Qualcomm could pull a big surprise when it comes to future Android hardware

Qualcomm might be slightly less predictable than you expect with its next hardware release

Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3
(Image credit: Qualcomm)
Chris Hall
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Quick summary

Qualcomm could be about the change the naming strategy for its flagship smartphone hardware. 

It could call the next-gen hardware Snapdragon 8 Elite.

Qualcomm has been running along, releasing new hardware each year following a pattern. The flagship hardware has for a long time been the Snapdragon 8 Series. But a change might be coming that will see your next flagship phone sitting on Snapdragon hardware with a new name.

The Snapdragon 8 Series previously used a numbering system that was slightly random but fairly logical. It ran through the 800s until 2021, when Qualcomm decided to simplify and use the 8 name. That saw Snapdragon 8 Gen 1, for example, and logically, we'd been expecting Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 to launch in 2024.

However, it looks like there might be a change in direction, with a recent leak showing completely new branding for this flagship level hardware. Spotted by SmartPrix (via 9to5Google), promotional material for the upcoming Xiaomi 15 launch includes the Snapdragon 8 Elite name.

It's also said that the new Snapdragon 8 Elite hardware might move over to the Oryon cores that power the Snapdragon X Series, bringing with it a substantial power boost for the flagship hardware.

The shift in naming raises more questions that answers and presents us with a familiar problem: how do you name products that have a number of versions? For Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 we have Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 too, creating two tiers within the same product. Does that mean we'll have Snapdragon 8 Elite and Snapdragon 8 Plus?

More importantly, what happens when this hardware is updated in 2025? Will it be Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 2? While the first iteration of the naming might sound good, if there's no defined naming for future versions, it just gets a bit messy.

Qualcomm is expected to announce its new flagship hardware at Snapdragon Summit in October 2024 and it has long been suspected that Xiaomi will be there to announce the Xiaomi 15 on stage.

However, the competition to be the first out of the gate with the new hardware seems to be hotting up, with rumours that Oppo and OnePlus are also going to be gunning to be the first to get their new Snapdragon 8 Elite handset to customers.

There's going to be plenty more on this story in the coming weeks, so stay tuned.

Chris Hall
Chris Hall

Chris has been writing about consumer tech for over 15 years. Formerly the Editor-in-Chief of Pocket-lint, he's covered just about every product launched, witnessed the birth of Android, the evolution of 5G, and the drive towards electric cars. You name it and Chris has written about it, driven it or reviewed it. Now working as a freelance technology expert, Chris' experience sees him covering all aspects of smartphones, smart homes and anything else connected. Chris has been published in titles as diverse as Computer Active and Autocar, and regularly appears on BBC News, BBC Radio, Sky, Monocle and Times Radio. He was once even on The Apprentice... but we don't talk about that. 

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