Qualcomm-branded gaming phone in the works with Snapdragon 875

Qualcomm is working with Asus on the phone

A new report by DigiTimes (via Android Authority) cites industry sources and claims Asus has secretly teamed up with Snapdragon creator Qualcomm to develop and release Qualcomm-branded gaming smartphones.

The sources believe Asus is handling the design of the product and hardware development. Qualcomm will be responsible for the “industrial design” and “optimizing its Snapdragon 875 platform” for the device.

The next-gen Snapdragon chipset is expected to make an appearance in early December at the annual Snapdragon Summit. That means the smartphone could also make an appearance at the event.

However, a release probably won’t take place until February or March 2021. Qualcomm’s latest flagship chipsets are typically not available until the second half of the first quarter, just in time for the annual flagship release cycle.

To keep costs down and maintain decent margins, Qualcomm and Asus have agreed to jointly source components. That means the first Qualcomm phone and next Asus ROG product could share some features.

DigiTimes says Qualcomm and Asus are hoping to produce around 1 million units per year. Half of those will be under the Qualcomm brand, while the remaining 500,000 units will be ROG phones.

The two companies will probably avoid competing directly as much as possible, so the next ROG Phone might not be sold where the Qualcomm version is available and vice versa.