Qualcomm's newest flagship X85 5G modem uses AI to boost performance and efficiency
AI comes to Qualcomm's newest flagship-class 5G modem.
#mwc2025 #qualcomm #snapdragonx85
The Qualcomm X85 5G Modem-RF is expected to be in commercial devices in the second half of the year. Photo: Qualcomm
Qualcomm unveiled its 8th-generation 5G modem-to-antenna solution and 4th-generation AI-powered 5G connectivity system, the X85 5G Modem-RF at Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2025.
The Qualcomm X85 has the world's first AI-powered data traffic engine that adapts and allocates resources more efficiently based on the tasks involved. It says this keeps latency to a minimum for mobile games and ensures a smooth connection during video calls.
Other firsts include the first downlink carrier aggregation with 400MHz bandwidth in sub-6GHz with 1024 Quadrature Amplitude Modulation (QAM), the first UL carrier aggregation with 4 layers for sub-6GHz bands, and Turbo Dual-SIM Dual-Active (DSDA) with 3CC + 1CC carriers support for higher throughput.
The Qualcomm X85 is designed for the next generation of connected and AI-enabled applications. Photo: Qualcomm
When compared to its predecessor, the X80 5G Modem-RF system, the X85 delivers higher peak download (12.5Gbps vs 10Gbps) and higher upload (3.7Gbps vs 3.5Gbps) speeds.
Qualcomm says the X85 is expected to be in commercial devices in the second half of the year. While the X85 is primarily positioned for the Android flagship phone segment, Qualcomm added that it is also engineered to support 5G Advanced capabilities in PCs, fixed wireless access points, automotive, XR, and more.
The Dragonwing FWA Gen 4 Elite Platform is available and shipping now. Photo: Qualcomm
Besides commercial devices, the X85 also powers enterprise solutions such as the world's first 5G Advanced-capable Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) platform, the Dragonwing FWA Gen 4 Elite.
For those who are unfamiliar with FWA, it is a wireless connection that can deliver broadband access to users in a specific area (e.g., home or office) without the need for wired connections. With radio signals, 5G FWA can offer high bandwidth, low latency, and faster speeds that are comparable to fibre optic connections.
The Dragonwing FWA Gen 4 Elite platform is stated to offer up to 14km long-range mmWave performance and support NB Non-Terrestrial Networks (NTN) for satellite communication.
Other specs of the Dragonwing FWA Gen 4 Elite platform include a quad-core processor, dedicated network acceleration, and up to 40 TOPS of NPU processing power.
Source: Qualcomm
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