Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 will be an “almost perfect SoC”

Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Summit 2023 is just a few days away now. The event kicks off on Tuesday, October 24, in Maui, Hawaii. While the company has plenty of things to unveil at the event, the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 will be the star of the show. Leaks have already revealed a great deal about the new chip. Finer details are still missing but an industry insider says it will be an “almost perfect SOC.”

The Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 is more powerful and energy efficient

The Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 is an octa-core chipset with a 1+5+2 CPU configuration. According to rumors, it features one ARM Cortex-X4 prime CPU core clocked at 3.19GHz, five Cortex-A720 mid-cores clocked at 2.96GHz, and four Cortex-A520 efficiency cores clocked at 2.27GHz. Qualcomm is expected to pair the CPU with a new and improved Adreno 750 GPU. We don’t have the frequency of the graphics unit.

The chip will also come in an overclocked version that will be initially exclusive to Samsung’s Galaxy S24 series. The so-called “For Galaxy” version reportedly has its prime core operating at 3.30GHz and three Cortex-A720 mid-cores at 3.15GHz. The other two mid-cores and the two efficiency cores operate at the same frequency as the standard Snapdragon 8 Gen 3. The GPU may be overclocked too.

Early benchmark scores of the new Qualcomm chip have been promising. However, benchmark performances can’t always be taken seriously, as it’s easy to fabricate the scores. More importantly, those early tests are usually performed using pre-production devices or prototypes. This means there’s room for improvement through proper hardware and software optimization.

That said, the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 may set a new bar for flagship smartphone chips. According to noted industry insider Ice Universe, the new Qualcomm processor has “strong performance” and that isn’t the best thing about it. The chip is “more energy efficient” too, so much so that it is “an almost perfect SOC.” The tipster says rivals will find it difficult to match the efficiency of the chip, let alone surpass it.

MediaTek may have its task cut out

The Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 will compete against MediaTek’s Dimensity 9300 in the flagship segment. The latter is also an octa-core chipset, but it lacks efficiency cores. The Taiwanese firm is offering one Cortex-X4 prime core clocked at 3.25GHz, three more Cortex-X4 cores clocked at 2.85GHz, and four Cortex-A720 mid-cores clocked at 2.0GHz. The chip comes with the Immortalis G720 MC12 GPU.

Benchmark runs of the Dimensity 9300 have shown it outperforming the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 For Galaxy in multi-core tests. Rumors have also hinted at a more powerful CPU than the Qualcomm chip. However, the lack of efficiency cores may make it a power-hungry chip. MediaTek certainly has its task cut out to improve the efficiency of the new Dimensity. It will be interesting to see how the two chips stack up in everyday usage.