Surface RT tablets to feature Qualcomm processors
By Shona Ghosh
Posted on 19 Jun 2013 at 13:28
Microsoft will switch to Qualcomm processors for a forthcoming refresh of the Surface RT, potentially giving the tablet a mobile broadband connection for the first time.
According to sources speaking to Bloomberg, Microsoft will replace the Surface RT’s current quad-core Tegra 3 chipset from Nvidia with Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 800 processors. The chips come with integrated LTE support, meaning the new Surface RT might offer a data connection. Current models are Wi-Fi only.
Qualcomm has already stated that its new chips will power some upcoming Windows 8.1 RT tablets in the second half of the year, but didn’t say which.
It’s possible that new tablets from HTC and Nokia will also run on Snapdragon 800 processors.
Nvidia will continue to supply chips for some versions of the Surface RT, according to Bloomberg’s sources, suggesting there might be multiple versions of a new Surface RT. Nvidia said in May that it was "very committed" to the Windows RT platform.
