Qualcomm has just launched the Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 processor to cater to those who crave flagship smartphone features without breaking their wallets. The new processor promises similar, slightly subdued performance to the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3.
The Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 chipset employs a 4-nanometer (nm) process and is engineered with a different core configuration: 1+4+3 (one main ARM Cortex X4 at 3.0GHz, four performance cores clocked at 2.8Ghz, and three 2.0GHz efficiency cores). This contrasts sharply the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3’s 1+5+2 setup, as the latter trades a performance core for an efficiency core. Additionally, the flagship chip operates slightly faster at 3.4Ghz.
The new processor utilizes an earlier X70 5G modem, but maintains Wi-Fi 7 compatibility. It also facilitates hardware-accelerated ray tracing for an enriched gaming experience.
Furthermore, the chip boasts on-device multimodal generative AI capable of executing large language models (LLMs) with up to 10 billion parameters, thereby supporting models like Gemini Nano, as well as AI assistants. However, it does lack certain AI features present in the 8 Gen 3 chip. The innovative processor also incorporates the always-sensing ISP introduced with the previous Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chip.
The Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 processor expands Qualcomm’s portfolio, especially when considering previous-generation chips still in use in devices such as the OnePlus 12R. Upcoming smartphones from Honor, iQOO, Realme, Redmi, and Xiaomi are expected to feature this new processor, and the pricing of these handsets, as compared to flagship models, will be closely monitored.
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