Qualcomm has officially unveiled the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5, its new flagship processor for mobile devices. Positioned as the successor to the Snapdragon 8 Elite and a direct competitor to MediaTek’s Dimensity 9500, the new system-on-a-chip (SoC) introduces major advancements in performance, energy efficiency, artificial intelligence, multimedia, and connectivity. Qualcomm positions it as its most advanced mobile platform to date.
CPU, GPU, and AI Improvements
At the core of the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 is the third-generation Qualcomm Oryon CPU, capable of reaching speeds up to 4.6 GHz. Qualcomm claims the new architecture delivers a 20% performance increase and 35% higher energy efficiency compared to its predecessor. The Adreno GPU has also been enhanced, offering 23% faster graphics, 20% better power efficiency, and a 25% improvement in ray tracing performance.
Artificial intelligence plays a central role, with the upgraded Hexagon NPU now delivering 37% faster generative AI performance directly on the device. This enables more advanced on-device AI features without depending heavily on cloud computing.
Advanced Camera and Multimedia Featurefeaturefeatyres
The Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 is the first mobile platform to support recording in the Advanced Professional Video (APV) codec, allowing smartphones to approach cinema-grade video capture with professional post-production workflows. It is also the first Android processor compatible with Android 16’s near-lossless image capture.
Equipped with three 20-bit ISPs (Image Signal Processors), the chip enhances photo quality by offering up to four times greater dynamic range, improving detail in highlights and shadows for more balanced and realistic images.
Gaming Capabilities
Gaming receives a notable boost with the expanded Snapdragon Elite Gaming suite, now offering full support for Unreal Engine 5. This translates into more realistic visuals and up to 1 hour and 48 minutes of additional gaming time, thanks to a 16% energy saving compared to the previous generation.
Audio and Connectivity
Audio performance has been refined through Snapdragon Audio Sense, which integrates intelligent microphones with “studio-quality” sound features. On the connectivity side, the SoC incorporates the Qualcomm X85 5G modem, capable of download speeds up to 12.5 Gbps and upload speeds of 3.7 Gbps. Additionally, the FastConnect 7900 system provides Wi-Fi 7 support with 40% lower energy consumption and up to 50% lower latency in gaming scenarios.
Availability
The Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 will power upcoming flagship smartphones from a wide range of manufacturers, including Honor, iQOO, Nubia, OnePlus, OPPO, POCO, Redmi, RedMagic, ROG, Samsung, Sony, vivo, Xiaomi, and ZTE, with launches expected in the coming months.
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