Qualcomm Technologies, one of the world’s leading chipset vendors, has today announced the latest Snapdragon 7c Gen 2 computer platform. As the name indicates, it is the successor to the company’s entry-level platform for “Always On, Always Connected” devices, including Windows laptops and Chromebooks.
During the virtual announcement, the company said that devices powered by Snapdragon 7c Gen 2 will upgrade entry-level device experiences with enhanced camera and audio capabilities, integrated LTE connectivity, AI acceleration, enterprise-grade security features, and long-lasting battery life that users deserve.
This new chipset aims to compete against the likes of Intel Celeron N4020, Intel Pentium Silver N5030, and MediaTek MT8183. The company claims that Snapdragon 7c Gen 2 is 60 percent more performance efficient than the competition.
It has an octa-core Kryo 468 CPU based on a 64-bit architecture with a clock speed of up to 2.55GHz. Just like its predecessor, this one too is manufactured using an 8mm process. As for the graphics performance, it packs an Adreno GPU.
There’s a 14-bit Qualcomm Spectra 255 image signal processor (ISP) that supports dual cameras of up to 16-megapixel resolution or up to a 32-megapixel single camera. It also includes support for up to 10-bit color depth video recording.
Coming to the connectivity options, the Snapdragon 7c supports Wi-Fi 802.11ac, Bluetooth v5.0, GPS/ A-GPS, NavIC, BeiDou, Galileo, GLONASS, QZSS, and SBAS. There is also the Snapdragon X15 LTE modem that supports 2x20MHz downlink carrier aggregation and up to 4×4 MIMO.
Qualcomm says that this new platform offers more than 19 hours of continuous use on a single charge, with up to 2x the battery life of typical entry-level laptops
The company is targeting educators, students, first-line workers, and everyday light consumers for devices powered with this new chip. Lenovo is revealed to be one of the first companies to embrace the new platform and the first devices from the brand are projected to go official in just a few months.
Qualcomm has also launched a new Snapdragon Developer Kit for Windows 10 PCs that will be available commercially at the Microsoft Store this summer but the details about pricing have not been revealed yet.
