We heard Qualcomm was working on a semi-flagship processor with the “SM8635” codename. There were many expectations with the chipset given that it was said to have a similar architecture as the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3! Does it live up to all the hype surrounding it? Here, we will take a deeper look at the recently launched Qualcomm Snapdragon 8s Gen 3.
Qualcomm Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 Overview
Internals
As mentioned earlier, the word was that Qualcomm Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 would have a similar architecture to the top-of-the-line Qualcomm processor. Thus, it should not come as a surprise that the new chipset comes with TSMC’s 4nm fabrication process. Other than that, the core architecture sees a slight tweak with one Cortex-X4, four Cortex-A720, and three Cortex-A520. These cores clock in at 3.0GHz, 2.8GHz, and 2.0 GHz respectively. In comparison, the 2024 flagship processor boasts five Cortex-A720 cores altogether while opting for two Cortex-A520.
On the graphics side of things, the new chip packs the Adreno 735 GPU. The naming suggests that it is weaker than the Adreno 740 featured on the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2. However, the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 comes with hardware-accelerated raytracing that was introduced on this year’s flagship chip. Other than that, it also packs the Adreno Frame Motion Engine 2.0 which helps double the frame rate on games to 120 FPS giving you a smoother experience.
On-device Generative AI
With recent developments, it has become a must for a processor to have an integrated AI engine of sorts. Similarly, the Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 comes with the Qualcomm Hexagon NPU offering on-device generative AI capabilities. This chip has over 30 large language models and large video model support. With this, you can get access to AI features like content creation through prompts and image expansion.
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Hardware Support and the rest
In terms of hardware support, the Qualcomm 8s Gen 3 supports up to 24GB LPDDR5x RAM with frequency of 4,200MHz. This is the same memory support as last year’s Qualcomm flagship chipset. Meanwhile, you also get UFS 4.0 storage and USB 3.1 Gen 2 support. This chip can support on-device display of 4K @60Hz or QHD+ @144Hz.
Talking of the camera, it can work with up to 200MP sensors. However, you can enjoy only 30FPS with Zero Shutter Lag on lenses of up to 108MP resolution. Moreover, it also misses out on the 8K video recording that you get on flagship processors of this year as well as last year. Meaning, you have to make do with 4K @60fps recordings.
Other than that, it also misses out on the X75 5G modem opting for X70 instead. Nonetheless, the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 is WiFi 7-ready and has Bluetooth v5.4 support. In addition to that, the chip also comes with triple-frequency navigation support with GPS, GLONASS, BeiDou, Galileo, QZSS, and NavIC satellites. Lastly, you get Qualcomm Quick Charge 5 technology that can take your device from 0 to 50 in a mere five minutes with a 100W+ charger.
Qualcomm Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 Availability
The Qualcomm Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 was announced in a launch event held on 18 March 2024 in China. As per the company, the chip will be available in the market in the coming months. However, we will not even have to wait that long!
The chipset has already been linked with the likes of Realme GT Neo 6 and the Xiaomi 14 Lite. Matter of fact, the Xiaomi Civi 4 Pro will be the first phone to launch with this chip and it will launch on 21 March 2024. Other brands like Honor and IQOO will soon announce their offerings with the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8s Gen 3!
- Meanwhile, check out our flagship chipset comparison video:
