Qualcomm has confirmed that mass production of the next-generation Snapdragon 835 processor has commenced with Samsung taking charge of the manufacturing duties. The chip will make use of the 10-nanometer FinFET process and will likely debut with the Galaxy S8, rumored for release date as early as March 2017.
The Samsung-Qualcomm partnership is seen to boost the standing of the South Korean tech giant's 2017 flagship offerings, specifically the Galaxy S8 and its supposed super-phablet twin the GS8 Plus. The SD 835, according to its maker, is designed with Quick Charge 4 technology that will speed up power juicing by up to 20 percent.
But more notably, per the report by Engadget, the same technology is packaged with the Intelligent Negotiation for Optimum Voltage or INOV feature that means two things for would-be GS8 (and in general Android) users - compatibility with Google's USB Type-C charging guidelines and "advanced safety features for both the adapter and mobile device."
The latter will certainly benefit the Galaxy S8 as it will be the insurance both from Samsung and Qualcomm that there will be no repeat of the ill-fated Galaxy Note 7's battery debacle. "An additional layer of protection is also being added to help prevent battery overcharging and regulate current throughout every charge cycle," Qualcomm said.
Likewise, the giant chipmaker indicated in a press release that from the SD 820/821 this year, the 835 in 2017 will boast of no less than 27 percent increase in overall processing performance while at the same time achieving 40 percent of low power consumption. Needless to say, the SD 835 running the Samsung 2017 flagship show will render the Galaxy S8 more powerful, and perhaps lighter and slimmer than ever.
CNET said that with the 10nn process, "handset makers can fit the Snapdragon 835 in a thinner phone. Or they can use the extra space to pack in a larger battery or other bells and whistles." And surely, such scenario applies with the upcoming Galaxy S8, which is expected to fully make use of the 30 percent less inner space required by the SD 835.
The exact SD 835 might, according to WCCFTech, is fired up by Qualcomm's custom made Kryo CPU that promises increased clock speed. "Snapdragon 835 is going to feature the company's custom-developed Kryo II processor and it is said to arrive in an octa-core package," the report said citing unidentified sources.
As large-scale production is already underway, Qualcomm said Snapdragon 835 is ready to rock and roll in the first half of 2017 and the timing is in line with the rumored earlier release date of the Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus. Samsung is said to introduce the flagships between January and February with actual the rollout to follow immediately.