Microsoft just confirmed that for its new Lumia flagship phones, it would remain using Snapdragon processors 100 percent. The announcement follows South Korean tech giant Samsung's statement that it would use the Snapdragon 820 on some versions of its Galaxy S7.
Seeking Alpha notes that the two developments are boosting Qualcomm's share prices (NASDAQ: QCOM). Benzinga reports that of the 3,400 companies that Bank of America covers, only 24 stocks passed its Best of Breed screening for Q4 2015. Qualcomm is on the list and was one of the five stocks it gave a "buy" recommendation. The four others are Facebook, Priceline Group, FedEx and U.S. Bancorp.
Lumia 950 Windows 10 phone sports the hexa-core Snapdragon 808, while the Lumia 950 XL uses the octa-core Snapdragon 810 v2.1. The two phone models would likely be out in the market in Q4 2015.
According to Engadget, the new Lumia would come in two sizes, the big Lumia 950 and the bigger Lumia 950XL. The 950XL has known dimensions of 151.9 x 78.4 x 8.1 mm, weighs 165 g and sports a 5.7-inch screen with a resolution of 2,560 x 1,440 or 518 ppi, using an AMOLED Quad HD, Gorilla Glass 4.
Its removable battery is 3.340mAh, while the internal storage is 32GB and the external storage is a microSD up to 200GB. The rear camera is 20MP Pureview with triple LED flash, while the front-facing shooter is 5MP. OS is Windows 10. The Lumia 950XL costs $649.
Meanwhile, Wired notes that the upcoming Microsoft Surface Book is expected to be the best Windows laptop in years with its 13.5-inc display, hinge and top half that detaches similar to the saucer of the USS Enterprise. By reattaching its screen face-up, the laptop enters into a draw mode, bringing the full power of the Nvidia GPU "to bear on stylus-based sketches and similar applications." The laptop, though, is pricey at $1,500.