Most modern flagship smartphones and many upper mid-range models are now shipping with support for 5G networks. But Qualcomm wants to make it easier for device makers to bring 5G support to laptops, desktops, virtual reality hardware, professional equipment, and other products.
So the chip maker is launching a pair of M.2 card reference designs featuring Qualcomm Snapdragon 5G modems. Device makers can use them to bring 10 Gigabit speed 5G wireless data to a wider range of products.
Qualcomm says the cards should be plug-and-play compatible with devices that feature M.2 slots in order to make integration easy for manufacturers. And device makers can choose cards with one of two different modems:
- Snapdragon X62 5G (with top speeds of 4.6 Gbps down and 4.4 Gbps up
- Snapdragon X65 5G (10 Gbps up and down)
Both modems support mmWave and sub-6GHz networks, and both are designed with at least dual-SIM support (the Snapdragon X65 is described as having “multi-SIM” support).