Qualcomm appears to be maintaining a clear distinction between its premium and upper-midrange mobile processors with its upcoming naming strategy. Despite last year's shift from the numbered generation naming scheme to Elite for its top-tier chipset, the company is reportedly taking a different approach with its next upper-midrange offering.
Naming Convention Clarification
According to recent rumors from Chinese sources, Qualcomm will not be extending the Elite branding to its upcoming 8s series processor. Instead, the successor to the Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 will be called the Snapdragon 8s Gen 4. This decision reportedly stems from Qualcomm's desire to reserve the Elite designation exclusively for its true flagship processors. The distinction makes sense from a marketing perspective, as it helps maintain a clear hierarchy in Qualcomm's product lineup, with the Elite series representing the absolute pinnacle of the company's mobile processing technology.
Technical Specifications
The Snapdragon 8s Gen 4 is rumored to feature an all-big-core CPU architecture, similar to MediaTek's recently launched Dimensity 8400. According to leaks, the chipset will include one Cortex-X4 core clocked at 3.21 GHz, three Cortex-A720 cores running at 3.01 GHz, two more Cortex-A720 cores at 2.8 GHz, and a final pair of Cortex-A720 cores operating at 2.02 GHz. This configuration represents a significant departure from traditional CPU designs that typically incorporate both performance and efficiency cores.
Manufacturing Process and Performance
The Snapdragon 8s Gen 4 will reportedly be manufactured using TSMC's 4nm process technology. On the graphics front, the chip is expected to feature an Adreno 825 GPU, which belongs to the same generation as the Adreno 830 found in the Snapdragon 8 Elite but with reduced performance capabilities. Additional specifications include 6MB of SLC cache and 8MB of L3 cache. Early benchmark results suggest the processor will achieve AnTuTu scores exceeding 2 million points, indicating robust performance for an upper-midrange chipset.
Snapdragon 8s Gen 4 Specifications
- Manufacturing process: TSMC 4nm
- CPU configuration:
- 1x Cortex-X4 @ 3.21 GHz
- 3x Cortex-A720 @ 3.01 GHz
- 2x Cortex-A720 @ 2.8 GHz
- 2x Cortex-A720 @ 2.02 GHz
- GPU: Adreno 825
- SLC cache: 6MB
- L3 cache: 8MB
- AnTuTu score: Over 2 million points
- Expected launch: Early April 2025
- First devices: Mid-April 2025
Launch Timeline and Device Availability
If the rumors prove accurate, we can expect Qualcomm to officially unveil the Snapdragon 8s Gen 4 in early April, with the first smartphones featuring this processor hitting the market by mid-April. Several potential devices have already been linked to this upcoming chipset, including the Redmi Turbo 4 Pro, iQoo Z10 Turbo Pro, Xiaomi Civi 5 Pro, and OPPO K13 Pro, among others.
Potential Devices with Snapdragon 8s Gen 4
- Redmi Turbo 4 Pro
- iQoo Z10 Turbo Pro
- Xiaomi Civi 5 Pro
- OPPO K13 Pro
Elite Branding Exclusivity
One interesting detail from the leaks suggests that the reason the 8s series doesn't receive the Elite branding is because it doesn't utilize Qualcomm's self-developed Oryon architecture, which is reserved for the company's premium offerings. This architectural distinction further reinforces Qualcomm's strategy of clearly differentiating its product tiers.
Future Roadmap
While the Snapdragon 8s Gen 4 is expected to arrive in April, rumors also suggest that the successor to the current Snapdragon 8 Elite might be unveiled as early as May. This accelerated timeline could indicate Qualcomm's aggressive strategy to maintain its competitive edge in the increasingly crowded mobile processor market, particularly against rivals like MediaTek who have been making significant inroads with their Dimensity series.