Qualcomm Snapdragon AR2 Gen 1: new platform for AR glasses

Qualcomm has unveiled its new Snapdragon AR2 Gen 1. As the name suggests, this is a chip for augmented reality glasses. The new solution is part of the company’s XR portfolio. Qualcomm certifies that the new SoC uses up to 50% less power and still has 2.5x better AI performance than the Snapdragon XR2 Gen 1.

The first partners have already been landed: Lenovo, LG, Nreal, Oppo, Pico, QONOQ, Rokid, Sharp, TCL, Tencent, Vuzix and Xiaomi are said to be working on AR solutions based on the Snapdragon AR2 Gen 1. The new chip requires an area 40% smaller PCB size compared to the previous Snapdragon XR2 solution. According to the manufacturer, the goal was to develop a SoC enabling AR glasses requiring less than 1 watt of electricity.

Additionally, lighter and thinner AR glasses are possible that can be worn comfortably for longer periods of time. Products for business and private customers should be able to be developed based on the Snapdragon AR2 Gen 1. Qualcomm uses a multi-chip design consisting of an AR processor, an AR co-processor and a connectivity so that the weight of the components can be distributed roughly evenly over two goggle arms.

The Snapdragon AR2 Gen can also dynamically leave particularly intensive or latency-sensitive processes to the respective player – i.e. smartphone, PC or other compatible devices. In combination with Qualcomm’s new AR chip, up to 9 cameras can be used to capture the environment. A dedicated hardware acceleration engine is also integrated, thanks to which movements can be better tracked and objects can be better located. An AI throttle reduces lag for certain inputs, such as hand tracking or 6DOF.

Thanks to the AR co-processor, eye tracking, iris recognition and foveal rendering can also be used to optimize performance. The mentioned connectivity platform uses Qualcomm FastConnect 7800 and also comes with Wi-Fi 7. Latencies of just 2ms should be possible between the AR glasses and the host. Support for the FastConnect XR 2.0 software suite is also included.

Incidentally, Qualcomm also cooperated with Microsoft for development. The goal was to get even closer to the needs of developers so they could showcase their best AR solutions to date.

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