TECH

Snapdragon 8 Elite vs. Snapdragon 8 Gen 3: Setting new standards for flagships

Qualcomm recently unveiled its newest flagship chip, Snapdragon 8 Elite, which will be the driving force behind most of the top-tier Android devices heading into 2025. The chip brings noticeable upgrades that put the Dimensity 9400 and Apple’s A18 Pro on high alert.

Qualcomm makes big claims for the Snapdragon 8 Elite in terms of its performance, efficiency, and AI capabilities. But how does it compare with its predecessor, Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, and is upgrading to Elite a worthwhile decision? Let’s compare them to help you pick the right chipset for your next smartphone.

	Snapdragon 8 Elite	Snapdragon 8 Gen 3
Announced	October 2024	October 2023
Part number	SM8750-AB	SM8650-AB, SM8650-AC
Process node	3nm	3nm
Manufacturer	TSMC	TSMC
CPU	2 x Oryon @ 4.32GHz 6 x Oryon @ 3.53GHz	1 x Cortex-X4 @ 3.3GHz 3 x Cortex-A720 @ 3.15GHz 2 x Cortex-A720 @ 2.96GHz 2 x Cortex-A520 @ 2.27GHz
GPU	Adreno 720 GPU Unreal Engine 5.3 running Nanite on smartphones Qualcomm Adaptive Performance Engine 4.0 Hardware accelerated ray tacing Snapdragon Game Super Resolution 2.0 Adreno Frame Motion Engine 2.0	Adreno 750 GPU Support for Unreal Engine 5.2 Lumen Hardware accelerated ray tracing Snapdragon Game Super Resolution Adreno Frame Motion Engine 2.0
NPU	Qualcomm Hexagon NPU	Qualcomm Hexagon NPU
Camera	Qualcomm Spectra AI Triple 18-bit ISP Limitless real-time semantic segmentation Up to 320MP single camera Up to 108MP single camera at 30fps with zero shutter lag Up to 48MP triple camera at 30fps with zero shutter lag 8K/60fps video recording 1080p/480fps slow-mo video recording	Qualcomm Spectra Cognitive Triple 18-bit ISP Real-time semantic segmentation (max 12 layers) Up to 200MP single camera Up to 108MP single camera at 30fps with zero shutter lag Up to 64MP+36MP dual camera at 30fps with zero shutter lag Up to 36MP triple camera at 30fps with zero shutter lag 8K/30fps or 4K/120fps video recording 720p/960fps slow-mo video recording
Memory	LPDDR5x at 5.3GHz Up to 24GB support	LPDDR5x at 4.8GHz Up to 24GB support
Storage	UFS 4.0	UFS 4.0
Connectivity	Snapdragon X80 5G modem Downlink: 10Gbps Uplink: 3.5Gbps Qualcomm FastConnect 7900 Wi-Fi 7 (peak speed: 5.8Gbps) Bluetooth 6.0 Integrated Ultra Wideband (UWB)	Snapdragon X75 5G modem Downlink: 10Gbps Uplink: 3.5Gbps Qualcomm FastConnect 7800 Wi-Fi 7 (peak speed: 5.8Gbps) Bluetooth 5.4

Snapdragon 8 Elite vs. 8 Gen 3: Benchmarks...For benchmark comparison, we have taken into account results provided by Qualcomm for the Snapdragon 8 Elite. For Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, we have the Galaxy S24 Ultra.

The Snapdragon 8 Elite is significantly ahead of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3. However, it couldn’t defeat the Apple A18 Pro, though it handsomely leaves behind the MediaTek Dimensity 9400.

The Snapdragon 8 Elite shines in its full glory when it comes to multi-core results on Geekbench. Not only does it outperform the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, but also the Apple A18 Pro, and that too by a good margin.

The Snapdragon 8 Elite is leading the chart again. Interestingly, MediaTek Dimensity 9400 is neck-to-neck with the Elite chip. However, both chips are powerful enough to beat the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 and Apple A18 Pro by a significant margin on AnTuTu.

Snapdragon 8 Elite vs. 8 Gen 3: CPU...The Snapdragon 8 Elite is fabbed on TSMC’s 3nm process, while its predecessor uses a 4nm process node. This fabrication node shift benefits raw performance and power efficiency.

