Qualcomm has officially launched its newest flagship chipset, the Snapdragon 8 Elite, which will power the upcoming generation of Android flagship smartphones.
Along with the launch, the company introduced a new naming system for this chipset, similar to the naming style used for its ARM-based X Elite laptop chips.
Qualcomm’s new processor launched
Similar to the Snapdragon laptop chips, the Snapdragon 8 Elite features an Oryon CPU with a custom octa-core design.
This setup includes 2 prime cores running at speeds up to 4.32 GHz and 6 performance cores clocked at up to 3.53 GHz.
It also boasts a leading 24MB L2 cache and supports LPDDR5X RAM speeds of up to 5,300MHz.
This new chip is built using TSMC’s 3nm process, offering a 44% boost in CPU performance and 45% better power efficiency compared to the previous model.
In terms of graphics, Qualcomm’s Adreno GPU delivers a 40% improvement in both performance and power efficiency, along with enhanced ray-tracing capabilities.
The next generation of mobile experiences is here. #Snapdragon 8 Elite features the fastest mobile CPU in the world thanks to the @Qualcomm Oryon CPU, paired with the most powerful on-device #AI ever for a smartphone. pic.twitter.com/OwLlB7oNM4
— Snapdragon (@Snapdragon) October 21, 2024
Highlights of the new chipset
Qualcomm’s new chip is the first mobile SoC to support Unreal Engine 5.3 and the Nanite virtualized geometry system.
On the AI front, the new Hexagon neural processing unit (NPU) allows the chipset to perform AI tasks up to 45% faster.
Additionally, Qualcomm has integrated its AI engine, offering multimodal Gen AI support.
The Snapdragon 8 Elite includes an advanced image signal processor (ISP) designed to provide impressive output alongside the new Hexagon NPU.
Users can expect better HDR, more natural skin tones, improved sky colors, and enhanced autofocus performance.
Qualcomm has also integrated chip-level photo and video semantic segmentation and video object eraser features.
As a result, smartphones using this processor will produce images with more natural colors, reduced saturation, and improved overall quality.
For connectivity, the Snapdragon 8 Elite is equipped with the Snapdragon X80 5G modem, the first 5G modem to support 6x downlink carrier aggregation and AI-based mmWave range extension.
Qualcomm claims peak download speeds can reach 10Gbps, with maximum upload speeds of 3.5Gbps.
Which smartphones will get the new chipset?
The new modem works with the FastConnect 7900 mobile connectivity system, which is the first chipset to integrate Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.4, and Ultra Wideband connectivity into a single 6nm chip.
The Snapdragon 8 Elite will power the next generation of Android flagship smartphones from brands like Asus, Honor, iQOO, OnePlus, Oppo, Realme, Samsung, vivo, Xiaomi, and others.
- OnePlus 13
- iQOO 13
- Realme GT 7 Pro
- ROG Phone 9
- Nubia Z70 Ultra
- RedMagic 10 Pro
- Xiaomi 15 Series
- Honor Magic 7 Series
