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OnePlus is bringing Snapdragon's latest AI-focused chipset to its smartphones
But we'll have to keep waiting to find out more
Although readers of this site are usually looking for the beefiest mobile processor they can get their hands on, chipmakers like Qualcomm specialize in a lot more than just the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3. Alongside its rival MediaTek, Qualcomm has continued to develop 7 Series and 6 Series silicon to bring higher quality experiences to cheaper devices. Today, the company is bringing another upper-midrange chipset to market with the Snapdragon 7+ Gen 3, and it's coming to a OnePlus smartphone near you very soon.
Qualcomm just confirmed when the Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 will arrive
The upcoming chipset is packing an Oryon CPU
Qualcomm recently released its latest flagship chipset powering many of the best Android phones out there, but the rumor mill has already been buzzing about the next big thing. We're eyeing the Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 with high expectations, considering how awesome the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 is. Rumor has it the Gen 4 will be based on TSMC's 3nm process and rock some new performance cores. Qualcomm usually treats us to a flagship chipset every year, so it's a safe bet that the 8 Gen 4 will be out before 2024 wraps up. As for a more specific launch window, the company has just confirmed that we can expect it to drop in the fall of 2024.
Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 chips could go the Exynos route
A multi-foundry setup for risk mitigation?
The Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 system on chip is off to a flying start with devices such as the OnePlus 12 and Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra having Qualcomm’s latest silicon at their heart. With the development of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 probably being in its final stages, it’s time to look beyond. New information suggests that 2025 and beyond will be an interesting period for high-end Android smartphones, with Qualcomm looking at manufacturing partners outside of TSMC for its next flagship chip.
Why RISC-V support is a big deal for Qualcomm and Android
When hardware developers compete, consumers win
As smartphone users, we carry an incredible amount of computing power in our pockets every day. Even today's most affordable phones boast exponentially more processing power than, for example, the computer that helped guide Apollo 11 to the moon. And most of us can comfortably live out our smartphone-enhanced lives blissfully unaware of the advanced engineering that goes into the circuitry directly responsible for pushing the 1s and 0s that drive everything from the simplest modern electronics to AI supercomputers.
Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 cruises in the iQOO 12
Qualcomm's latest flagship chip lives up to its promise in one of its first phones
Stateside Android aficionados are unlikely to get their hands on a Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 phone until the Samsung Galaxy S24 and OnePlus 12 make their expected debuts some time in January, but the rest of the world hasn’t had so long to wait. I was able to get my hands on the iQOO 12, one of the first phones in the world to ship with Qualcomm’s latest chipset, along with a meaty array of other specs: up to 16GB RAM, 512GB storage, and a 144Hz AMOLED display.
Qualcomm's Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 sounds like the Goldilocks of midrange chipsets
Nestled right in between its two predecessors
It’s not always about the gasps. Sometimes, it’s about the moments in between the gasps that truly define a story. For Qualcomm and its next chipset for mobile devices, that rings true. While the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 SoC was announced just under a month ago to ravenous applause — even if we think that some of the improvements on the chip are pointless when mobile gaming remains so lackluster — that chip will only go into the very best of phones that Samsung and the like have to offer. For the majority of the world’s population who either don’t have the funds or the desire to buy into flagship smartphones, the mid-range lines exist. Those phones, too, need chipsets. That’s where the newly-announced Qualcomm Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 comes into play.
Your wait for Android phones with satellite connectivity just got longer
Android device makers did not like Qualcomm’s proprietary satellite communication technology
With the iPhone 14 series in 2022, Apple debuted satellite connectivity for emergency purposes. This allowed users to contact emergency services when they required help and were stuck in an area with no mobile network. More than a year later, none of the best Android phones provide a similar feature. This is despite Google and Qualcomm teasing satellite connectivity support on Android 14 ahead of the iPhone 14's debut. Qualcomm followed this by announcing the Snapdragon Satellite for two-way satellite communication at CES 2023. If you were eagerly waiting for an Android phone to launch with satellite connectivity, your wait just got longer.
Samsung's Galaxy S25 might see a price surge due to chipset costs
Qualcomm's chipset advancements could push tech prices up
Over time, the mobile phone market has observed a steady increase in the cost of top-tier models. With technological progression, the elements driving these smartphones, particularly their chipsets, evolve in complexity and sometimes in cost. This pattern could persist into the upcoming year, leading to a potential price surge for flagship devices in 2025 and beyond.
The Xiaomi 14 will be the first phone with a Snapdragon 8 Gen 3
The company made a surprise announcement at Qualcomm's Snapdragon Summit
We already knew that the Xiaomi 14 series would make its debut later this week, but the company's president just dropped a pretty big bombshell at Qualcomm's Snapdragon Summit 2023: it will be the first line of phones to ship with a Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chipset. Its predecessor, the Xiaomi 13, used a Snapdragon 8 Gen 2, so you might think this was expected — but with this year's model being announced earlier than last year's, it seemed like it might miss out on Qualcomm's next-gen chip. Evidently, it was right on time.
Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3: Everything you need to know
Curious what makes Qualcomm's latest flagship SoC tick? Here's what's under the hood
These days, if you have one of the best Android flagships around, it's probably powered by one of two mobile chipsets: Google's in-house Tensor series, or a Snapdragon 8 SoC. As much as we love the Google Pixel 8 Pro, Qualcomm has been absolutely destroying this space lately, pushing ahead of the competition over the last year and looking to do it again with the new Snapdragon 8 Gen 3. Curious what makes this chipset tick? Here's everything you need to know about Qualcomm's latest launch.
