The new Snapdragon 710, first and foremost, is all about making it easier for phone makers to add AI-powered features on their phones. The chip comes with a dedicated AI engine which can render machine learning processes at twice the rate as the Snapdragon 660. Therefore, abilities such as depth-of-field effects, scene detection should theoretically function faster on phones with Snapdragon 710. Another key highlight of the Snapdragon 710 is battery life. It features a Kryo 360 CPU and six efficiency cores (up to 1.7GHz) in addition two performance ones (up to 2.2GHz) which Qualcomm says will lead to 40% reduction in power consumption while playing games and 20% for streaming video. The new Kryo 360 architecture is also no slouch when we talk about performance. Compared to the Snapdragon 660, the 710 delivers a 20% uplift in general. Those battery promises extend to resource-intensive camera tasks as well. The Snapdragon 710 consumes lesser power while handling features such as 4K or slow-mo video recording, stabilization, and more. The bundled Spectra 250 Image Signal Processor is compatible with up to 32-megapixel single sensor or 20-megapixel in case there are two of them. Qualcomm says the ISP can curb noise levels in snaps too and supports active depth sensing for portrait shots. The Snapdragon 710 is betting big on its multimedia capabilities as well. For starters, it can play 4K HDR clips and the Adreno 616 GPU can render graphics up to 35% more efficiently than the Snapdragon 660. For charging, the new chipset supports the company’s Quick Charge 4+ technology which can top up a phone to 50% within 15 minutes. The Snapdragon 710 Mobile Platform also features the upgraded X15 LTE Modem which should allow phones to latch onto a signal even in weak regions. Smartphones powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 710 Mobile Platform will be available sometime in Q2 this year and will reside around the $500 price segment. Considering the so-called “flagship killers” or “affordable flagships” that usually come with higher end 800-tier processors, we expect the Snapdragon 710 to be primarily being employed by companies who are not underdogs and still want to offer a flagship experience at that price point.
