Yesterday, Qualcomm launched the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 which is the next-generation flagship chipset for Android smartphones. Now, Qualcomm has launched two new chipsets, the Snapdragon 8cx Gen 3 and Snapdragon 7c+ Gen 3 for Windows laptops. The first is a flagship chipset built on a 5nm process while the second is a chipset for affordable devices that need 5G connectivity. In this article, we’ll go through everything you need to know about the newly launched Snapdragon 8cx Gen 3 and Snapdragon 7c+ Gen 3.
Qualcomm Snapdragon 8cx Gen 3
This is the highest-end chipset offering by Qualcomm for Windows-on-ARM devices and it comes with some pretty nice specifications.
The Snapdragon 8cx Gen 3 is built on a 5nm fabrication process which is the world’s first for Windows devices. This is a great improvement from the 7nm fabrication process used in the original 8cx and 8cx Gen 2.
Qualcomm didn’t reveal the CPU cores used here but the company claims a massive 85% increase in multi-core performance when compared to the previous-gen. It also boasts of a 60% boost in GPU performance. The NPU has also been enhanced as it now offers over 29 TOPS, which is 200% more than what the previous-gen could handle.
With massive performance improvements, Qualcomm also says it comes with reduced power consumption making it more suitable in fanless designs. As a result of this, Qualcomm boasts that the Snapdragon 8cx Gen 3 now guarantees multi-day battery life, but this depends on the OEM.
As for connectivity, the Snapdragon 8cx Gen 3 supports Wi-Fi 6 and the newest Wi-Fi 6E. The chipset also comes with 5G support with downlink speeds of up 10 Gbps. But this is dependent on the modem used as Qualcomm offers different versions with different speeds.
The Qualcomm Snapdragon 8cx Gen 3 also comes with more features like AI-accelerated echo cancellation and noise suppression during calls and meetings.
The chipset also comes with the proven Qualcomm Spectra ISP from smartphones and it has support for up to 4 cameras of up to 24MP. It also can record videos at up to 4K HDR. As a plus, it comes with Auto Focus, Auto White Balance, and Auto Exposure. This makes studying/working from home very simple without needing other accessories.
Qualcomm Snapdragon 7c+ Gen 3
This is a mid-range chipset offering by Qualcomm aimed at affordable Windows devices that need 5G connectivity.
The Snapdragon 7c+ Gen 3 is built on a 6nm fabrication process which is more power-efficient. Qualcomm didn’t state the CPU cores used here also but it claims a major performance increase in both CPU and GPU when compared to the previous-gen. This new chipset offers up to 60% faster CPU and up to 70% fast GPU when compared to the previous generation. Its NPU also gets a minor boost as it now offers 6.5+ TOPS of AI compute power which is a 30% increase over the previous gen.
As for connectivity, it comes with Wi-Fi 6 and Wi-Fi 6E with speeds of up to 2.9 Gbps. It now supports 5G connectivity utilizing the X53 modem which has downlink speeds of up to 3.7 Gbps.
Both the Snapdragon 8cx Gen 3 and Snapdragon 7c+ Gen 3 enjoy Qualcomm’s recent developments in security and audio.
If you’re already asking when these new chipsets will be used, there’s an answer for that. Qualcomm has let us know that we should expect the first Windows 11 laptops with the Snapdragon 8cx Gen 3 and Snapdragons 7c+ Gen 3 to come out in the first half of 2022.