Snapdragon Seamless will unify your Qualcomm devices under a single umbrella
One less way to feel the burden of ecosystem lock-in
It's a busy year for Qualcomm. In addition to announcing its new Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 SoC today — the chipset that will be found in the majority of Android flagships over the next twelve months — the company also unveiled Snapdragon Seamless, a new cross-platform initiative that looks to turn its silicon into a vast product ecosystem. With Qualcomm making another major play for the Windows market, it seems like the next couple of years could see your smartphone, PC, and much more able to communicate with each other like never before.
Qualcomm's working on a new type of chip for Wear OS smartwatches
Google and Qualcomm join forces (again) for RISC-V in wearables
Open-source has long been touted as a revolution in the tech industry. Enter RISC-V, an open-source instruction set architecture that promotes innovation by allowing any entity to craft bespoke cores. This encourages an influx of players into the market, fostering innovation and competition, and ostensibly benefiting everyone from silicon vendors to the end consumers.
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Apple extends Qualcomm partnership through 2026 despite working on its own modem chips
The Snapdragon maker will still supply iPhone radios even after Apple's Intel purchase
Apple and Qualcomm have a relationship characterized by disputes, settlements, and mutual endeavors. The California-based companies share more than a home state, with both playing pivotal roles in shaping the smartphone industry, and they were recently on opposite sides of the courtroom in a royalties case that concluded in 2019. Though Apple's efforts to develop in-house modem chips since then have garnered significant attention, recent developments suggest that its dependence on Qualcomm remains strong.
Snapdragon’s new G Series SoC will power Ayaneo's next gaming handheld
The chip could give this Android console an edge
The market for handheld consoles is small, but Ayaneo has made a name for itself developing Windows handhelds, only recently pivoting to the Android segment with the Pocket Air earlier this year. Most of our recommended Android handhelds use Qualcomm Snapdragon SoCs, so it is no surprise Ayaneo plans to follow suit with its upcoming Pocket S model announced at Gamescom in Cologne, Germany, this week. It plans to outshine its rivals by being the first to market with Qualcomm’s latest gaming-focused Snapdragon G3x Gen 2 chipset.
Qualcomm's new gaming chips want to bring Steam Deck power to Android
The Snapdragon G Series offers three new chips
Qualcomm's chips do a lot more than just powering our favorite Android phones. You’ll find Snapdragon-brand SoCs inside some of the best Android handheld gaming hardware too, and with good reason. The chips are powerful enough for gaming phones. However, Qualcomm has its eyes set on the booming gaming handheld segment comprising the likes of the Valve Steam Deck and Nintendo Switch, respawning an industry that was almost forgotten since the Sony PSP died. To this effect, Qualcomm is announcing three new SoCs purpose-built for handheld gaming devices at Gamescom in Cologne, Germany, this week.
Qualcomm sets a launch date for the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3
The new chipset will break cover during Snapdragon Summit in late October
Qualcomm unveiled the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chipset in November last year, with Chinese OEM Oppo wasting no time in announcing the first phone featuring the chip. However, Vivo was the first to market with Qualcomm's high-performance octa-core SoC. The chip maker has now set a date for its annual mobile SoC event — the Snapdragon Summit — with the unveiling of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 potentially on the cards.
Qualcomm's new graphics upscaling engine wants to be DLSS for your phone
Gaming on mobile has never looked this good
Android's gaming experience improves every year, and the lineup of video games set to launch in 2023 could start pushing devices to their limit. While games like Call of Duty: Warzone Mobile and Tom Clancy's The Division Resurgence look great from a graphics standpoint, they could run awkwardly on certain devices. To optimize mobile game performance, Qualcomm is readying its new feature called Snapdragon Game Super Resolution (GSR).
Qualcomm's next Snapdragon chip has just surfaced, but it's not for your phone
The next big step up in ARM laptops might be close
Qualcomm's smartphone chips are great, but the company is also leading the charge with ARM laptop silicon as well, powering some of the best Chromebooks and laptops. Yet, some of its offerings have been due for an upgrade. The Snapdragon 8cx Gen 3, one of Qualcomm's higher-end chips for laptops, was released in late 2021. We're due for a successor already — rumors about the Snapdragon 8cx Gen 4 have been floating for months. An engineering sample might have just been tested out in the wild, potentially letting us in on some key details about the upcoming chip, as well as on some (maybe) disappointing news.
Arm tells smartphone makers to put up or shut up as it gins up cash for IPO
The SoftBank-owned company plans on turning its licensing business upside down
Arm is in a rush to make money. Its parent company, Japanese tech conglomerate SoftBank, has been bleeding money and couldn't convince regulators to have Nvidia buy the semiconductor design firm off of it. So, what's "Plan B?" Spin the company off in an IPO. In order to do that, Arm needs to be seen making more money than it has been. And so, the company may be considering what market observers are calling a Hail Mary.
New Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 intelligence suggests more powerful cores are coming
Qualcomm is reportedly headed for a late-year launch of this next-gen chipset
Qualcomm's name is closely attached to the top Android hardware of today with its mobile systems-on-chips powering devices from Asus to Xiaomi and OnePlus to Nothing. It's been a busy year so far with a lot of premium action centered around the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2, including a special edition made just for Samsung's Galaxy devices. But it seems like the company is already gearing up for a next-gen release as a new leak spills blueprints for the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3.