Qualcomm has quietly introduced its Snapdragon 8s Gen 4 chipset, giving phone makers a powerful option for upcoming smartphones in 2025. Released over the weekend, this update is the follow-up to the Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 and continues the trend of offering top-end performance without the top-end price.
If you’ve kept an eye on Snapdragon chipsets, you’ll know that the “s” in its name means it’s not quite the brand’s highest offering. Instead, it sits between the full flagship Snapdragon 8 Elite and the more affordable Snapdragon 7 series. Still, the Snapdragon 8s Gen 4 brings several surprising upgrades that you might expect only in Qualcomm’s most premium chips.
A mix of old and new in CPU performance
One of the most interesting details is that Qualcomm hasn’t yet switched to its latest Oryon CPUs for this chip. Instead, the Snapdragon 8s Gen 4 continues using an upgraded Kyro CPU. According to GSMArena, it comes with eight cores: a main 3.2GHz Cortex-X4 core for strong performance, three Cortex-A720 cores running at 3.0GHz, two more Cortex-A720 cores at 2.8GHz, and two lower-power Cortex-A720 cores at 2.0GHz.
Qualcomm hasn’t listed every technical detail in its product brief, but it did share some exciting performance numbers. Compared to the previous generation, you can expect a 39% boost in CPU power, 49% better GPU performance, and a 44% improvement in AI capabilities. This means a faster, smoother experience in nearly all apps and tasks, whether you’re working, gaming, or multitasking.
Premium features from Qualcomm’s top-tier chips
The new Snapdragon 8s Gen 4 doesn’t stop at just speed upgrades. It also brings several premium features previously found only in the Snapdragon 8 Elite. That includes an 18-bit Triple AI Image Signal Processor (ISP), which allows your phone to use up to three cameras simultaneously with built-in AI to improve photo and video quality.
Another feature is 4K Limitless Segmentation, which can recognise and enhance more than 250 objects in real-time while recording or viewing videos. The AI tools in this chipset now benefit from double the shared memory, meaning better support for apps that rely on machine learning or image processing.
The Snapdragon 8s Gen 4 is no slouch either when it comes to staying connected. It supports Wi-Fi 7 with speeds up to 5.8Gbps, Bluetooth 6.0, and a Snapdragon X75 5G modem. While it’s not as futuristic as the Snapdragon X80 modem used in the Snapdragon 8 Elite, it still offers fast and reliable network support.
Built for gamers and power users alike
If you love gaming on your phone, you’ll be glad the Snapdragon 8s Gen 4 includes the full Snapdragon Elite Gaming suite. This means you’ll get premium gaming tools like hardware-accelerated ray tracing and smoother frame rates — features typically saved for more expensive devices.
Other tech specs round out the chipset’s appeal. It supports UFS 4.0 storage for faster app and file loading, USB 3.1 Gen 2 for quicker charging and data transfer, LPDDR5X RAM up to 4,800MHz, and Qualcomm Quick Charge 5.0 for rapid battery top-ups. It also allows for ultra-sharp WQHD+ displays with up to a 144Hz refresh rate, giving you fluid visuals whether gaming or browsing.
This makes the Snapdragon 8s Gen 4 a strong choice if you’re after a flagship phone experience but don’t want to spend top dollar for the latest features. It delivers real value with support for fast gaming, rich photography, and high-speed connectivity.
Qualcomm confirmed that this chipset will be used in upcoming devices from Xiaomi, OPPO, Meizu, and other popular brands “later,” though exact release dates weren’t shared.
