Saturday 21 September 2013

Mobile Computing With QUALCOMM’s New Snap Dragon Processors Gives Hope for Augmented Reality in full HD

From all the big launches that have happened recently and let's not forget about the new iPhone 5 follow up!and the rumoured low priced iPhones that are set to be reviled, many of us may be wondering: What is the next thing?

The uprising competition in the new technology domain have struck the smart device makers into gaining new definition with advantages in fluid market situations where perils like augmented reality technology and virtual reality in juncture with mobile technology fares a greater chance to capture the users fancy. Recently this marker-less augmented reality technology found its future in smartphones.

Mobile chip-maker Qualcomm's senior VP for product management, Raj Talluri shares a few replies at its annual Uplinq developer conference in San Diego, California.This is a summation of what to expect in smart devices, smartphones, smart TVs, and set-top boxes according to Raj Talluri.

With the launch of smartphones that pack Qualcomm's Snapdragon 800 processor and support 4K-resolution video recording, 1080p's time in the limelight may soon be over.
            Qualcomm's representatives say the option of filming content that's clearer and sharper than what the popular 1080p standard offers will be accessible to more devices in the succeeding months. But, what about smartphone displays that support the ultra HD?

It's only recent that 1080p displays made its way to smartphones and tablets, but manufacturers are right now looking ahead to mobile offerings operating at 4K resolution.

Whether or not there's any merit in jacking up the picture quality of a smartphone display of the possibility of 5-or 6-inch panels, containing the same amount of pixels as 80-inch TVs does is a debate. But the manufacturing companies are willing to take this as far as they can for now.

How do you top devices that deliver 360-degree panoramic images? By offering devices that shoot 360-degree footage in ultra HD, of course. Qualcomm's proprietary Snap Dragon Eye See 360 technology does that; it relies on an accessory to capture a video of everything around you simultaneously. After the Google's glasses this new breakthrough can provide new ways which can be used in AR (augmented reality) and similar marker-less technologies.

360 degree outputs offer a somewhat similar playback experiences as standard footage, except you can use your finger to change the point of view in the videos and focus on any object of interest, as you would 360-degree shots. Qualcomm has developed another camera technology, dubbed Ubi-Focus, which allows you to control depth of field after you've captured a photo then isolate objects in crisp focus. It works with any subject from the foreground, background, or somewhere in between. Qualcomm has also implied with hints that in the future, the technology may be operated using gestures. This opens the possibility of use in incorporated technologies like the motion detection and augmented reality technology.

Mobile devices outfitted with dual microphones are still difficult to come by, but they're nothing new. As it turns out that they may never be as popular as we would have imagined. Qualcomm says the industry will soon move to a quad-mic setup, which gives a fuller and richer audio. Looking at that that, combined with chips that emulate 7.1 surround sound for a more cinematic experience, should make audiophiles sit up and listen with great admiration. Besides somewhat bringing 7.1 surround sound to mobiles, Qualcomm's state-of-the-art Snapdragon processors are powerful enough to take on the most demanding games and run them at a consistently fluid pace.

What's more is the embedded GPUs paired with the company's high-performance chips support OpenGL 3.0, allowing for a broader and more realistic projection of visual effects and textures, which were only possible with PCs and home theatre consoles.

The increase in computing power in the mobile devices can touch past the current PC and tablets very soon and technologies like augmented reality technology and virtual reality, which focuses on processing the environment to enhance its usability will also become more accessible for smart device users in the near future.