Qualcomm unveiled the Snapdragon AR2 Gen 1 chipset at the Snapdragon Summit yesterday, the chipset will make an appearance on upcoming AR (Augmented Reality) glasses from Lenovo, Nreal, LG, Oppo, TCL, Xiaomi, among others.
The connectivity platform, AR processor, and AR co-processor make up the multi-chip architecture of the Snapdragon AR2 Gen 1. The multi-chip distributed processing architecture along with customised IP blocks form the foundation of the new Snapdragon AR2 Gen 1.
According to Qualcomm, the new platform outperforms the Snapdragon XR2 Gen 1 by 2.5 times while using 50% less power, making it perfect for AR glasses that need less than 1W of power. It reduces power usage by optimising workloads to concentrate just where the user is looking.
However, the new platform is exclusively intended to enable AR experiences, unlike the Snapdragon XR2 Gen 1 and the newly announced XR2 Plus Gen 1.
Qualcomm says the AR processor is “optimised for low motion-to-photon latency while supporting up to nine concurrent cameras for user and environmental understanding. Its enhanced perception capabilities include a dedicated hardware accelerated engine that improves user motion tracking and localisation, an AIR accelerator to reduce latency for sensitive input interactions such as hand tracking or 6DoF (Six Degrees of Freedom), and a projection engine for a smoother experience.” If you are scratching your head about that acronym, read more about it here.
To enable Wi-Fi 7 connectivity with less than 2ms latency between the AR glasses and the smartphone or host device, the connectivity platform utilises FastConnect 7800 technology.
Additionally, Qualcomm states that the Snapdragon AR2 Gen 1 may offload difficult operations to Snapdragon-powered smartphones, computers, or other compatible host devices to further minimize latency and provide a better visual experience.
Just like the smartwatch, smart glasses are fast becoming everyday wearable tech, with reports that even Apple is working on its own pair.