Qualcomm has just officially presented the Snapdragon 7 Gen 3, the new generation of its chip for mid-range mobile phones. A curious launch, considering that the San Diego chipmaker had already updated this family of processors last March, with the Snapdragon 7+ Gen 2.
The truth is that the Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 comes with interesting new features thanks to its focus on three key points: more power, better energy efficiency and a more important commitment to artificial intelligence. On this last point, it seems to follow in the footsteps of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, although, of course, without reaching the same level of power and sophistication.
It is not surprising, then, that Qualcomm highlights the benefits of the Hexagon neural processing unit (NPU). According to the company, performance per watt when performing AI tasks has been improved by 60% compared to the previous generation of the SoC.
Likewise, the Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 arrives with important performance improvements in its Adreno GPU, which is now up to 50% faster. A feature that will surely be very attractive to the gamingconsidering that the chip will allow playing at up to 144 FPS on devices with compatible screens.
The Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 CPU also comes with improvements compared to the previous generation. According to Qualcomm, it’s 15% more powerful, which at first glance doesn’t seem like much of a gain. In any case, an improvement is always an improvement and should be taken as such.
Another notable feature of the new chip is that it incorporates artificial intelligence features to take advantage of through the camera; such as the cases of AI Remosaic and AI Denoiser. Likewise, Qualcomm once again relies on the Spectra Triple image processor, in this case with support for 4K HDR video capture.
In the connectivity section, meanwhile, the Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 will offer support for WiFI 6E through the system FastConnect 6700. While hand in hand with the modem Snapdragon X63 will allow you to connect to 5G networks with speeds of up to 5 Gbps. While regarding sound, the SoC will be compatible with spatial audio and Low Energy (LE) Audio, thanks to Snapdragon Sound.
Luckily, we won’t have to wait too long to see phones with the Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 on the market. According to Qualcomm, the premiere of the chip will occur this month when the first device to incorporate it is announced. The American company highlighted that it is working with HONOR and alive, which will be two of the first manufacturers to adopt it. And the list of brands is likely to expand in a matter of weeks or months.
The chipera maintains that the Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 will help provide many features that are usually exclusive to mobile phones premium reach more devices. “By working closely with our manufacturing partners, we can help make the next generation of on-demand features, such as enhanced AI and extraordinary camera capabilities, more accessible to consumers,” the company said.