Qualcomm’s Snapdragon chips are primarily used for powering smartphones but they have also been repurposed for notebooks and virtual reality headsets. However, the company has now announced the launch of its first dedicated platform for augmented reality and virtual reality headsets. The Qualcomm Snapdragon XR1 has been announced at the Augmented World Expo, it’s the company’s first dedicated platform for mixed reality devices.
The platform is powered by an ARM-based CPU, a GPU, and a vector processor as well as an artificial intelligence engine. The AI engine will help the device perform enhanced artificial intelligence tasks on the device itself. Connectivity options include Wi-Fi and Bluetooth.
The chip can support UHD 4K video resolution at up to 60fps for virtual reality headsets, 3D overlays, dual displays, and popular graphics APIs such as Vulkan, OpenGL, and Open CL. Noise reduction for clearer picture quality is enabled by the platform’s Spectra image signal processor.
Devices based on this platform will also feature 3-DoF and 6-DoF interactive controls aside from support for audio technologies like Aqstic, aptX, and 3D Audio Suite. The head-related transfer feature will allow users’ ears to synthesize binaural sound for a more immersive experience, they will feel as if sound is coming from a specific point in space.
Qualcomm today revealed that manufacturers like Vive, Vuzix, Meta, and Picoare have already started developing products based on its XR1 platform.
Filed in . Read more about Augmented Reality (AR), Qualcomm and Virtual Reality (VR). Source: qualcomm