Qualcomm has released a white paper on improvements in its new Krait generation of Snapdragon processors which should appear sometime next year.

Built on a 28nm process, Krait will probably bear the S4 series brand and it will be available in single, dual and quad core variants. Thanks to the 28nm process, Qualcomm feels confident it can push the new processors all the way up to 2.5GHz. Quite impressive, considering most ARM processors in smartphones and tablets currently run at 1GHz, while a few are clocked between 1.2GHz and 1.5GHz.

Qualcomm will rely on Adreno graphics for the new chip, in dual and quad core versions. However, unlike Nvidia’s Kal-El, or Tegra 3, the new chip doesn’t feature a fifth “companion” core. Qualcomm believes it can conserve power by adjusting the clock and voltage on each individual core, without the need for yet another complex core.

In terms of performance, Qualcomm promises to deliver a 60 percent boost over its current generation processors, with a 25 to 40 reduction in power consumption. The new Adreno 225 graphics core should be twice as fast as the Adreno 220 and it will support DirectX 9.3.

Krait could easily give Kal-El a run for its money, but Nvidia will manage to ship its processor a bit earlier, mainly because it is the only chipmaker to stick to the 40nm process for its next generation quad-core ARM chips. In addition, Krait will also be available in single and dual core flavours, which could attain rather high clocks. The only big question is when Qualcomm will manage to ship it.