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Qualcomm's next sub-flagship chip may not be the Snapdragon 8s Elite
Published onMarch 25, 2025
- Qualcomm could be rebranding its expected Snapdragon 8s Elite SoC as the Snapdragon 8s Gen 4, potentially complicating its already complex naming conventions.
- The leaked specifications suggest the chipset is built on TSMC’s advanced 4nm process. It features a mix of Cortex-X4 and Cortex-A720 cores and an Adreno GPU similar to the one found in the existing Snapdragon 8 Elite.
- This chip seemingly avoids the “Elite” label because it lacks Qualcomm’s proprietary Oryon CPU architecture.
Qualcomm’s Snapdragon lineup can sometimes get difficult to follow, but the flagship end is a little less complicated than the rest of the lineup. Every year, we have a top-tier flagship SoC and a second “s” SoC for affordable flagships. After the success of the Snapdragon 8 Elite SoC, we have been hearing about the upcoming 8s Elite SoC for upcoming flagships. As it turns out, Qualcomm’s flagship lineup is also set to get confusing as this SoC might get rebranded to 8s Gen 4.
Qualcomm has been spotted working on the SM8735, widely believed to be called the Snapdragon 8s Elite SoC. Leaker Digital Chat Station mentions that this part number could end up being called the Snapdragon 8s Gen 4 instead.
The leaker has also shared allegedly finalized specifications of the processor. According to the leaker, the Snapdragon 8s Gen 4 is built on TSMC’s 4nm process. It is said to come with a prime Cortex-X4 core clocked at 3.21GHz, three performance Cortex-A720 cores clocked at 3.01GHz, two more Cortex-A720 cores clocked at 2.8GHz, and two more Cortex-A720 cores clocked at 2.02GHz.
The processor is said to come with the Adreno 825 GPU, which is said to be similar to the Adreno 830 found in the Snapdragon 8 Elite but with a reduced core size.
Digital Chat Station also mentions that the ISP is also the same as the Snapdragon 8 Elite.
New phones with this chip are expected to be released in early April, so we’ll hear more about this SoC soon.
Why is this not the Snapdragon 8s Elite?
The leaker mentions in a comment that because this SM8735 SoC doesn’t use Qualcomm’s self-developed Oryon CPU architecture, it is not being named an “Elite” SoC.
This makes sense, but it also complicates Qualcomm’s lineup with a Snapdragon 8s Gen 4 when there isn’t a corresponding 8 Gen 4 (presumed to be what the 8 Elite would be called before it was rebranded). It also raises questions about what next year’s SoCs will be called.
Qualcomm is no stranger to a messy naming convention, and the situation doesn’t seem likely to improve anytime soon.