Qualcomm has announced its new Gobi 9×45 fifth-generation Category 10 LTE cellular multimode modem that supports global Carrier Aggregation (CA) for download speeds of up to 450 Mbps, upload speeds of up to 100Mbps, and CA across the TDD and FDD spectrum, compared to 300Mbps download speeds in the 9×25, 9×30 and 9×35 Gobi modems. It is based on the second-generation 20nm technology node and supports up to 60 MHz 3x CA in the downlink and up to 40 MHz 2x CA in the uplink.
It has DC-HSPA, EVDO, CDMA 1x, GSM and TD-SCDMA for global support and supports all major RF bands and band combinations. It also provides global position support for all major constellations including GPS, Beidou, Glonass and Galileo. In addition, it has integrated support for LTE Broadcast, VoLTE and LTE Dual SIM.
Qualcomm has also announced QFE3100, next-generation envelope tracker, optimized for 30% smaller board area and enhanced power efficiency compared to the previous generation. It offers improved battery life by reducing power amplifier (PA) power consumption and heat generation. Paired with the 9×45 modem, the QFE3100 is designed to enable the mobile industry’s most advanced system-level modem and RF platform with support for 2G, 3G and 4G cellular modes, says Qualcomm.
The combination of the 9×45 modem and QFE3100 is designed to support premium LTE-Advanced features for OEMs. These are currently in sampling stage and would commercially be available in 2015.