September 29, 2023
Qualcomm Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 banner
Qualcomm is updating its cellular platforms with a few enhanced SoCs, together with the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 for flagship Android telephones, and the Snapdragon 7 Gen 1 for premium handsets that fall only a step beneath. Because it occurs, we had the chance to preview the efficiency of the previous and spoiler alert, it is quick. We’ll get to exactly how a lot of a efficiency uplift it delivers over the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1, however first let’s go over a few of the specs and options.
For anybody who’s been following the cellular scene for a while, the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 looks like an inevitable launch. For the previous few generations, Qualcomm has launched ‘Plus’ variants of its flagship silicon as stepping stones to an eventual architectural improve. These usually entail sooner clocks and different enhancements, as is the case right here.

Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 Delivers Quicker Clocks And Higher Energy Effectivity

Qualcomm Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 performance chart

The Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 maintains the identical Kryo CPU advanced in a 1+3+4, with a single Prime Cortex-X2 core, three Cortex-A71 Efficiency cores, and 4 Cortex-A51 Effectivity cores. Nonetheless, the height clock on the Cortex-X2 core has been goosed to three.2GHz, a 200MHz improve over the non-Plus variant. Whereas not disclosed, from what we are able to inform, the Efficiency cores now go as much as 2.75GHz (up from 2.5GHz) and the Effectivity cores get a 200MHz pace bump to 2GHz.

Based on Qualcomm, the sooner clock pace delivers a ten p.c acquire in CPU efficiency. Qualcomm additionally boosted the Adreno GPU clock by 10 p.c to provide gaming and graphics a efficiency uplift as properly.

It isn’t solely about sooner efficiency with this launch; Qualcomm can also be touting vital energy effectivity good points.

Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 power efficiency slide
Qualcomm Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 power efficiency slide 2

Qualcomm credit an “improved” Adreno GPU with not solely delivering sooner speeds, but additionally a 30 p.c energy discount “to ship the final word gameplay expertise.” The implication there’s a increase in body charges for smoother gaming, whereas holding a cost for an extended time frame. Based on Qualcomm, customers can anticipate as much as 60 further minutes of gaming. Not too shabby.

Similar goes for the CPU, with Qualcomm additionally claiming a peak 30 p.c enchancment in energy effectivity. Past the peaks, what this all purportedly interprets to is a 15 p.c energy financial savings over the non-Plus variant.

What does this imply for precise utilization? Along with extending gameplay for an hour, Qualcomm says customers can anticipate 80 extra minutes of video streaming, 5.5 extra hours of speak time and 25 minutes of 5G WeChat video calling, an extra 50 minutes of looking social media websites and companies, and 17 extra hours of music playback.

Qualcomm Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 overview slide

As you’d anticipate, the pace will increase and energy effectivity good points do not come on the expense of the general feature-set. As with the non-Plus variant, the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 options Qualcomm’s seventh AI engine, it helps recording 8K movies in HDR, and is able to rock out on 5G networks with assist for each sub-6GHz and mmWave.

Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 Efficiency Take a look at Car And Benchmarks

Qualcomm Snadpragon 8+ Gen 1 phone (front and back)

As we have been capable of do with the earlier era chipset, we managed to get our arms on a prototype reference handset outfitted with the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1, and 8GB of LPDDR5 RAM. This offers us as near an apples-to-apples comparability as attainable between the Plus and non-Plus variants, with out customized themes or different third-party bits that would doubtlessly have an effect on the outcomes.

We even have an intensive assortment of benchmark knowledge from retail units just like the Galaxy S22+ and Pixel 6 Professional. As well as, we very just lately examined MediaTek’s Dimensity 9000, and have included these numbers in our benchmark charts as properly. Let’s get to it…
Qualcomm Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 Geekbench
Our Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 reference handset leapfrogged each different Android handset we have ever examined, and posted a 1,334 single-core rating and 4,216 multi-core rating. Solely the iPhone 13 Professional with its A15 Bionic put up higher numbers on this check.
Wanting on the crop of Android handsets, the subsequent closest multi-core rating is 3,826, obtained from the RedMagic 7 with the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1. That is truly larger than the three,740 rating we obtained with final yr’s reference Snapdragon cellphone, however true to Qualcomm’s declare, the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 scored round 10 p.c larger (slightly over, truly).
Qualcomm Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 AnTuTu benchmarks

The gulf widened considerably once we ran the AnTuTu benchmark. Right here we see a larger than 20 p.c soar within the total rating in comparison with our greatest consequence obtained from a Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 handset. The Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 additionally beat the Dimensity 9000 by 12.3 p.c.

