Qualcomm confirms Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 launch date, teases features

Image: Qualcomm

Qualcomm's next flagship chip, the Snapdragon 8 Gen 4, is on the horizon. It's slated for an October 2024 release at the Snapdragon Summit, following the established pattern, as the Gen 2 and Gen 3 launched in October of the previous years.

Rumours suggest the Gen 4 will boast TSMC's 3nm process and upgraded performance cores. Don McGuire, Qualcomm's chief marketing officer, confirmed it will get Qualcomm's custom Oryon CPU (as seen in the Snapdragon X Elite). And he hints at a significant Neural Processing Unit (NPU) upgrade.

Leaks point to a potential 4GHz clock speed, exceeding the Gen 3's 3.30GHz. While specific details remain under wraps, history suggests performance and efficiency improvements are likely. On-device generative AI capabilities, a highlight of the Gen 3, are also expected to see enhancements.

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Apple’s former hardware engineering leader Dan Riccio to retire soon

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Dan Riccio, who led Apple’s hardware engineering for over two decades, plans to retire soon, Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman reported. Riccio joined Apple in 1998 and became the Senior Vice President of Hardware Engineering in 2012. He oversaw the design and development of almost all of Apple’s products, from the first iMac to the latest iPhones, M1-based Macs, and AirPods Max.

In 2021, Riccio stepped down from his role and handed it over to John Ternus. Riccio then took on a new project at Apple, which Gurman said was the Vision Pro headset, a mixed-reality device that combines virtual and augmented reality.

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ZTE unveils affordable Nubia Neo 2 5G gaming phone

Photo: ZTE

Building on the success of its predecessor, ZTE unveiled the Nubia Neo 2 5G at MWC 2024, a budget-friendly gaming phone with a surprising price tag of only US$199 (around CA$270).

Targeted at gamers who want solid performance without breaking the bank, the Neo 2 boasts several impressive features for its price. It has a large and smooth 6.72-inch display with a 120Hz refresh rate, ample storage options of up to 256GB, and a long-lasting 6,000mAh battery with 33W fast charging. While the specific chipset remains undisclosed, the phone packs an 8-core CPU clocked at 2.7GHz.

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Winnie Harlow and 'The Sims 4' team up to create Sims with vitiligo

The Sims 4 takes a big step towards better representation in gaming with a free customization update that lets players create Sims with vitiligo. The skin condition, which causes patches of skin to lose their pigment, affects millions of people worldwide. Canadian model and activist Winnie Harlow, who has vitiligo and has been raising awareness about it, collaborated with the Sims team on this update.

To represent gamers with vitiligo of different skin tones and types, the Sims art team designed 61 vitiligo patterns for the first release of this feature. 

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