Qualcomm

The entire tech world has been plunged into another crisis while still wallowing in the COVID-19 pandemic. A global shortage in semiconductor components, specifically microchips and processors, are rocking companies from carmakers to, of course, consumer electronics manufacturers. Smartphone OEMs seem to be taking things in stride but the shortage may have finally caught up with Samsung whose newest mid-range phones are now reportedly delayed because of that.

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Apple's next big black eye to Qualcomm may come sooner than many expected, with the iPhone tipped to switch to a homegrown 5G modem design in 2023 according to a new analyst report. Although Apple designs a significant number of iPhone components itself, including the primary A-series chipset, it still relies on third-party modems for the smartphones.

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Manufacturers and network operators have been pushing 5G technology hard, even throughout a pandemic that forced some industries to stall for a while. Now it seems, however, that one of the most critical pieces of hardware that enables that technology for users might be putting them at risk as well. Qualcomm's 5G modem reportedly has a very severe flaw that can be exploited through Android, putting potentially hundreds of thousands of users at risk.

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Whispers of a new Chromebook with what could be a detachable OLED touchscreen and a significant uptick in connectivity and multimedia have emerged, promising a potential rival to Apple's iPad Pro. The new Chrome OS detachable, codenamed Homestar, is expected to use Qualcomm's Snapdragon 7c rather than an Intel processor.

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The past few years have seen various government agencies file complaints or lawsuits against giant tech companies but, back in 2017, that wasn't a common thing. That's what made the US FTC's decision to file an antitrust lawsuit against Qualcomm back then a landmark case that would also rattle the mobile market in its wake. The FTC initially scored a victory in 2019 but lost on appeal last year. Instead of the planned request for review, however, this year's FTC has decided not to pursue the case further, practically letting Qualcomm get away with the anticompetitive practices it was accused of.

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Almost mirroring the old Intel and AMD rivalry, Qualcomm and MediaTek have traditionally been at it since the smartphone market exploded years ago. MediaTek was regarded as having more affordable options, though often with inferior performance. To its credit, it has been improving both in performance and features and it seems that its investments have finally paid off now that it has wrested the mobile chipset market crown from Qualcomm, at least in 2020.

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Niantic's CEO has teased the Pokemon Go-maker's first augmented reality glasses, with a cryptic preview of the digital eyewear on Twitter. It's the first public sign of the company's smart glasses, though Niantic - which is also partnering with Nintendo again on a Pikmin game - has been talking about AR gaming for some time now.

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Although it was partly born of that modular phone dream, Fairphone pursued a path towards more practical sustainability, especially when it comes to Android updates. That mission was sorely put to the test with the Fairphone 2 which is now in its fifth year. Although it was already in testing last year, the phone is finally getting Android 9 Pie. That's admittedly two and a half versions late by now but the company explains why the ecosystem, particularly Qualcomm, seems to be set to foil such endeavors at every step.

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Qualcomm has revealed the latest chipset in its 7 Series, with the new Snapdragon 780G 5G Mobile Platform promising to cherry-pick some of the best tech from the more expensive Snapdragon 888 flagship. Expected to arrive in new Android phones sometime from Q2 2021, the Snapdragon 780G marks a number of "firsts" for the series, and looks likely to continue the trend of midrange devices to be arguably more exciting than their most expensive brethren.

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There's no lack of strange rumors and reports in the consumer electronics industry, but every once in a while, we get one that seems to come entirely out of left field. Today, one of those rumors is making the rounds, and it pegs Qualcomm as a potential Nintendo competitor. Apparently, the SoC manufacturer is looking at making a Nintendo Switch rival, and it could be here by this time next year.

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The success of the ARM-based Apple Silicon and the new M1 Macs put not only Microsoft but also Qualcomm in a rather negative light. The two have been working together for years on ARM-based Windows laptops with very little success but neither company is willing to throw in the towel just yet. In fact, Qualcomm is reportedly working not just on a new high-end Snapdragon 8cx compute platform but also a less powerful Snapdragon 7c chipset that could be used on entry-level Chromebooks and ARM-based Windows laptops.

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Qualcomm is arguably the king of smartphone processors, at least on the non-iPhone side of the mobile world. Premium flagships are more or less defined by how they carry the latest Snapdragon 8-series chip but that, in turn, also determines part of the cost that consumers will have to bear in the end. The past two generations, in particular, have been more expensive than usual because they already packaged a 5G modem, no questions asked. This year, however, Qualcomm might be taking a step back with a Snapdragon 888 that will give manufacturers the choice whether to go 5G or not.

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