Qualcomm to Bring RISC-V Based Wearable Platform to Google's Wear OS

Qualcomm and Google are extending their collaboration on wearables by developing a RISC-V Snapdragon Wear platform that will power next-generation Wear OS solutions. According to the announcement, this is an important first milestone to bring RISC-V compatible CPUs to the Android ecosystem, while Google pursues is strategy of continuously copy everything that Apple does, and help others do the same.

The new Noise app, introduced with watchOS 6 for any Apple Watch Series, helps users understand the ambient sound levels in environments such as concerts and sporting events that could negatively impact hearing. As the sound levels change, the app’s decibel meter moves in real time. The watch can send a notification if the decibel level reaches 90 decibels, which can begin to impact hearing after four hours per week of exposure at this level, according to the World Health Organization.

Dialog Semiconductor announced the availability of its latest Apple HomeKit development kit, to reduce the time-to-market and increase functionality of smart home and other Internet of Things (IoT) devices. Dialog’s second-generation kit supports all current HomeKit Accessory Profiles within Apple’s updated IoT platform. The kit itself is built on Dialog’s SmartBond DA14681 System-on-Chip (SoC), the most integrated single chip solution that is purpose-built for IoT development, providing connectivity to a variety of battery-powered devices.