display comes with HDR10+ certification and has a ΔE of less than 1. It also comes with Corning Gorilla Glass Victus protection and support for always on display. Qualcomm is also touting up to 20% increased responsiveness thanks to Qualcomm Game Quick Touch.
Dual stereo speaker augmented with Smart AMP up the ante when it comes to audio experience. Snapdragon Sound also works it magic in delivering high quality audio over these speakers. It also comes with multiple profiles optimized for content type. With the large, Quick Charge 5.0 enabled 4,000mAh battery, you should be gaming for hours on end.
Pricing & Availability
The Smartphone for Snapdragon Insiders will be available starting on August. It will be available first in the U.S., China, Denmark, U.K., Japan, South Korea followed by India. No indication if the smartphone will be available outside these regions just yet.
ASUS will be distributing the smartphone. It will be retailing for USD$1,499 (MYR 6,268.31*). It will be available only in Midnight Blue.
*exchange rate taken from xe.com on 9 July 2021 at USD$ 1 = MYR4.18
Official Specifications
