While we have already seen Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 600 processor making its way into this year’s top Android devices, we have been awaiting news on when we can start seeing the Snapdragon 800, their crème de la crème. At a media event in Beijing, the company’s senior product manager confirmed that they are to start mass production of the chip this May, but was adamant on not specifying any devices it would be seen in. 

According to a report out of Reuters this evening, Google will launch a new version of its popular Nexus 7 tablet this July. The tablet will be made by Asus once again, but will use one of Qualcomm’s Snapdragon processors this time around in favor of NVIDIA’s Tegra line, “for power reasons,” one of their sources said. The new N7 will also sport a display with a higher resolution and a casing with a much smaller bezel than the current model. 

According to the Taipei Times, the Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co’s (TSMC) Q1 revenue will be up this year, all thanks to Samsung’s next move. Apparently, to solve the networking issue that stops OEM’s from releasing the same exact phone across the globe, is to simply use multiple chipsets much like we have seen in the past. For America, Samsung is now rumored to use the Snapdragon 600 that works well on our 4G LTE networks, while their in-house Exynos 5 Octa chip will be perfect for European regions. 

According to Korean media outlet Digital Times, Samsung may have to use a different processor in the Galaxy S4 other than the Exynos Octa processor that was unveiled during CES. Instead, they could use one of Qualcomm’s new Snapdragon processors, which wouldn’t be surprising after the benchmark we saw for the Samsung SCH-I545, a device that could be Verizon’s version of the GS4. The processor listed in that benchmark was a Qualcomm Snapdragon 600, the same beast that resides in the new HTC One. By no means would this be some sort of a disappointment, you just wouldn’t be able to run around bragging to friends that your phone has a faux octa-core processor.

This report claims that the Octa is having power consumption issues that may not be resolved in time.

All is rumor or speculation until it becomes official.

Via:  Digital Times

In a recent press release, Qualcomm felt like it would be a good idea to remind folks that having a Snapdragon processor in your mobile device is a good thing. If you have noticed that while charging your Snapdragon-powered smartphone/tablet that it charges quicker than your previous non Snapdragon-powered device, then you aren’t hallucinating. In fact, newer Snapdragon devices come equipped with Quick Charge 1.0, a technology that helps charge your device up to 40% quicker.

From what we can see, either you love the idea of NVIDIA’s Project SHIELD or find it to be the biggest waste of resources ever. According to Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Product Manager’s recent comments, I think we know where they stand on that one.

In a recent chat with The Verge, Raj Tulluri said that these devices will find a way to come out to market on their own, which gives Qualcomm little reason to compete with their customers in the hardware-making game. In essence, he feels that they would be stealing business from themselves if they made a rival to Project SHIELD. 

According to Pacific Crest analyst Michael McConnell, the next version of the Nexus 7 will feature a Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro (APQ8064) processor instead of NVIDIA’s next-gen Tegra 4. Because of Qualcomm’s tighter integration with modem technology, McConnell figures that a Snapdragon chip will simplify the supply and essentially lower costs. 

The folks at Qualcomm reached out to us this afternoon to pass along their latest contest. It’s developer-focused, meaning they want to give away three (3) Snapdragon S4 Mobile Development Platform Tablets. As you all know, the Snapdragon S4 Pro is the quad-core beast processor that’s in many of the top phones these days like the Nexus 4 (review) and DROID DNA (review). In this tablet, you’ll find the processor clocked at 1.5GHz, an Adreno 320 GPU, and a world of development at your fingertips.