Qualcomm has announced Snapdragon 690, the first in its 6-series mobile chipset with support for sub-6GHz versions of 5G. The chipset is built on an 8nm process and is the upgrade to the Snapdragon 675 released two years ago for mid-range devices.
The chipset is coming with an X51 modem but it doesn’t support the faster mmWave 5G network. This is still only available on the top-tier 7-series and 8-series of chipsets, for now, such as the Snapdragon 865 and 765G. Qualcomm promises a 20 percent increase in CPU performance and 60 percent faster graphics performance over the Snapdragon 675.
The chipset aligns with Qualcomm’s intentions to make 5G “more affordable for consumers worldwide” and smartphones brands such as HMD, Motorola, LG, Sharp, Wingtech and TCL are expected to launch budget smartphones powered by the chipsets soon.
Apart from 5G connectivity, the chipset brings support for 4K HDR video at 30fps and still photography up to 192MP. In terms of display, Snapdragon 690 supports 120Hz refresh rate displays up to FHD+ resolution. For battery, it supports Quick Charge 4+ fast charging. The chipset also brings support for WiFi 6 on the Qualcomm FastConnect 6200 system.
The first 5G device powered with the chipset is expected to come out in Q2 2020 and it will be affordable.
