Latest Qualcomm Modems To Push 5G Forward
When it comes to major new technology trends, it seems like there’s always one element that just doesn’t get the recognition it deserves. In the world of cellular and 5G, that overlooked and misunderstood component is undoubtedly the modem.
The modem (short for modulator-demodulator) and associated radio frequency (RF) parts sit at the heart of our connected devices, enabling the high-speed wireless data connections we have all come to depend on.
What most people don’t realize is that advances in modern technology are really bringing to life the important capabilities of modern cellular networks. With the recent debut of industry leader Qualcomm’s Snapdragon X35, X72 and X75 modem-HF systems (just ahead of the major telecom-focused Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain), this principle has never been truer.
As great as the specs and capabilities of these new chips may seem – and I’ll get to that in a moment – more importantly, together they extend the reach and capabilities of existing 5G networks. From enabling 5G connectivity in IoT and wearable devices (which have previously been locked out of the 5G game) with the X35, to pointing the way to next-gen 5G Advanced networks with the X75, these new Qualcomm modems are valuable , but often unrecognized, is advancing to 5G applications. Along the way, they’re also incorporating clever new technologies that will improve the performance of many 5G devices on existing networks when they launch later this year.
The interesting thing about both the X35 and X75 is that they leverage some of the latest additions to the latest release documents for the Telecom Industry Standards Organization (3GPP), but they do so at opposite ends of the performance spectrum. (See The Evolution of 5G for more information on 3GPP and its releases.)
In the case of the X35, Qualcomm uses a new feature introduced in Release 17, technically called NR Light, but unfortunately often called RedCap (short for Reduced Capability – hands down one of the worst names for a technical feature). ever created). The original 5G specification was primarily performance-focused, and its NR (New Radio) access technology was optimized to deliver the fastest possible performance on the wireless network – regardless of the complexity and the inevitable costs involved.
As the name suggests, NR Light aims to be a simplified version of it, so modems that support it are less complex, less power-hungry, and less expensive. The X35 is the first modem to support NR Light/RedCap and therefore it will be possible to use it in millions of power and cost sensitive devices that currently cannot support a full featured 5G modem. That means wearables like smartwatches, as well as the myriad of IoT devices – which at best contain 4G/LTE (or even 2G/3G) – can finally make the leap to 5G.
Unsurprisingly, this will offer performance and wireless throughput benefits, but more importantly, it will eventually enable more robust 5G networks for all devices. The reason for this is that once these devices can be migrated to 5G networks, the existing older networks (from 2G to 4G) can be switched off, which recently happened with 3G here in the US. Then the frequencies they use can be “refarmed” (or basically recycled) for use in 5G networks. Of course, this won’t happen overnight, but radio spectrum is so valuable (and so rare) that these types of reuse scenarios are becoming an increasingly important way to add more spectrum, and therefore better service, to 5G networks.
With the universal X75 modem (and to a certain extent also with the X72, which is intended exclusively for devices such as mobile hotspots), Qualcomm is basically moving in the opposite direction of performance. It’s the first modem to support key new technologies from the work-in-progress Release 18, which is expected to form the basis of what’s being dubbed 5G Advanced. This next-generation version of 5G isn’t expected to become a reality before mid-decade (just as 4G Advanced didn’t arrive until the mid-2010s), but it’s focused on delivering even better, faster, and more reliable consistent network performance, among many other things.
With the X75, Qualcomm is essentially future-proofing its modems along with the smartphones, PCs, tablets, cars, fixed wireless access (FWA) routers, and many other devices it is expected to integrate into. At the same time, the X75 also adds additional refinements that help with performance and consistency in existing 5G networks and provide the fundamentals of satellite connectivity. In particular, the X75 can now combine a greater number and variety of different 5G frequency bands and is smarter at using those bands most efficiently. For example, the onboard Qualcomm 5G AI processor Gen 2 in the X75 can perform in demanding environments such as parking garages, elevators, subways, etc. many types of sensors built into products today such as smartphones.
The end result of all this is expected to be faster download speeds in more places, as well as more accurate and reliable information about where a given device is – a capability that should lead to better mapping and other location-based services. Better yet, due to the chip’s new architecture, which combines the mmWave and Sub-6 transceivers into a single component, it is expected to offer these capabilities at a lower price point than its predecessor.
While the advances in Qualcomm’s latest modems are impressive, and the “world’s first” claims for both the X35 and X75 are nice feathers in the company’s cap, they’re unsurprising in many ways. The company has been, and continues to be, a leader in the development of critical technologies and intellectual property making their way into 3GPP global standards. As a result, it probably won’t come as a shock to many to see Qualcomm being the first to deploy them. Still, it’s great to see that despite some disappointments with current 5G deployments, the critical technologies and key components (like modems!) behind them are still evolving.
Disclosure: TECHnalysis research is a market research and consulting company for the technology industry and, like all companies in this field, works with many technology vendors as clients, some of which could be listed in this article.
Forbes columnist Bob O’Donnell is the President and Chief Analyst of TECHnalysis researcha market research and consulting firm providing strategic consulting and market research services to the technology industry and the professional finance community.
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