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Discussion Qualcomm Snapdragon Thread

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jdubs03 said:
And even with some of the fore fathers of the A-series onboard, they still couldn’t do it.
Click to expand...
If it's a failure, why are OEMs still commited to it?
docs.google.com

Known Snapdragon X2 Laptop Models (CES 2026)

docs.google.com docs.google.com
That's more laptops than all Strix Halo devices combined.

Also Nvidia is joining the arena with their N1/N1X SoCs.

ARM competition is essential to keep the x86 duopoly in check.

Intel wouldn't have found their renewed zeal for efficiency (LNL, PTL), were it not for Apple silicon and Qualcomm's Nuvia acquisition.
Tachyonism said:
If only Qualcomm has gone with something else rather than Windows...
Click to expand...
I am curious what Google will end up doing.

"Google plans to release Aluminium OS in 2026, with hardware partnerships already underway with Qualcomm. The platform's codename, "Aluminium", signals Google's intent to create a lightweight yet robust operating system that can compete directly with Windows and macOS."

Windows is getting more unbearable by the day, and I am loath to jump into Apple's walled garden. The penguin is calling...
 
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MerryCherry said:
If it's a failure, why are OEMs still commited to it?
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I didn't call it a failure. I just stated a fact. I personally think they did a pretty good job (aside from a lackluster GPU on the laptop side). Just that they didn't reach the pinnacle of outperforming Apple in performance or efficiency.
 
This interview with Gerard Williams is quite enlightening;

global.dday.it

Gerard Williams III, the transistor artist: 'Let me tell you how Oryon was born'

From Texas to ARM, from ARM to Apple, and from Apple to Qualcomm. Gerard Williams III is one of the most influential chip architects of the last 20 years. He shared how Oryon, the processor powering the Snapdragon X Elite and Snapdragon 8 Elite, came into existence.
global.dday.it global.dday.it
"When we were asked to build a CPU for computing, the one that later became Snapdragon X Elite, the engineering team had come up with a long list of ideas. Due to tight deadlines, we were only able to implement some of them. The list continues to grow. With generation 2, we had the time to also include all the ideas we wanted to put in the first generation but that, due to time constraints, were left out."
Click to expand...
Working at Qualcomm, they were under timeline and resource constraints (Not to mention all the legal trouble with ARM). At Apple, he was at the helm of a massive CPU team built up over a decade, with multiple acquisitions and a huge warchest of patents. Considering they started from scratch at Qualcomm, what they achieved is certainly remarkable.

Wishing them all the best for their future endeavours.
 
MerryCherry said:
I am curious what Google will end up doing.

"Google plans to release Aluminium OS in 2026, with hardware partnerships already underway with Qualcomm. The platform's codename, "Aluminium", signals Google's intent to create a lightweight yet robust operating system that can compete directly with Windows and macOS."

Windows is getting more unbearable by the day, and I am loath to jump into Apple's walled garden. The penguin is calling...
Click to expand...
From what I heard so far, it's basically Android on bigger screen, and plus also able to run on x86. As a result, it'll easily benefit from the giant ecosystem of Android.
 
MerryCherry said:
If it's a failure, why are OEMs still commited to it?
docs.google.com

Known Snapdragon X2 Laptop Models (CES 2026)

docs.google.com docs.google.com
That's more laptops than all Strix Halo devices combined.

Also Nvidia is joining the arena with their N1/N1X SoCs.

ARM competition is essential to keep the x86 duopoly in check.
Click to expand...

Success or failure will determined by sales, not design wins. X2 still seems like a tolerable option rather than a market sweeping, “Nah, I gotta have that Qualcomm sticker” choice. There’s no path to Amon’s claim that Qualcomm can take 50 percent of Windows laptops there.

Hopefully they are structured to function with 2 percent of laptops, because they are going to have to fight like a honey badger to get even that much.

The question is what happens if the second generation sells like the first. Will they get a third bite at the apple, pun intended.
 
It is highly doubtful Qualcomm has seen a return on its investment for entering the PC space, it just isn't driving much volume. They have more than enough smartphone SoC volume that doing their CPU core versus licensing ARM designed cores should have paid off though. I think they believed they'd have a bigger advantage over those ARM cores performance wise than it turned out - though that's not GW III et al's fault but is because ARM started doing a lot better job with their cores.

They might have wanted to beat or at least match Apple for reasons of pride, but that's irrelevant to their success. Qualcomm and Apple are not competitors in any meaningful way.
 
It wasn't pride, it was a hope that hardware could trump software problems. But it has never panned out.

Microsoft gave them preferential treatment but it still wasn't good enough to entice many.
 
LightningDust said:
Directed at nobody in particular: Always unwise to try to read roadmap tea leaves based on individual retirements or departures.

The Oryon design group is not small.
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Unwise but it's fun.
Not being able to get Oryon into the one market for which it was conceived would be enough to get me to retire quickly.
 
Dr. Ian Cutress:
Seeing a lot of crappy takes on this.

'Oryon is doomed',
'QC will lose Arm position',
'This is why Apple wins'
etc.

Why exactly do you think Ventana Micro was acquired?
Click to expand...
www.crn.com

Analyst: Qualcomm’s Ventana Acquisition Helps Fill Gap Left By Nuvia Founder Exits

While Qualcomm is losing two engineering executives who have been key to its custom CPU strategy, an analyst said the company should be able to fill the leadership gap with its recent acquisition of chip design startup Ventana Micro Systems.
www.crn.com www.crn.com
 
MerryCherry said:
It would be prudent to wait until X2 and Nv ARM SoC, to pronounce doom.
Click to expand...
Why? They have nothing to do with the original Nuvia dream (DC).

But hey, maybe they both left because that dream was in safe hands of some successsor. That's fun speculation too.
 
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