One of the biggest considerations when buying a flagship phone in 2025 is how much power it has. The chips in phones have gotten ridiculously capable, with clock speeds that nearly outstrip the best of desktop chips. What's crazier is that roll is showing no signs of slowing down. The Snapdragon 8 Elite, last year, was a good example of that.
In a few months, we're expecting to see the Snapdragon 8 Elite 2, along with its closest competitor, MediaTek's Dimensity 9500. While there was an expectation that both chips would be pretty close to each other in performance, it looks like it might not even be a competition. The Snapdragon 8 Elite 2 seems set to be crazy fast.
The Snapdragon 8 Elite 2 Will Bring Qualcomm Closer to 5 GHz Than Ever
Qualcomm has adopted a new naming system for its flagship smartphone chip. We expected the Snapdragon 8 Gen 4, but got the Snapdragon 8 Elite. It might be too early to tell, but all signs point to the next chip being the Snapdragon 8 Elite 2, or perhaps Gen 2. The chip is expected to arrive towards the end of September, which would be an earlier launch than last year, but that could be necessary ahead of the flagship rush in October.
Thanks to Ice Universe, a very reliable tipster on X, we have a good idea of what the maximum clock speed for the Snapdragon 8 Elite 2 for Galaxy will be, and that's 4.74 GHz. That's super fast, and the closest Qualcomm has ever found itself to that mystical 5 GHz threshold.
| Maximum Clock Speed | |
| Snapdragon 8 Elite | 4.47 GHz |
| Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 | 3.4 GHz |
| Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 | 3.36 GHz |
| Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 | 3 GHz |
The “for Galaxy” variant of the Snapdragon chip will likely be clocked higher than the regular variant, but I wouldn't expect the regular option to be lower than 4.5 GHz in any case. Compared to previous flagship generations, Qualcomm has come a very long way.
MediaTek Will Just Cross the 4 GHz Mark for the First Time
If you're a fan of the phones that come from Chinese OEMs, you're likely open to using a MediaTek chip. A lot of flagships out of that region of the world opted for the Dimensity 9400 last year. This year, that trend will continue, with the Oppo Find X9 Pro confirmed to be sticking to that chip maker.
The rumor, from Digital Chat Station, says that the test model for that upcoming flagship, running on the Dimensity 9500, crossed the 4 GHz mark for the first time in MediaTek's history. Whether that clock speed will translate to the production model of the chip is something that only time will reveal.
Qualcomm Will Defeat MediaTek With Ease This Year
It seemed like MediaTek was getting close to catching up with Qualcomm, but this year shows that goal might still be out of reach. Looking at AnTuTu scores in the past, and the rumored score for the Snapdragon 8 Elite 2, there's work to be done for the competition.
- Snapdragon 8 Elite 2 (Rumored): 4,000,000+
- Snapdragon 8 Elite: 3,310,000+
- Dimensity 9400+: 3,030,000+
- Xiaomi XRING O1: 2,810,000+
- Dimensity 9400: 2,790,000+