Another big change to the Snapdragon 8 Elite is the debut of Qualcomm’s Oryon cores. Oryon came into existence earlier this year for Windows laptops, which surprised with power efficiency. Now, Qualcomm is bringing that performance and efficiency leap to mobile devices with the Snapdragon 8 Elite. Notably, the Snapdragon X Elite and X Plus chips for laptops use first-gen Oryon cores. However, the Snapdragon 8 Elite uses second-gen Oryon cores.

The Prime Oryon core inside the Snapdragon 8 Elite has a 4.32GHz peak clock speed (vs. 3.3GHz on the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3). The other six cores also run at a higher clock speed. Snapdragon 8 Elite has 24MB of cache memory, the largest on a mobile chipset.

Qualcomm makes big claims for the Snapdragon 8 Elite — a 45% performance boost and 44% more power saving over its predecessor.

Snapdragon 8 Elite vs. 8 Gen 3: GPU...The Snapdragon 8 Elite isn’t all about CPU; it brings serious upgrades to the GPU as well. It ships with the Adreno 830 GPU, which offers a 40% performance uplift compared to Adreno 750 inside the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3.

Increased performance results in faster battery consumption, but thanks to the sliced architecture, the GPU offers 40% energy efficiency over its predecessor. In fact, Snapdragon 8 Elite is the first Qualcomm chip with sliced architecture. The chip giant also promises 35% better ray tracing performance.

The Snapdragon 8 Elite brings Unreal Engine 5’s Nanite solution to mobile devices, enabling film-quality 3D environments in smartphone gaming.

Snapdragon 8 Elite vs. 8 Gen 3: AI...Qualcomm is improving AI capabilities with each upgrade, and Snapdragon 8 Elite is no different. However, this time, more areas are exposed to AI, including cameras.

The Snapdragon 8 Elite has a next-gen Hexagon NPU, which claims to be 45% faster and delivers 45% higher performance per watt. The new NPU has an enhanced token limit, meaning on-device AI assistants can process more complex and longer inputs.

The chip continues to support on-device multi-modal AI assistants, allowing users to execute complex tasks without relying on an internet connection.

Snapdragon 8 Elite vs. 8 Gen 3: Camera...Qualcomm has also enhanced camera capabilities on the Snapdragon 8 Elite. It ships with a triple 18-bit AI ISP, while its predecessor has the Cognitive ISP. The new chip supports a 320MP single camera, up from 200MP limit on the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3. With Zero Shutter Lag (ZSL) enabled, the ISP now supports triple 48MP capture, up from 36MP capture from its predecessor.

The standout camera upgrade to the Snapdragon 8 Elite is its ability to perform limitless real-time segmentation, while it is limited to 12 layers on the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3. In simple words, this means the new chip can identify far more objects in a frame and can accurately apply blur, bokeh effects, color adjustments, and other variables that can drastically improve the accuracy and quality of images and videos.

Snapdragon 8 Elite natively supports 8K HDR videos at 60fps, and the slow-mo video recording has gone up to 1080p, from 720p on Snapdragon 8 Gen 3. With the new chip, Qualcomm promises massive improvements in video quality in extremely dark surroundings.

Snapdragon 8 Elite vs. 8 Gen 3: Connectivity...The new Snapdragon X80 5G Modem-RG System promises a 30% increase in location and position accuracy, although the peak download and upload speeds haven’t gone up. The chip also includes a new Qualcomm FastConnect 7900 Mobile Connectivity System, which offers AI-enhanced Wi-Fi 7 with better energy efficiency.

The Snapdragon 8 Elite supports Bluetooth 6, while the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 is limited to Bluetooth 5.4. It also supports Ultra Wideband (UWB) for enhanced location tracking.

Snapdragon 8 Elite vs. 8 Gen 3: Early take...Even though we have yet to test a Snapdragon 8 Elite device, early benchmark results and Qualcomm claims promise significant strides in performance and efficiency. From what we know, it could be the best chip for Android devices, and Apple’s A-series processors aren’t untouched, as it also outperforms the flagship A18 Pro on benchmarks.

Xiaomi 15 will be the first phone to launch with Snapdragon 8 Elite, followed by other brands such as Realme, iQOO, Honor, and Samsung.

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