Qualcomm just made the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1, the company’s latest flagship Mobile Platform official at the Qualcomm Snapdragon Tech Summit 2021 event, as it had announced. It has world’s first 10 Gigabit 5G Snapdragon X65 5G Modem-RF System, Qualcomm FastConnect 6900 Mobile Connectivity System for Wi-Fi speeds of up to 3.6 Gbps, over Wi-Fi 6 and 6E.
The Kryo CPU based on latest ARM-V9 architecture promises 20% performance improvements and 30% improved power efficiency and the next-gen Adreno GPU promise 30% performance and 25% power saving compared to the predecessor.
It has 18-bit ISP with speeds up to 3.2 gigapixels per second, 7th Gen Qualcomm Artificial Intelligence (AI) Engine, Qualcomm Hexagon processor, featuring a 2x faster tensor accelerator and 2x larger shared memory than its predecessor.
Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 Key Features
- Connectivity: Equipped with the 4th gen Snapdragon X65 5G Modem-RF System, the new Snapdragon 8 is world’s first 5G modem-RF solution to reach 10 Gigabit download speeds. Snapdragon 8 features the Qualcomm FastConnect 6900 Mobile Connectivity System supports the fastest Wi-Fi speeds available—up to 3.6 Gbps—over Wi-Fi 6 and 6E
- Camera: Snapdragon Sight Technology includes the first 18-bit ISP ever created for mobile, capturing over 4000x more camera data than its predecessor for extreme dynamic range, color, and sharpness at staggering speeds up to 3.2 gigapixels per second. First 8K HDR video capture in a mobile platform, and it’s capable of capturing in HDR10+ format with over a billion shades of color. New Bokeh Engine adds beautiful soft backgrounds to videos. Includes a fourth separate ISP to run with extremely low power consumption to experience always-on face unlocking and locking if your face isn’t present for heightened privacy.
- AI: The 7th Gen Qualcomm AI Engine is equipped with the ultra-high performance and efficient Qualcomm Hexagon processor, featuring a 2x faster tensor accelerator and 2x larger shared memory than its predecessor. Intelligently integrated Leica Leitz Look filters.
- Gaming: With over 50 Snapdragon Elite Gaming features, Snapdragon 8 delivers ultra-smooth responsiveness, color-rich HDR scenes at the highest visual quality, and desktop-level capabilities that are mobile-firsts. The new Qualcomm Adreno GPU provides a 30% boost in graphics rendering capabilities and 25% improvement in power savings compared to the previous generation. Variable Rate Shading Pro provides a finer grain of control for game developers to further tune game performance. Desktop-level Volumetric rendering brings unrivaled realism to fog, smoke, and particle effects that have been optimized for mobile by Qualcomm Technologies’ in-house Snapdragon Studios.
- Sound: Integrated Bluetooth 5.2 and Snapdragon Sound Technology, now featuring Qualcomm aptX Lossless Technology for CD-quality lossless wireless audio. Supports all-new LE audio features such as broadcast audio, stereo recording, and voice back-channel for gaming.
- Security: Features vault-like security to help keep the data protected. First Snapdragon platform to feature a dedicated Trust Management Engine to achieve heightened security and provide additional Root of Trust for apps and services. World’s first mobile platform to feature Android Ready SE—the new standard for digital car keys, drivers’ licenses, and more. Additionally, the Qualcomm Secure Processing Unit features support for iSIM, an integrated SIM card, so users can easily and securely connect to cellular networks without a SIM card.
Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 (SM8450) specifications
- 1 x Kryo Prime CPU (Arm Cortex-X2-based) at up to 3.0GHz, 3 x Kryo Performance CPUs (A710-based) at up to 2.50GHz, 4x Kryo Efficiency CPUs (A510-based) at up to 1.80GHz, ARMv9 architecture
- Samsung 4nm Process Technology
- Built-in Qualcomm Snapdragon X65 5G modem-RF system
- 5G speeds of up to 10Gpbs down, 5G mmWave and sub-6 GHz, standalone (SA) and non-standalone (NSA) modes, mmWave: 1000 MHz bandwidth, 8 carriers, 2×2 MIMO, Sub-6 GHz: 300 MHz bandwidth, 4×4 MIMO, Qualcomm 5G PowerSave 2.0, Qualcomm Smart Transmit 2.0 technology, Qualcomm Wideband Envelope Tracking, Qualcomm AI-Enhanced Signal Boost, Global 5G multi-SIM
- Qualcomm Adreno next-gen GPU, Vulkan 1.1 API support, HDR gaming (10-bit color depth, Rec. 2020 color gamut), Physically Based Rendering, Volumetric Rendering, Adreno Frame Motion Engine, API Support: OpenGL ES 3.2, OpenCL 2.0 FP, Vulkan 1.1
- Hardware-accelerated H.265 and VP9 decoder, HDR Playback Codec support for HDR10+, HDR10,
HLG and Dolby Vision - Qualcomm Aqstic audio codec (WCD9385), New Qualcomm Aqstic smart speaker amplifier (WSA8835), Total Harmonic Distortion + Noise (THD+N), Playback: -108dB, Qualcomm Audio and Voice Communication Suite
- Up to 36 MP triple camera, Up to 64+36 MP dual camera, Up to 108 MP single camera with ZSL, Up to 200MP single camera, Qualcomm Spectra 680 Image Sensor Processor (18-bit triple-ISP)
- Rec. 2020 color gamut photo and video capture, Up to 10-bit color depth photo and video capture, 8K HDR Video Capture + 64 MP Photo Capture
10-bit HEIF: HEIC photo capture, HEVC video capture, Video Capture Formats: HDR10+, HDR10, HLG, Dolby Vision, 8K HDR Video Capture @ 30 FPS, 4K Video Capture @ 120 FPS, Slow-mo video capture at 720p @ 960 FPS, Bokeh Engine for Video Capture, Video super resolution, Multi-frame Noise Reduction (MFNR), Locally Motion Compensated Temporal Filtering, Multi-Frame and triple exposure staggered/digital, overlap HDR dual sensor support, AI-based face detection, auto-focus, and auto-exposure - On-Device Display Support: 4K at 60 Hz / QHD+ at 144 Hz, Maximum External Display Support: up to 4K @ 60 Hz, 10-bit color depth, Rec. 2020 color gamut, HDR10 and HDR10+, Demura and subpixel rendering for OLED Uniformity
- Qualcomm Hexagon Processor, Fused AI Accelerator, Hexagon Tensor Accelerator, Hexagon Vector eXtensions, Hexagon Scalar Accelerator, Support for mix precision( INT8+INT16), Support for all precisions (INT8, INT16, FP16)
- LPDDR5 3200MHz memory
- Wi-Fi 6E, 802.11ax (Wi-Fi 6) Multi-gigabit, Integrated 802.11ac 2×2 (2-stream) MU-MIMO, 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz and 6GHz, Bluetooth 5.2, LE Audio,
Dual Bluetooth antennas, Bluetooth audio: Snapdragon Sound Technology with support for Qualcomm aptX Voice, aptX Lossless, aptX Adaptive, and LE audio, NFC - GPS, Glonass, BeiDou, Galileo, QZSS, NavIC capable, Dual Frequency GNSS (L1/L5), Sensor-Assisted Positioning, Urban pedestrian navigation with sidewalk accuracy, Global freeway lane-level vehicle navigation
- USB 3.1, USB-C
- Qualcomm Quick Charge 5 technology
Qualcomm confirmed that Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 will be adopted by global OEMs and brands including Black Shark, HONOR, iQOO, Motorola, Nubia, OnePlus, OPPO, Realme, Redmi, SHARP, Sony Corporation, vivo, Xiaomi, and ZTE, and commercial devices will be introduced later this December 2021.