Qualcomm confirmed 5 GHz clock speed. The upcoming Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 is set to be the first mobile chip this fast

The five-gigahertz threshold has been discussed for mobile chips for a year now, but mostly as speculation. Now Qualcomm has said it aloud for the first time: its new Oryon processor will be the first mobile chip to reach a 5 GHz clock speed. It also hinted at a new cache architecture designed to maintain performance even where phones typically lose it.

What exactly did Qualcomm confirm?

In an official post on its blog, Qualcomm stated that the next generation of flagship Snapdragons (likely under the designation Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 and Gen 6 Pro) will be led by the new Oryon processor. The company designed it entirely itself and claims it will be the fastest mobile chip in the world (though we cannot verify this yet). The chips will be fully unveiled next month at the Snapdragon Summit.

Qualcomm confirmed 5 GHz clock speed. The upcoming Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 is set to be the first mobile chip this fast Adam Kurfürst News Adam Kurfürst News

However, the main attraction is clear: Oryon is set to be the first mobile processor to reach 5 GHz. This milestone for Snapdragons was discussed last year, when its achievement was speculated upon for the previous generation – but only as estimates at the time.

The new processor is built on its own architecture with two most powerful Prime cores and six regular performance cores. Qualcomm did not specify the exact clock speeds of individual cores, but according to a leak, the two main cores are expected to run at up to 5.01 GHz, three performance cores at 4.03 GHz, and the remaining three at 3.74 GHz.

What is the new FlexCache for?

The second novelty unveiled by Qualcomm is a new cache architecture called Oryon FlexCache. Simply put, it allows all processor cores to share a common pool of cache, which they distribute among themselves based on what they are currently computing.

In practice, this means that when a task requires more memory, it can draw from a larger portion of the shared pool. This keeps data closer to the cores, and the processor doesn’t have to access slower RAM as often, which, according to Qualcomm, helps maintain performance even when memory is scarce – precisely when memory prices are soaring.

The company expects the combination of high clock speed and smarter cache to result in faster application launches, smoother gaming, and quicker app switching. So-called agent artificial intelligence, where the processor manages an entire chain of sub-tasks, is also expected to benefit.

Will the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 maintain 5 GHz under load?

However, theoretical clock speed is one thing, and sustained performance under load is another. For mobile chips in general, the highest frequency can only be maintained by the phone for a short time before temperature starts to throttle it. Therefore, consider the mentioned 5 GHz more as a peak value for short bursts of performance rather than a state in which the processor will operate during long gaming sessions or video recording.

How the new generation will truly perform will only be revealed by independent tests of finished phones. The first of these with the new chip should appear shortly after the September unveiling.

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Sources: Qualcomm, GSMArena