Qualcomm’s 205 platform brings 4G to entry-level smartphones

Qualcomm has announced their 205 Mobile Platform. You’ll note the “Snapdragon” is missing as part of a new branding effort to separate the company’s low-end efforts from the more premium Snapdragon offerings.

With that, it’s clear that the Qualcomm 205 Mobile Platform is one meant for entry-level devices, and there’s reason for folks who tend to buy these devices to get very excited. On tap is a dual-core chipset that adds basic support for your essential smartphone bits, such as low-resolution cameras, displays, and wireless connectivity.

But the biggest boon of this new platform is its 4G LTE Cat 4 modem which enables speeds of up to 150Mbps down and 50Mbps up, a trait which will offer up access to speeds which can handle more demanding tasks such as streaming music or HD video.

More importantly, it would allow for technologies like LTE and WiFi calling for a more reliable communication track than the creaky 2G and 3G infrastructure that most emerging markets still rely on. While not all of those markets have wide-reaching 4G services just yet, Qualcomm thought it wise to provide options for the few which do, and that means they’ll be ready for the onslaught when others are ready to join in.