The Snapdragon 805 will be the last brave with 32-bit architecture

Having already reviewed the real differences between the 800 and 801, today we will focus on the model that we had been waiting and that has resulted in the recent Galaxy S5 LTE-A. We speak of the processor Qualcomm Snapdragon 805, named to be the next great SoC for smartphones that arrive on the market in what is left of 2014 and early 2015. A tremendously powerful SoC which is expected can take advantage of current technology of 800 and 801. In addition, the Snapdragon 805 will be the last ‘great’ processor in a long saga, the 32-bit, which very soon will be succeeded by new models in 64-bit.

Closes a generation

We said in the previous paragraph that the Snapdragon 805 closed a generation that has been very important for the mobile technology industry. We do not mean that Snapdragon closes the doors (the 808 and 810 we are already planned for 2015), but that many of its features will be the last time we see them in higher-end SoC manufacturer.

We start with what is the most representative: the Snapdragon 805 shall be latest SoC of high range core Krait, introduced in 2012 in the S4 and maintained until today. reason to abandon these cores is because the successor of the 805, the 810, and will bring a 64-bit architecture using generic core ARM Cortex-A53 and A57, confirmed at least in the early models announced. This does not prevent Qualcomm designing their own kernels below 64 bits, although so far no information about it.

Being the last to Krait it has several small second-line implications. They are also the latest high-end 32-bit ARMv7 architecture, and the last of 28 nanometers. The 801 cores renew and drag the other features: 64-bit ARMv8.

In the graphic it will also be important and key developments if we take into account the objective of SD 805, and try later. New GPU Adreno 420 evolved about 330 of the 800 and 801. According to Qualcomm, up to 40% more graphics performance on these two, including support for technologies such as OpenGL 3.1, OpenCL 1.2 and Direct3D 11.2, a double line LPDDR3 1,600 MHz on the memory precisely, one of the best invisible for the Snapdragon 805 refers to intermediate buses between the components, resulting in higher data transfer rates.

Improvements for a new generation of cameras

In addition to improvements in the aforementioned SoC with CPU and GPU evolved, another key point of the Snapdragon 805 refers to the section of image. While it is true that there are some devices that support 4K as fashionable today as the Xperia Z2, they have to resort to third-party solutions (in the case of Sony, specific image processor BIONZ). The Qualcomm Snapdragon 805 can record 4K video without external solutions. 3840×2160 pixels, yes, although at a somewhat reduced frame rate, 30 frames per second. It also adds the ability to record 1080p 120 images, which face the next generation, should see significant improvements with respect to the cameras.

If we only look at the photographic section, Qualcomm integrates a specific image processor capable of supporting up to 55-megapixel sensor with a bandwidth 1.2 Gpíxeles / s, improved compared to the 800/801 needed to move such amount of information. In addition to the purely technical data are also implemented enhancements software that help the image stabilization, rendering post and treatment, auto focus, etc., which will be executed via OpenGL to take advantage of improvements in the 420 Adreno GPU and seeking to improve the overall quality of the capture..

The last before starting new era

The difference between the 800 and S4 was pretty important, but was very low when compared to the 801. The Snapdragon 805 itself brings significant improvements, especially in terms of computational capabilities of both CPU and especially GPU.

If we take a look at some first impressions of some specialized media who have had the opportunity to test some prototypes, the data are quite positive. For example the ‘Performance Preview’ AnandTech is very clear: they have seen improvements of 20 to 50% in GPU, and about 5% CPU. Very significant and logical figures considering the context in which lies the 805: the world of high resolution is to come, both in relation to the camera and in the actual screen resolution. It is expected that the vast majority of high-end smartphones that are presented in the remainder of 2014 and 2015 are all 2K screens.

What will be next? The Snapdragon 805 will close an era on the roadmap of Qualcomm. The last ‘big’ SoC in 32-bit before it arrives in 2015 its successor, Cortex-A53/A57 core the Snapdragon 810 and the first 64 bits of its catalog of more advanced products. There are high hopes for them, but for now there is little specific technical information.