Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 may bring new configuration of cores

A new rumor suggests that Qualcomm will again change the configuration of its CPU cores with the debut of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3. The company had already made a bet with the 8 Gen 2 by expanding the number of high-performance cores and, at the same time, it seems, the giant should reinforce the initiative by increasing that amount again, at the same time that it should introduce a new group to accompany the traditional “Gold” and “Silver”, with the suggestive name of “Titanium”.

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According to the information, Qualcomm’s next premium chipset would meet the model number SM8650 (the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 has the number SM8550), codenamed Lanai (one of the islands of Hawaii) or Pineapple (Pineapple, in Portuguese) and, as expected, its debut is scheduled for the end of 2023. What draws attention in the rumor is the possible configuration of the CPU cores, which would be modified by the second generation in a row.

The Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 would continue to be an octa-core platform, but this time in a 1 + 2 + 3 + 2 configuration, with 1 maximum performance Cortex-X in the “Gold Plus” group, 2 high-performance Cortex-A7xx in the unprecedented “Titanium” group, 3 Cortex-A7xx in the “Gold” group and 2 high efficiency Cortex-A5xx in the “Silver” group. All would belong to a new generation that has yet to be announced by ARM, responsible for the design of the cores.

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Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 – SM8650, codename Lanai or Pineapple – is the next gen Qualcomm flagship chip, slated for launch in late 2023.

— Kuba Wojciechowski :3 (@Za_Raczke) March 23, 2023

The first novelty is the use of 5 high-performance cores and only 2 high-efficiency cores, instead of the common arrangement of 3 high-performance and 4 high-efficiency cores, a daring configuration considering the risk of having impacts on cell phone battery life. More interesting is the debut of the “Titanium” core group, which would be composed of high-performance Cortex-A7xx cores with some differential.

responsible for the leak, Kuba Wojciechowski believes that this set may have more cache (the memory integrated into the core that helps keep more information close to it) or just higher clocks, but there are no details at the moment. What is known is that all of them will be new, given the codenames Hunter ELP (Cortex-X), Hunter (Cortex-A7xx) and Hayes (Cortex-A5xx), and will work only with 64-bit data instructions, leaving for back 32-bit support for good.

Lanai is the first chip from Qualcomm to introduce a “titanium” cluster. I don’t currently have any information about how the cores differ from the “gold” cluster, but the separation seems to be pretty clear in the software.

— Kuba Wojciechowski :3 (@Za_Raczke) March 23, 2023

In addition to the CPU, Because it also has information about the GPU, which should be called Adreno 750, or even Adreno Gen 7.9.0 internally (the Adreno 740 of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 was known as Adreno Gen 7.2.0). The novelty would work with frequencies of 770 MHz (against 719 MHz of the predecessor), but considering that there are still a few months until the launch of the processor, it is expected that these speeds will rise in the course of development.

Finally, the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 would debut running Linux Kernel 6.1, which means that the platform will already debut on cell phones running with Android 14 – something expected in view of its expected launch window.

Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 may arrive sooner than expected

The Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 has been the subject of an increasing number of rumors, and between positive and negative information, it is possible to define that at least we will have an interesting launch from Qualcomm. Bringing together what has already been discussed so far, the premium chip would apparently have an early launch compared to the previous generation, and could be presented as early as October, two months before the traditional deadline practiced by the giant in older models and a month earlier than the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2.

Rumors indicate that the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 may have an early launch, possibly being presented in October (Image: Digital Chat Station / Weibo)

That would allow the component to better compete with Apple’s A Bionic lineup, and free up smartphone makers to bring new devices to stores in time for the end of the year. The processor would also bring significant advances in performance and efficiency, supposedly having surpassed the iPhone 14 Pro’s A16 Bionic by reaching 1,930 points in single-core and 6,236 points in multi-core in the old Geekbench 5, while reducing consumption by 20%.

However, there is also bad news: these scores could be revised, with the solution delivering performance gains lower than expected, in the face of difficulties that TSMC would be facing in manufacturing chips with its new 3nm lithography – something that would also be affecting the alleged A17 Bionic. In any case, there is still plenty of time until the debut of the new generation of Snapdragon 8, and more information should be released during this period.

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