Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 processor announced, coming to Android phones next year

At the ongoing Snapdragon Tech Summit Digital event in San Diego, California, Qualcomm is scheduled to unveil its new flagship chipset. The company shared a teaser for the latest chipset before the official unveiling and named 14 OEMs who will launch devices featuring the chipset next year. The company’s newest flagship chipset is called Snapdragon 888, not Snapdragon 875, as per the teaser, and it will have the following characteristics: 

Snapdragon X60 5G Modem

The Snapdragon 888 5G will include the 3rd generation Qualcomm Snapdragon X60 5G Modem-RF System, which will provide compatibility with both mmWave and sub-6 5G in all major bands worldwide. 5G carrier aggregation, global multi-SIM, 5G Standalone, 5G Non-standalone, and Dynamic Spectrum Sharing are also be supported by the modem. 

Qualcomm AI Engine

Qualcomm’s latest flagship offering will also include the upcoming 6th generation Qualcomm AI Engine with a completely re-engineered Qualcomm Hexagon processor. The latest AI Engine is capable of 26 tera operations per second (TOPS) and will deliver major improvements in performance and power efficiency compared to the previous generation. The AI platform the 2nd generation Qualcomm Sensing Hub, which integrates lower-power always-on AR processing for new intuitive and intelligent features.

Qualcomm Snapdragon Elite Gaming

The latest 3rd generation of Snapdragon Elite Gaming will also feature the Snapdragon 888, which will greatly boost Qualcomm Adreno GPU performance over previous generations. 

Qualcomm Spectra ISP

Thanks to the higher gigapixel speed Qualcomm Spectra ISP, the new chipset will also provide improved computation photography performance. The new ISP will enable users to capture images and videos at 2.7 gigapixels per second or approximately 120 photos at 12MP resolution, which is up to 35% faster than the previous generation. 

Qualcomm also demonstrated the Snapdragon 888’s 5G capabilities via a radio-controlled race car linked by mmWave 5G during the keynote. In the demonstration, using a live video feed of the track over 5G, drivers managed two race cars from a mile away. The demonstration was enabled by a private 5G network built in collaboration with Verizon and Ericsson. A Snapdragon 888 reference design and a Snapdragon X60 5G modem were used. 

The chip has already been shown off behind closed doors to Asus, Black Shark, Lenovo, LG, Meizu, Motorola, Nubia, Realme, OnePlus, Oppo, Sharp, Sony, Vivo, Xiaomi and ZTE. And is also expected to come in upcoming smartphones like the OnePlus 9 series and the Mi 11 Pro from Xiaomi. In other words, flagships are coming, a lot of them.

We expect to learn more about the Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 and upcoming devices featuring the new SoC during the two-day event. So, make sure to stay tuned to our coverage of the Snapdragon Tech Summit Digital 2020.