Image: Chris Martin / Foundry
This year’s Snapdragon Summit has unveiled two exciting new mobile chipsets, alongside a significant structural change with the discontinuation of the 8s series.
Alongside the anticipated launch of the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5, Qualcomm introduced a lower-tier Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 processor, designed specifically for more affordable devices.
During a press session, Alex Katouzian, Group General Manager of Mobile, Compute, & XR (MCX), emphasized the firm’s decision to retire the Snapdragon 8s series.
“The 8s is evolving into the 8 Gen,” Katouzian stated. “We now have the 8 Elite and the 8 Gen.”
Katouzian elaborated on this strategy by explaining that initial experiments with the 8s revealed market feedback indicating that consumers desire a unified premium experience. He paraphrased the customer sentiment, stating, “There should be no sub-tier options for the flagship class.”
This change, while potentially complex due to past naming conventions—like the Elite 8 Gen 5 initially being anticipated as Elite 2—ultimately clarifies Qualcomm’s lineup within the flagship 8 series.
High-end devices will now feature the Elite chips, while the regular version of Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 will cater to budget-friendly or mid-range devices, likely with reduced processing speeds.
The timeline for devices powered by the Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 is not yet clear, but we anticipate that the first smartphones leveraging the 8 Elite Gen 5 will be unveiled shortly, potentially starting with the Xiaomi 17 range this week.
For further reading, check out:
- Which Phones Use the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5?
- Confirmed: The Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 outperforms the iPhone 17 Pro
- Samsung Teases Galaxy S26 Featuring Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5
Note: Qualcomm sponsored my travel, including airfare and meals, for attendance at the Snapdragon Technology Summit; however, the company did not influence the content produced by Tech Advisor.
