What you need to know
- Qualcomm has announced its all-new Snapdragon 7+ Gen 2, which will hopefully power many upcoming mid-range Android phones.
- The Snapdragon 7+ Gen 2 was unveiled at an event in China, with the first devices expected to arrive later this month.
- The company claims this new chipset offers up to 50% improved performance and 13% better power efficiency than its predecessor.
At an event in China, Qualcomm has taken the wraps off its latest chipset, the Snapdragon 7+ Gen 2. This comes a little less than a year after the launch of the Snapdragon 7 Gen 1, which arrived alongside the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1.
Surprisingly, there weren’t very many handsets released over the past year that were actually powered by the Snapdragon 7 Gen 1. The most notable of which was the Xiaomi 13 Lite, which actually just launched in China back in February 2023.
No matter the case, the Snapdragon 7+ Gen 2 will hopefully be at the helm for a few contenders for the best budget Android phone of the year. In its announcement, Qualcomm states that the Snapdragon 7+ Gen 2 offers 50% faster CPU performance, up to 2x better GPU performance, and 13% better power efficiency over its predecessor.
But Qualcomm isn’t stopping there, as this new chipset also integrates the Snapdragon X62 5G modem, allowing for dual 5G/4G SIM support. This comes along with both mmWave and sub-6Ghz 5G connectivity, capable of reaching speeds of up to 4.4 Gbps.
Since AI is everywhere nowadays, it shouldn’t be as surprising that improvements were made with the Snapdragon 7+ Gen 2. According to Qualcomm, the company’s new AI Engine offers “2x better AI performance and up to 40% better performance per watt.”
Gaming shouldn’t be much of an issue with this SoC either, as it is capable of supporting devices using a QHD+ display at 120 FPS, along with aptX for “lag-free gaming audio.” And thanks to the Adreno GPU, paired with the AI Engine, you should be able to enjoy Auto Variable Rate Shading for “optimized power and performance.”
Rounding out the major features of the Snapdragon 7+ Gen 2, Qualcomm also put a lot of focus on camera enhancements. The company is now using an 18-bit Triple ISP which “captures over 4,000x more camera data,” along with 18-bit RAW photo capture.
The first devices powered by the new Snapdragon 7+ Gen 2 are set to arrive sometime before the end of the month. And while Qualcomm didn’t share which devices are in the pipeline, the company did reveal that this SoC “will be adopted by key OEM brands including Redmi and realme.”