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ZDNET’s key takeaways
- Qualcomm launched its new Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chipset.
- The mobile platform will fuel new experiences on Android.
- The new features span photography, AI, and connectivity.
While chipsets may not be the most exciting component of a phone, they are responsible for powering a lot of the activities you enjoy every day, including gaming, photography, audio, internet connectivity, and, of course, AI features. That’s why Qualcomm’s announcement of its new Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chipset gives us a good idea of what’s next to come for the future of Android phones.
The new mobile platform features upgrades to the CPU, GPU, and NPU, which make it faster and more capable than before. If you are interested in all of the specs, including some benchmarks I ran it through, you can check out this article. However, for how this chipset translates into improvements in everyday experiences, you can read below.
1. More capable AI agents
AI agents have become the craze in the past year. They take AI assistance one step forward, actually performing tasks on your behalf. However, the efficiency of how well an AI agent works depends on how much information it already knows about you, as it is in that way that it knows what actions to suggest to maximize its helpfulness. The Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chipset helps with that.
Also: These consumer-facing industries are the fastest adopters of AI agents
The Qualcomm Hexagon NPU got some upgrades, including even more AI accelerators, enabling it to run 37% faster speeds and 16% better performance per watt. When this is combined with the Qualcomm Sensing Hub, which features on-device AI learning features such as a personal knowledge graph and Qualcomm Personal Scribe, it powers new, personalized, agentic experiences. Another important factor is that the AI-learning features run on-device, making sure your information stays secure by bypassing the cloud.
2. Photography
When you think of a really good camera system, you likely only think of the actual camera specs. However, a lot of what contributes to a good-quality shot depends on computational photography, which occurs in the background when a photo is taken to adjust for elements like tone mapping, lighting, and more. The Qualcomm Spectra Image Signal Processor (ISP) was upgraded to a 20-bit pipeline for 4x the dynamic range, which enables more sophisticated AI-based adjustments.
Also: I fell in love with a $2,000 mirrorless camera that puts design and simplicity over everything else
The upgrades also extend to video, with the chipset supporting “pro-grade” visual tools. This includes being the first chipset able to record in Advanced Professional Video (APV) Codec, which allows for better control in post-production and higher-quality captures; context-aware auto-focus, auto exposure, and auto-white balance; and higher-quality audio captures with Snapdragon Audio Sense, a suite of microphone technology that enables the recording of “pro-level sound” with wind-noise rejection, audio zoom, and HDR audio; among other improvements.
3. Connectivity
While you may think of AI in every other realm than your phone’s connectivity, it impacts that, too. Qualcomm said the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chipset supports “AI-powered mobile connectivity that combines the latest in 5G, 5G-Advanced, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and UWB technologies,” made possible by its Qualcomm X85 5G Modem-RF.
Also: How Nvidia and OpenAI’s staggering $100 billion deal could fuel a new age of AI
This means that, as a user, the modem should enable 5G advanced connectivity with faster speeds, more battery efficiency, and increased network reliability, as the company highlighted in its release. The Qualcomm FastConnect 7900 Mobile Connectivity System also contributes to battery efficiency, as the company said it offers up to 405 power savings.
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