Qualcomm chipsets are stratified by quantity, however there are additional subdivisions with “+” and extra not too long ago “s” fashions. Today the firm unveils the Snapdragon 8s Gen 3, a chipset that provides a range of the premium Snapdragon options with out costing as a lot as the premier 8 Gen 2 and eight Gen 3 chips.
The 8s Gen 3 is a 4nm chip with a Cortex-X4 prime core at 3.0GHz, 4 efficiency cores at 2.8GHz and three effectivity cores at 2.0GHz. It helps up to 24GB of LPDDR5x RAM (up to 4,200MHz) and UFS 4.0 storage. For connectivity, it does USB 3.1 Gen 2 over USB-C.
Here is how that compares to the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 and the older Snapdragon 8 Gen 2:
| Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 | Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 | Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Node | TSMC 4nm | TSMC 4nm | TSMC 4nm |
| CPU (Prime) | 1x Cortex-X3 @ 3.2/3.36GHz | 1x Cortex-X4 @ 3.0GHz | 1x Cortex-X4 @ 3.3/3.4GHz |
| CPU (Big) | 2x Cortex-A715 @ 2.8GHz 2x Cortex-A710 @ 2.8GHz |
4x Cortex-A720 @ 2.8GHz | 3x Cortex-720 @ 3.15GHz 2x Cortex-720 @ 2.96GHz |
| CPU (Small) | 3x Cortex-A510 @ 2.0GHz | 3x Cortex-A520 @ 2.0GHz | 2x Cortex-A520 @ 2.3GHz |
| RAM | up to 24GB LPDDR5x 4,200MHz | up to 24GB LPDDR5x 4,200MHz | up to 24GB LPDDR5x 4,800MHz |
| Storage | UFS 4.0 | UFS 4.0 | UFS 4.0 |
| USB | USB 3.1 | USB 3.1 Gen 2 | USB 3.1 Gen 2 |
| GPU | Adreno 740 | Adreno 735 | Adreno 750 |
| 5G modem | X70 | X70 | X75 |
| ISP | triple 18-bit | triple 18-bit | triple 18-bit |
| Video | 8K HDR @ 30fps 4K @ 120fps |
4K HDR @ 60fps 1080p @ 240fps |
8K HDR @ 30fps 4K @ 120fps |
As you’ll be able to see, this isn’t only a binned model of the 8 Gen 3. It has the Cortex-X4 core at a decrease clock velocity, but additionally 4 huge cores and 3 small ones for an 1+4+3 configuration. The unique 8 Gen 3 chip is in a 1+5+2 configuration.
RAM assist is nearer to the 8 Gen 2 and we see the older Snapdragon X70 5G modem fairly than the X75. However, Qualcomm says that the 8s Gen 3 implements 3GPP Release 17 and 5G power financial savings that the 8 Gen 2 does not. Either means, the chip is prepared for the new Wi-Fi 7 commonplace, so telephones can be in a position to take pleasure in extra bandwidth and decrease latency. For audio, 15-bit 44.1kHz lossless wi-fi streaming is supported as is Auracast.
Let’s have a better take a look at what premium options Qualcomm selected for the Snapdragon 8s Gen 3.
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Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 highlights
Generative AI is at the forefront as new functions have gained loads of reputation but additionally revealed new points. The 8s chip can run the hottest fashions like Llama 2, Baichuan-7B and Gemini Nano (Pixel 8 house owners not too long ago discovered their telephones can’t run Gemini Nano – that’s one of the new points we talked about). Models with up to 10 billion parameters are supported. The s-model is just not as quick as the 8 Gen 3 duties, but it surely stands out from the older 8 Gen 2 with its on-device AI assist.
AI apart, the new chip is aimed toward delivering a flagship digital camera expertise and prime of the line gaming efficiency. For the former, it features a triple 18-bit ISP that works hand-in-hand with the Hexagon NPU for picture processing. It permits an “always-sensing camera” function that accelerates face unlock and QR code scanning. The ISP+NPU combo additionally boosts picture high quality in the darkish and may even do outpainting (i.e. “uncropping” a picture).
In extra technical phrases, it could actually run three 36MP cameras at 30fps with Zero Shutter Lag or a single 108MP digital camera at 30fps, nonetheless no shutter lag. The most picture seize decision is 200MP. 10-bit HEIC and HEVC photos and movies are supported with 4K HDR movies going up to 60fps. Notice the absence of an 8K video mode, no 4K at 120fps both. These are reserved for the premier 8-series fashions.
For gaming, the Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 (SM8635) is provided with a beefy Adreno GPU. It helps hardware-accelerated ray tracing. The Adreno Frame Motion Engine 2.0 can double the body charge with out further power consumption, Snapdragon Game Super Resolution provides further pixels to the picture at no further value.
The chip can drive an on-board QHD+ show at up to 144Hz or a 4K show at 60Hz. Variable refresh charges are supported in the vary from 1Hz to 240Hz. For exterior shows, up 8K panels are supported (30Hz) or 1080p excessive refresh charge ones (up to 240Hz).
The chip helps H.265 and AV1 video decoding (up to 4K at 60fps) with HDR playback (HDR10+, Dolby Vision, HLG).
Several main smartphone makers have already picked the Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 for some of their telephones, together with Honor, iQOO, Realme and Xiaomi (and we are going to even see Redmis with this chip). They will announce the telephones “in the coming months”, however we’ve a sense that we gained’t have to wait that lengthy.