In Qualcomm’s demo, the main camera on a BSQUARE MDP can spot and recognize DVD covers, look up the film they’re related to, and then superimpose a video stream on top of them on the handset’s display. That video stream resizes and skews according to the angle at which the DVD box itself is oriented: it can also track multiple covers, even if only a small part of each is actually visible.

Qualcomm Vision-Based AR hands-on:

Although it makes for an eye-catching demonstration, what Qualcomm is keen to stress is the technology behind it – and the demands that are being made on the MDP’s chipset. The app scans the frame thirty times a second, each time comparing the contents to the list of recognizable titles. It then calculates the position of each object, and renders an AR view that hybridizes custom graphics and the live feed from the camera. It demands a decent camera, of course, as well as enough processing capacity and 3D graphics capabilities.

Best of all, though, this sort of thing is possible with current devices. The MDP runs Qualcomm’s MSM8660, the same SoC as inside the HTC Jetstream tablet, meaning the hardware side of things is all there. What’s still in the air, Qualcomm tells us, is the service itself: the right content-related company coming along and investing in AR. It’s not limited to DVD previews, of course, but could include any internet-sourced links or multimedia. If you’re interested, you can try it yourself with Qualcomm’s free AR SDK.

Neither as thin nor as light as, say, Samsung’s Galaxy Tab 10.1, the Jetstream does feel more expensive in the hands thanks to the metal used in its casing. Unfortunately we soon missed the Galaxy Tab’s only minor heft, since one-handed use of the HTC quickly became a chore. On the back is an 8-megapixel camera, which puts the slate at the top of the pack for tablet optics, and HTC’s Photobooth app for mangling your images uses the front-facing webcam.

HTC hasn’t been able to resist reskinning the Jetstream’s Honeycomb OS, and the result is a sometimes curious mixture of smartphone UI and core Android. The five pane desktop – which can be pinched down to a helicopter-view of all of the panes – can be filled with HTC’s phone-style widgets, each roughly the same scale as you’d find on the Sensation’s display, and not really taking advantage of the larger panel on the Jetstream. The Notes app looks good, though, with a cute ripped-paper animation when you start a new page, and there’s support for clipping images, adding audio recordings and making handwritten or text notes.

Unfortunately, Qualcomm didn’t have the special active stylus for the Jetstream, so we weren’t able to check out whether or not the inking experience is better than that of the Flyer. While the 7-inch slate’s pen is enough to jot down a note in a margin or quickly mark-up a screenshot, it’s not precise enough to entirely replace a paper notepad. Hopefully that’s all changed with the Jetstream, since our playtime with the Galaxy Note proved that Samsung is snapping at HTC’s stylus heels.

Connection issues and some other problems meant we weren’t able to benchmark the Jetstream and see exactly how well Qualcomm’s 1.5GHz dual-core Snapdragon processor – now found inside the HTC Sensation XE, too – performs. Navigating through the apps was lag-free, and HTC’s often-demanding weather animations were smooth.

We’re expecting a Jetstream review unit any time now, so will be able to run some benchmarks and generally put the tablet through its paces properly.

“We worked very closely with HP on webOS – we’re all waiting to see exactly what happens. HP has talked about not making devices with it, but then talked about spinning off the PSG. It’s really a little up in the air at the moment. We do like the idea that webOS would continue, we put a lot of effort into that relationship and it’s a nice OS. More choice is better for developers. But it’s really HP’s call at the moment” Paul Jacobs, CEO, Qualcomm

Jacobs was not short of praise for webOS, pointing to the platform’s web-centric development and app framework, and saying that it did fall in line, in that sense, with Qualcomm’s own vision of the mobile future. webOS apps are native to the device they’re loaded to, rather than dwelling in the cloud, but are built using the same standard HTML, CSS and JavaScript as their web-based counterparts. A JavaScript framework around that then gives standardized UI widgets, and access to selected device hardware and services.

The lack of an outright denial by Jacobs is unlikely to see Qualcomm removed from the unofficial list of potential webOS suitors. Still, as a possibility it does seem somewhat unlikely: as one analyst pointed out to SlashGear at IQ2011, Qualcomm’s motivation with BREW was the absence of any suitable competing platform for the entry-level smartphone segment.

There’s no such shortage of options in the mainstream smartphone segment, though, and only potential overlap and confusion between Qualcomm and its OEMs were it to challenge Android, Windows Phone and others by pushing webOS.

In the DVD preview demo, which you can see in the video below, by showing the barcode on the back of a DVD case [Update: it actually recognizes the front cover of the DVD] to your phone you can instantly see live streams of the movie trailer overlaid on top. Multiple DVDs can be recognized simultaneously, with focus changing depending on where you point the camera (or touch the display) with audio fading in and out between them.

Of course, this isn’t just limited to trailer clips: in other potential implementations, as discussed at Uplinq earlier this year, you could also order the DVD online, find out more information about it or share it on Facebook, Google+ and Twitter.

In Qualcomm’s second demo, the size limitations of a touchscreen were bypassed by using the regular microphone as a sonar sensor. Hand gestures made in front of the phone – similar to what you’d do to control Microsoft’s Kinect – then allow you to sweep through a carousel UI, select different apps and services, and navigate content.

Similar tech should come into its own when you’re relying on your smartphone as a hub for the center of your digital life, streaming media and internet to nearby TVs and other hardware. ”We want to move content from our phone to our TV, or to other people’s devices” Dr. Craig Barratt, president of Qualcomm Atheros Inc. explained.

“You’ve heard people talk about the “internet of things” – we believe in the “internet of everything.” Not just hundreds of connected devices around you, but thousands of them … There will be a sea of sensors around us, and we’ll be able to access them with our phone” Paul Jacobs, CEO, Qualcomm

All eyes are on ARM-based processors at the moment, with Apple’s wildly successful iOS platform and Google’s fast-growing Android both taking advantage of chips using technology such as in Qualcomm’s own Snapdragon range. Beyond that, though, Microsoft has promised Windows 8 on ARM for a new generation of long-running, power-sipping slates.

A big part of Qualcomm’s focus will be emerging markets, Jacobs says. There are currently 5.7bn mobile connections made worldwide, and four out of every five are from emerging market regions. Still, there’s plenty of room for high-powered chips that target flagships from companies like HTC and Sony Ericsson.

“People expect no compromise, they expect that desktop experience in the palm of their hand” Jacobs concludes, describing the web as “a megatrend.” “There are devices out there today which bring you the web, but they don’t bring you the full web” the CEO suggested, perhaps a slight snub to Apple’s Flash-free iOS experience. Whether Qualcomm has the tech to deliver a viable alternative, we’ll have to wait and see.