Qualcomm has recently announced its latest flagship mobile platform, the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2, which promises to deliver groundbreaking performance, AI, gaming, and connectivity features for premium smartphones. The Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 is the successor of the Snapdragon 888 Plus, and it is manufactured using a 4-nanometer process technology that enables higher efficiency and performance. In this blog, we will review the specs and features of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 and see how it compares to its competitors.
CPU and GPU in Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2
The Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 has an octa-core CPU configuration that consists of four different clusters: one Cortex-X3 core clocked at 3.2 GHz, two Cortex-A715 cores clocked at 2.8 GHz, two Cortex-A710 cores clocked at 2.8 GHz, and three Cortex-A510 cores clocked at 2 GHz.
The Cortex-X3 core is the most powerful ARM core to date, and it is designed to handle the most demanding tasks such as gaming and AI. The Cortex-A715 and Cortex-A710 cores are based on the ARMv9 architecture, which offers improved performance and security features. The Cortex-A510 cores are optimized for power efficiency and background tasks.
The GPU of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 is the Adreno 740, which is a significant upgrade from the Adreno 660 of the Snapdragon 888 Plus. The Adreno 740 has two execution units and 1280 shading units, resulting in a total of 2560 shaders.
The GPU frequency is also increased to 680 MHz, which means that the Adreno 740 can deliver up to 3.5 teraflops of graphics performance. The Adreno 740 supports Vulkan 1.1, OpenCL 2.0, DirectX 12.1, and other advanced graphics APIs.
AI and ISP in Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2
One of the most impressive features of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 is its AI capabilities, which are powered by the Hexagon DSP and a dedicated AI processor called the Cognitive ISP. The Hexagon DSP is a digital signal processor that can handle complex computations such as neural networks and machine learning algorithms.
The Hexagon DSP of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 has a peak performance of 32 TOPS (trillion operations per second), which is twice as fast as the Hexagon DSP of the Snapdragon 888 Plus.
The Cognitive ISP is a new addition to the Snapdragon family, and it is the world’s first and only mobile platform with a dedicated AI processor for imaging. The Cognitive ISP can perform real-time image processing and enhancement using machine learning models that can understand the context and content of the scene.
For example, the Cognitive ISP can automatically adjust the exposure, white balance, color saturation, noise reduction, sharpness, and other parameters based on the lighting conditions, subject type, facial expressions, and other factors. The Cognitive ISP can also enable features such as object detection, segmentation, tracking, recognition, and classification.
The Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 can support up to a single camera of up to 200 megapixels or dual cameras of up to 64 megapixels each. It can also capture video at up to 8K resolution at 30 frames per second or up to 4K resolution at 120 frames per second. It supports various video codecs such as H.264, H.265, AV1, VP8, and VP9.
Connectivity in Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2
The Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 also boasts of its connectivity features, which include the Snapdragon X70 modem-RF system and the FastConnect 7800 mobile connectivity system.
The Snapdragon X70 is a third-generation 5G modem that supports both mmWave and sub-6 GHz bands with up to 7 Gbps download speed and up to 3 Gbps upload speed. It also supports dynamic spectrum sharing (DSS), carrier aggregation (CA), standalone (SA) and non-standalone (NSA) modes, and global multi-SIM.
The FastConnect 7800 is a Wi-Fi system that supports Wi-Fi 7 (802.11be), which is the latest Wi-Fi standard that offers up to 3 Gbps speed, lower latency, and improved reliability. It also supports Wi-Fi 6E (802.11ax), Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ac), Bluetooth 5.3, and NFC.
Memory and Storage in Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2
The Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 supports LPDDR5X memory with up to 24 GB capacity and up to 4200 MHz frequency. It also supports UFS 3.1 and UFS 4.0 storage types with faster read/write speeds.
Conclusion
The Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 is a remarkable mobile platform that offers a comprehensive set of features for premium smartphones. It has a powerful CPU and GPU that can handle any task or game with ease.
It has an innovative AI processor and ISP that can enhance the camera performance and quality. It has a fast and reliable 5G modem and Wi-Fi system that can provide seamless connectivity. It has a high-capacity and high-speed memory and storage support that can store and access large amounts of data.
The Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 is expected to power some of the most anticipated smartphones of 2023, such as the OnePlus Ace 2 Pro, the ZTE Nubia Red Magic 8S Pro, the Realme GT5, the Asus ROG Phone 7 Ultimate, the Oppo Find X6 Pro, the Xiaomi Mix Fold 3, the Asus ROG Phone 7, the Vivo X90 Pro Plus, the Xiaomi 13 Ultra, and the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra.
If you are looking for a smartphone that can offer you the ultimate performance, AI, gaming, and connectivity experience, you should definitely consider getting one of these devices powered by the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2.
