Snapdragon G Series first look: Is this the future of mobile gaming?

Speaker 1: What I've got in my hand here is the snap dragon, G three X handheld gaming development kit. And it could be the future of mobile gaming and console gaming and PC gaming all rolled into one. Speaker 1: So look, manufacturer qual, who, if you're an Android user likely created the processor that powers your phone or tablet has teamed up with the gaming hardware, giant razor known for its gaming, laptops [00:00:30] and accessories, like the razor Kechi mobile gaming controller together. They've built this proof of concept development kit to debut and showcase Qualcomm's new Snapchat and G series of the dedicated gaming SOCs or system on chip for mobile devices with the debut taught as it were being the G three X one processor that powers this device. Qualcomm tells me that the G three X one is more than just a phone processor. That's good at games two though, there are myriad similarities. The snap [00:01:00] G series will be built from the ground up with mobile gaming and dedicated gaming hardware in mind. That means a focus on graphics, but also dynamic thermal management and fan logic control. Speaker 1: That means high FPS and resolution capable of up to 10 80 P at 120 FPS on device or 4k 60 on an external display via a video out. The spec also features low latency sound, controller support, both external and built in and immersive haptics. So the device is built around, uh, this large [00:01:30] O lead screen that runs at 120 Hertz. We've got physical controls that look like the X input type that you'll get with an Xbox controller. So we've got sticks, face buttons, and the shoulder buttons around the back. There's an intake for cooling and vents on the top and a USB type C port that you'll use for charging. And for video out, if you want play your games on a larger screen on the bottom, there is a headphone Jack yay, as well as the power and volume buttons and a slot for expanding [00:02:00] the memory. Speaker 1: If you wanna put more games on here, it takes a, a micro SD card. In the hand, it feels a little bit like Nintendo switch, maybe with a big chunky grip, or maybe even like if you took an Xbox controller and sliced it in half and then stuck a gaming phone in the middle that's because for now that's kind of what this is, uh, an Android kind of phone kind of tablet, kind of like a game gear thing. It's a bit rough around the edges, but that's fine. This isn't a product that you'll be able to run out and buy today. [00:02:30] Tempting as that may be. It's a dev kit, early hardware, that'll be sent out to game developers and serve as an example to other hardware manufacturers for Qualcomm's vision, for the platform, even razor who built the kit has an officially gone record that this is a product they're going to build though. Speaker 1: I mean, let's be real. Why wouldn't they anyway, while the phone roots are still showing pretty clearly at this point, I'm already pleased by the small physical differences that make this a more pleasant gaming experience than just permanently welding Razor's [00:03:00] Keisha controllers to either end of its gaming phone. Wow. Remember Razor's gaming phone. And one interesting thing that you'll note here is that there is a camera along the top of the screen, but unlike a phone where it would be at the end of the device and covered by your hand, it's in the center so that when you're playing it's UN its obstructed good for those of you who like to stream mobile games, other things that differentiate this from just a phone with controller snapped on the end are, uh, speakers that are pointed directly at you so [00:03:30] that you can hear the sound unobstructed when you're playing as well as support for dual haptics. Speaker 1: So you get the fine tune rumble that you expect from a console controller, not just the weak buzz that you get with the phone. Again, this is a dev kit, so it's not a final product, but I find that in order to reach the shoulder buttons and the triggers, I have to employ the claw grip here, where I put my middle finger on the trigger, rather than the way I normally hold an Xbox controller, but that could be fine tuned in finesse. But basically what we have here is a really good feeling product in the hand. [00:04:00] Now, of course, the star of the show is gonna be that snap dragon G series processor. It is honed for do nothing more than gaming. So your Android games that you download off of the play store will run probably about as good as they're gonna run on a mobile device on the one you've got here. Speaker 1: That's partially because you know, a phone has to be thin and it's got some thermal limitations with the thick device here and the cooling, you don't really run into that sort of throttling, which means according to Qualcomm, that you should experience less stuttering and frame [00:04:30] dropping when you're playing really intense games, this early in development, and with app partnerships still in their infancy, and mostly unoptimized for the prerelease hardware, Qualcomm was a bit CA G about what games we're allowed to show running on the device. And we can't run benchmarks at this point either. However, I was able to play a selection of flying racing and adventure games and the experience with a smooth one, not dramatically different from playing the same games on my phone, but the ergonomics of the physical controls were much more pleasant for the hour I spent noodling around. [00:05:00] I'd even go as far as saying that the controls are more comfortable than the tiny joy cons on my Nintendo switch, which I've actually ditched for longer cramp free sessions in favor of a chunkier ho split pad pro setup, which now that I think about it kind of feels about the same level of size and chunk as the G three X kit. Speaker 1: I did miss the larger screen of the Nintendo switch, but who knows is it the final product may well match that I get the feeling that Qualcomm and razor are watching closely the feedback from journalists devs and potential hardware partners [00:05:30] as they tweak the spec and inch closer towards a consumer product. Now, in addition to being able to play the games on the device, well, it is also built around playing the games on your other devices as well, bringing your entire gaming ecosystem together. So I'm able to play Xbox game path games via streaming here with its 5g millimeter wave connection or wifi, uh, that gives you really low lag and a really, um, console like experience. When you're playing here, you can also stream from [00:06:00] say a gaming PC in the other room, if you don't want to sit in front of your computer and would rather play those games on the couch, okay. Speaker 1: Streaming games are not the most impressive trick in the snap and G bag, but it is still a strong piece in the overall puzzle. The puzzle that is the snap dragon G three X step kit still has a lot of missing pieces. And question marks, when will the actual products based on the platform arrived, how much will they cost? How will it truly stack up against Nintendo switch or valves upcoming steam deck, which promises gaming [00:06:30] PC performance on device is this device that despite the various hardware, optimizations still feels a hell of a lot like gaming phone on steroids worth the extra space in your back. I mean, especially considering odds, very good that there's already a phone in your pocket that plays games good enough, all really good questions that we hope to learn the answers to sometime in the very near future. Overall again, as a preview of what an all in one handheld that brings your gaming from the mobile and console and PC spaces together, this is [00:07:00] an interesting first look, and it'll be interesting to see what razor and Qualcomm do in the future.