Qualcomm Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 AITuTu benchmarks

An attention-grabbing pattern over the previous few generations of smartphones is an elevated concentrate on AI efficiency. Whereas that time period will get thrown round slightly loosely today, AI has emerged as an necessary facet in trendy cellular experiences. From real-time language translation and parsing voice instructions, to cleansing up images on-the-fly, AI efficiency issues to our day-to-day utilization.

The Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 excels at AI workloads, and as we are able to see within the efficiency chart above, the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 kicks issues up a notch. Qualcomm’s seventh Gen AI Engine packs a punch, and whereas it stays unchanged from the non-Plus variant, our guess is the sooner CPU clocks are serving to out right here.

Qualcomm Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 3DMark And GFXBench Benchmarks

Qualcomm Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 3DMark Wild Life benchmarks

Turning our consideration to gaming and graphics, the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 will get off to a formidable begin by shifting the higher efficiency needle in 3DMark Wild Life Limitless. Up up to now, we noticed scores topping out at round 10,200. Qualcomm’s newest silicon, nevertheless, hit 11,000, besting the earlier prime consequence by 8.2 p.c.

snapdragon 8 gen 1 plus stress test result

Earlier than shifting on, it is value noting that the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 dealt with 3DMark’s 20 minute Wild Life stress check like a champ. That is notable as a result of it means the SoC is not fast to throttle and doubtlessly tank efficiency. The caveat is that the onus does not solely fall on the silicon, but additionally the handset and particularly its on-board thermal answer. Outcomes will inevitably fluctuate relying on the precise retail smartphone fashions, however what this tells us is that the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 is certainly energy environment friendly and able to sustaining excessive efficiency ranges for prolonged intervals of time.

Qualcomm Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 GFXBench T-Rex benchmarks

The efficiency uplifted carried over to GFXBench the place the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 posted a brand new excessive rating at 475 frames per second, which is a 7.7 p.c improve over the earlier finest consequence. We will additionally see a reasonably vast hole between the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 and Dimensity 9000.

Qualcomm Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 GFXBench Manhattan benchmarks

Totally different GFXBench check, similar story—the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 once more took pole place, beating out its non-Plus sibling and MediaTek’s most interesting (although the hole shouldn’t be as large right here).

Qualcomm Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 GFXBench Aztec Ruins benchmarks

Closing issues out, the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 once more took the highest spot on this Vulkan benchmark, ensuing a clear sweep of our benchmarks. We do not have fairly the strong set of outcomes to match in opposition to, however we nonetheless can observe a modest soar in efficiency over the earlier era flagship.

Closing Ideas On Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1

qualcomm snapdragon 8 plus gen 1 reference phone

Given what we already knew concerning the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1, it isn’t a shock that the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 carried out so properly throughout a wide range of benchmarks. We simply did not know if the efficiency uplift would stay as much as Qualcomm’s claims, and so far as our testing goes, it does for probably the most half.

What’s maybe much more spectacular is that it dealt with the 3DMark stress check so properly. Qualcomm is claiming large good points in energy effectivity. This cannot solely enhance battery life, but additionally lead to a smartphone performing near its peak for an extended time frame. That is clearly depending on cooling too, however our reference prototype proves that it will not be the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 that issues again.

We’re trying ahead to see how future flagship Android telephones leverage Qualcomm’s latest silicon. To that finish, Qualcomm says we are able to to see units from the main OEMs and types, together with ASUS ROG, Black Shark, Honor, iQOO, Lenovo, Motorola, Nubia, OnePlus, Oppo, OSOM, RealMe, Redmagic, Redmi, Vivo, Xiaomi, and ZTE.

All of the heavy hitters, in different phrases, with hints that gaming telephones with the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 are on the horizon. When it comes to timing, Qualcomm says we’ll see business units start to reach within the third quarter of this yr, so maybe as early as July.