Wireless freedom in XR experiences: Introducing Qualcomm FastConnect Software Suite

Wireless connectivity has proven fundamental to delivering immersive extended reality (XR) experiences, as its growth in XR devices attests. To move freely — without wires wrapped around your body — is essential for enabling seamless, intuitive experiences for enterprise and consumer XR users. 

The challenge, of course, is that XR use cases place unique demands on a wireless subsystem. High-resolution displays require high throughput with stringent ultra-low latency requirements. The wearable battery, as well, must be small and lightweight, requiring ever-lower power consumption. Any trade-off, then, that improves performance by increasing Wi-Fi power is a non-starter for XR. 

These are exactly the kinds of next-level wireless demands at which Qualcomm Technologies excels. Qualcomm FastConnect Mobile Connectivity Systems have a rich legacy of delivering premium Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity. To start, we have FastConnect 6900, which is designed to deliver groundbreaking Wi-Fi 6E, 4K quadrature amplitude modulation and 4-Stream Dual Band Simultaneous (DBS) ahead of the competition. 

And now, with Multi-Link operation (MLO) a defining feature of Wi-Fi 7, FastConnect 7800 goes further, designed to bring the fastest global Wi-Fi 7 speeds and the most premium implementation of Multi-Link, High Band Simultaneous (HBS) Multi-Link. This hardware and feature implementation expertise alone positions FastConnect systems as the preferred offering for XR, but we have only just begun.

FastConnect Software Suite brings rich optimizations, purpose-built for XR, across three key vectors: power, latency and connectivity robustness. These optimizations are ready to deliver lower power consumption and a smaller form factor for all-day, light-weight use. 

• Power: FastConnect Software Suite-enabled devices consume less power, translating to longer immersive virtual reality game play or high productivity at work with augmented reality glasses. Unlike competing Wi-Fi solutions that increase power consumption to reduce latency, FastConnect Software Suite maintains near jitter-free performance without degrading battery life.
• Low latency: Another critical pillar for XR experiences. Lag between the motion and display refresh rates makes for uncomfortable user experiences. FastConnect Software Suite prevents lag by prioritizing critical XR traffic and ignoring other devices that may be causing interference. 
• Robustness: Users experience prioritized, smooth connections even when additional devices are nearby or when paired to multiple devices.

FastConnect Software Suite provides an incredible blend of low power consumption, low latency and robust connectivity, purpose-built for XR applications and devices. Together, FastConnect systems and FastConnect Software Suite provide the complete end-to-end package of optimizations for truly wireless XR. This offering is a game changer for OEMs and consumers, who can literally see and feel the difference.