Qualcomm introduced Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6. The most powerful Androids will get the Extreme version

Qualcomm has so far launched each generation of flagship Androids with a single main chip. This year, that changes: at the Snapdragon Summit in Hawaii, the company introduced the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 and, above it, an even more powerful Snapdragon 8 Elite Extreme Gen 6. If you’re planning on getting a new top-tier phone in the coming months, it’s worth keeping an eye on which version it hides – the difference will be most noticeable in games and video recording.

Chips use a 2nm process and can handle up to 5 GHz

The base is the same for both chips. They are manufactured using a 2nm process and are powered by a new generation of the Oryon processor with two high-performance Prime cores and six powerful cores. The main cores run at up to 5 GHz, which, according to Qualcomm, makes Oryon the first mobile processor with such a clock speed. The remaining cores stop at 4 GHz, and all share 16 MB of cache memory, which they divide as needed.

We wrote about Qualcomm aiming for the five-gigahertz mark at the end of August. At that time, it was expected that the more powerful model would carry the “Pro” moniker – ultimately, it became Extreme.

The chips also share surrounding equipment. The X105 modem can download at speeds of up to 14.8 Gbps and also supports satellite connectivity, while the FastConnect 8800 module handles Wi-Fi 8 and Bluetooth 6.0. Both Snapdragons can manage LPDDR6 memory up to 24 GB and UFS 5.0 storage, and the camera can capture images up to 320 megapixels.

How does the Extreme version differ?

The most visible difference is shown by the numbers Qualcomm compares with last year’s Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5. The Extreme version is expected to offer 13% higher CPU performance, 44% more powerful graphics, and a 35% faster artificial intelligence unit. The base model improves by 10%, 35%, and 14% respectively. The power efficiency of the CPU and GPU increases equally for both, by 37% and 40% respectively. However, these are manufacturer’s figures that we cannot independently verify yet, and Qualcomm itself points out that the result will also depend on how a specific phone utilizes the chip.

For gamers, Extreme is set to offer the Adreno Neural Fusion feature. The graphics chip has received cores dedicated to artificial intelligence, which can render the game at a lower resolution and then upscale the image, or insert generated frames between actual ones. In practice, this means higher fluidity and longer battery life for gaming, but games must support the technology. Qualcomm is therefore preparing add-ons for game engines.

The second area where Extreme excels is video. It can record in 8K at 60 frames per second and slow-motion footage in 4K at 240 frames, while the base version tops out at 8K at 30 and 4K at 120 frames. Additionally, it can record in the professional APV format, allowing video to be directly edited and color-graded right on the phone.

The first phone has already been introduced

Qualcomm named the manufacturers who will adopt the new chips: Honor, iQOO, Motorola, OnePlus, Oppo, Redmi, RedMagic, vivo, and Xiaomi. Motorola has already officially unveiled its new Signature 27 with the Snapdragon 8 Elite Extreme Gen 6.

Xiaomi will follow, which will introduce the Xiaomi 18 Pro series tomorrow (Wednesday, September 23).

Qualcomm will mainly compete with MediaTek, which introduced its flagship Dimensity 9600 Pro a week ago. How much the new phones will cost and when they will arrive in the Czech Republic will be revealed by the individual manufacturers.

Will you opt for a phone with the Extreme version next year, or will the basic Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 be more than enough for you?

Sources: Qualcomm, Engadget, XimiTime