Qualcomm expects to sample a low-cost, dual-core mobile phone processor that supports Linux and other third-party embedded OSes, in Q3 of this year. Smartphones based on the Mobile Station Modem MSM7225 will sell for less than $200, the company forecasts.

In its announcement of the MSM7225 at the 3GSM World Congress in Barcelona, today, Qualcomm said the new device is aimed at making dual-processor smartphones more affordable so that they can move beyond enterprises, into the consumer consumer market.

Qualcomm has historically made chips that support only its proprietary BREW execution environment. However, it announced in May of 2005 that future chipsets, including the MSM6550, would support Linux.

Few technical specs of the MSM7225 are currently available. Earlier MSM72xx chipsets announced by Qualcomm have been based on ARM11 application processors. However, comments by company president Dr. Sanjay K. Jha reverberate with ARM's marketing message for its next-generation Cortex A8 and Cortex R4 processors. Jha stated that the chipset would “enable devices that extend the desktop experience to mobile devices at very affordable price points.”

Other MSM7225 features touted by Qualcomm include:

• Will support HSDPA and HSUPA data modems
• Will support video sharing, photo sharing, VoIP, and real-time gaming
• UMTS Release 6 modem supporting 7.2 Mbps HSDPA, 5.76 Mbps HSUPA, and Multimedia Broadcast Multicast Service (MBMS)
• 5.0 megapixel camera, 30fps WQVGA video recording/playback, wide codec support
• Direct broadcast support for MediaFLO, DVB-H, and ISDB-T
• Integrated assisted- and standalone-GPS
• High-Speed USB, Bluetooth 2.0, WiFi and VGA display panels, with multiple SDIO ports
• Will support Linux and Windows Mobile

The MSM7225 will measure 11mm x 11mm, initially, with a “package-on-package” (PoP) stacked memory option further reducing form factor requirements, Qualcomm says.

The MSM7225 is expected to sample in Q3, with devices based on the chip in production by Q1, 2008, according to the company. Pricing was not disclosed.

 
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