Microsoft: Qualcomm is just the beginning of ‘Always Connected PC’

It’s no secret that the first Qualcomm Snapdragon 835-powered laptops are getting a bad rap for their purported performance versus price ratio. So, Microsoft wants to set the record straight, telling us that these first devices are just the beginning of its larger ‘Always Connected PC’ (ACPC) initiative.
“We don't equate ‘Always Connected PC’ with @Qualcomm,” @Microsoft Windows general manager @ErinChapple says. “We’re about choice in the ecosystem and working across our partners.”
Now, this isn’t Microsoft distancing itself from Qualcomm or this first run of ACPC products – in fact, it’s anything but.

However, according to Microsoft, an ACPC isn’t simply a Windows 10 laptop with an ARM-based processor inside. Chapple reiterates to us that an ACPC is a type of computer that achieves always-on connectivity through LTE (or 5G in the future), can go to sleep without losing progress in internet-connected apps and lasts for more than a dozen hours on a charge.

In short, an ACPC is a Windows 10 laptop or tablet that, for all intents and purposes, behaves more like a smartphone. However, that definition doesn’t dictate the hardware inside, with Chapple making an interesting point in illustrating this fact.

“Today, we have the three devices [the HP Envy x2, Lenovo Miix 630 and Asus NovaGo] we’ve launched on the Qualcomm processor,” Chapple says. “We also have our Surface Pro LTE, which we consider our first Always Connected PC.”

That’s right, the first Microsoft ACPC has been out for months – using an Intel processor and Qualcomm LTE modem – before the first three Snapdragon laptops hit the market. That’s because, as per Microsoft’s definition, the Surface Pro LTE fits the ACPC bill.

https://www.techradar.com/news/microsoft-qualcomm-is-just-the-beginning-of-always-connected-pc