Qualcomm has detailed its Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 mobile processor, and there's an interesting quirk in how the company is positioning the chip. Rather than comparing performance to last year's Snapdragon 8 Elite, Qualcomm is benchmarking the new flagship against the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 from 2023. The naming shift from Elite back to Gen numbering now appears to serve a marketing purpose, allowing the company to skip direct year-over-year comparisons.
Against that two-generation-old baseline, Qualcomm claims the Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 delivers up to 36 percent faster CPU performance with 42 percent better efficiency, 11 percent faster graphics with 28 percent improved GPU efficiency, and a 46 percent boost in AI performance through its neural processing unit. The chip achieves an overall 13 percent reduction in power consumption while adding support for what Qualcomm calls agentic AI assistants.
The new processor supports LPDDR5x-4800 memory and UFS 4.1 storage, paired with a Snapdragon X80 5G modem capable of 10 Gbps downloads and 3.5 Gbps uploads. WiFi 7 and Bluetooth 6 connectivity come via the Qualcomm FastConnect 7900 system. The Qualcomm Spectra triple 20-bit image signal processor can handle three simultaneous 48MP cameras or a single 320MP sensor, with 4K video capture at 120fps and display support for QHD+ panels running at 240 Hz.
Devices featuring the Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 are expected to launch in early 2025, though Qualcomm hasn't disclosed pricing or announced specific manufacturing partners yet.
