So you read Qualcomm, you immediately think Snapdragon, their flagship chipset line used in almost all smartphones around the world. Qualcomm now plans to expand its market, taking some lessons from Nintendo, with a device that has a strong resemblance to the popular handheld Switch gaming console.
According to reports from Android Police, This android powered game console is the company’s attempt to portray their Snapdragon chipsets in a different form factor appealing to the gaming community. Sources that have viewed the device say that it is heavily inspired by the Nintendo Switch. Though, there are no official pictures released so we can not give our opinion as of yet.
The new Qualcomm game console is said to have the same detachable controllers on both sides of the device. Wonder where they got that idea from. The console itself is more like a thicker and bulkier smartphone, which is understandable given the Snapdragon is a mobile chipset. Also, the upside to this is that the more thick the main body is, the thermal headroom the chipset will have to display its full processing power and efficiency.
The device will include a large 6000mAh battery that will obviously support Quick Charge technology. This portable device, like the switch, will support display-out capabilities to play on an external display, like a TV or a monitor. It will have an SD card slot for expandable storage. The console will run on Android 12 with their own customized skin and full support of all Google’s apps and services.
The company hopes to support the new upcoming Epic Games Store App on launch, so Fortnite players can rejoice. The device will have the typical set of features like Bluetooth, GPS, accelerometers, dual-zone haptics, and also 5G. The rumored targeted price is $300 though we do not know if that includes 5G.
The console’s targeted launch is in the first quarter of 2021. Though nothing is confirmed so Qualcomm may just delay the launch depending on how things go and the initial response of consumers. All we can do is wait for some official news from the company itself about the launch and pricing.