Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 was expected to be the next flagship smartphone chip from Qualcomm. But it turns out the chipmaker may have a new name for it — Snapdragon 8 Elite. It will be a successor to the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 and is leaked to bring significant improvements.
Leaked promo materials for the Xiaomi 15 series reveal that it’ll be powered by the Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset. Multiple reports believe the Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 has been renamed Snapdragon 8 Elite.
The new Qualcomm chip will be out in October. So, we are still a few weeks away from the next flagship Qualcomm chip announcement, but thanks to past leaks, we already have plenty of details.
In this post, we’ll compare the Snapdragon 8 Elite and the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 to find out how significant the upgrades are.
[Note: The Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite chip isn’t released yet. This comparison is based on the leaked information we’ve gathered so far.]Snapdragon 8 Elite vs Snapdragon 8 Gen 3: Spec Sheet
| Snapdragon 8 Elite (leaked) | Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 | |
|---|---|---|
| Release date | October 2024 (expected) | October 2023 |
| Process node | 3nm | 4nm |
| Manufacturer | TSMC | TSMC |
| Cores | 8 | 8 |
| CPU architecture | 2 x 4.09 GHz – Oryon 6 x 2.78 GHz – Oryon | 1 x Cortex-X4 @ 3.3 GHz 3 x Cortex-A720 @ 3.15 GHz 2 x Cortex-A720 @ 2.96 GHz 2 x Cortex-A520 @ 2.27 GHz |
| CPU max frequency | 4,090 MHz | 3,300 MHz |
| CPU bit | 64-bit | 64-bit |
| GPU | Adreno 830 1150 MHz frequency | Adreno 750 770 MHz frequency Snapdragon Elite Gaming Hardware Accelerated Ray Tracing |
| NPU | Hexagon | Hexagon |
Snapdragon 8 Elite vs Snapdragon 8 Gen 3: AnTuTu Scores
Here’s how the Snapdragon 8 Elite and Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 perform on the AnTuTu 10 benchmark:
| AnTuTu 10 | Snapdragon 8 Elite | Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 |
|---|---|---|
| AnTuTu score | 31,33,570 | 21,28,819 |
| CPU | 702,689 | 475,525 |
| GPU | 13,30,057 | 896,088 |
| Memory | 616,268 | 416,633 |
| UX | 484,556 | 340,573 |
The leaked AnTuTu score of the Snapdragon 8 Elite shatters all AnTuTu records for smartphone chips. Not even the Dimensity 9300+ and Apple A18 Pro AnTuTu scores are close to it.
The Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, running on Red Magic 9 Pro, has scored 2128819 AnTuTu points, the highest for smartphones, and the Snapdragon 8 Lite has handsomely beaten that with a total AnTuTu score of 3133570.
Being a Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 successor, the Snapdragon 8 Elite was expected to perform better, but the difference between AnTuTu scores is around 50%, which is massive.
Snapdragon 8 Elite vs Snapdragon 8 Gen 3: Geekbench Scores
| Geekbench V6 | Snapdragon 8 Elite | Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 |
|---|---|---|
| Single core | 2,845 | 2,376 |
| Multi core | 10,628 | 7,058 |
The leaked Geekbench 6 scores for the Snapdragon 8 Elite reveal massive improvements over last year’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, particularly in the multi-core test.
Snapdragon 8 Elite vs Snapdragon 8 Gen 3: Key Differences
The Snapdragon 8 Elite will reportedly be manufactured on a 3nm node (vs. 4nm for the 8 Gen 3) and should be TSMC again, which has been producing most chips for Qualcomm using its cutting-edge technologies. So, the new chip should be more efficient than its predecessor.
While the Snapdragon 8 Elite is leaked to have 8 cores, it won’t borrow the same (1+3+4) core cluster configuration from its predecessor. Instead, it is expected to feature a (2+6) configuration.
The upcoming Snapdragon 8 Elite could be Qualcomm’s first mobile processor powered by its Oryon CPU technology. The same CPU powers the Snapdragon X Elite chip for PC.
The Snapdragon X Elite-powered computers have shown excellent performance and tremendous power efficiency, which has been a big downside for Windows computers for a very long time. Since the Snapdragon 8 Elite is also rumored to have Oryon CPUs, everyone expects a huge performance and power efficiency leap over its predecessor, Snapdragon 8 Gen 3.
According to a recent leak, the Snapdragon 8 Elite has two super large cores clocked at 4.09 GHz, and the remaining six mid-cores run at 2.78 GHz. So, the peak CPU frequency is 4.09 GHz (vs. 3.3 GHz for Snapdragon 8 Gen 3).
The Snapdragon 8 Elite might have the Adreno 830 GPU, which could be an even bigger upgrade than its CPUs, with leaks reporting a 43% to 56% improvement over its predecessor. The new GPU will allegedly run at 1150 MHz, while the Adreno 750 inside the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 runs at 750 MHz.
The bottom line is that Snapdragon 8 Elite could bring serious CPU and GPU improvements. And the Oryon cores might offer the best battery efficiency on Android smartphones. Everything about the Snapdragon 8 Elite looks super exciting at the moment. However, since everything is based on leaks, consume everything with a pinch of salt.
Also Read:
1. Snapdragon 8 Elite: More Than Just a Fancy New Name?
2. Xiaomi 15 Series With Snapdragon 8 Elite SoC Coming Next Month
Comments