As widely reported overnight from the Qualcomm 'Snapdragon Tech Summit', we have a new naming scheme for the company's top end phone chipsets. Snapdragon is now the main 'brand' and '8 Gen 1' takes over from the previous three digit naming scheme (e.g. '888'). The promo video and press release is below, but don't get too excited, we're just talking slightly faster and more capable than before, it's part of the usual chip evolution (now down to 4nm process), rather than revolution.

From Qualcomm:

The Snapdragon® 8 Gen 1 Mobile Platform is our most advanced 5G platform ever, with our Snapdragon® X65 5G Modem-RF System ushering in unprecedented speeds up to 10 Gbps while supporting all-day power and more locations than ever. Plus, the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 features leading Wi-Fi 6 & 6E with multi-gig speeds — even with multiple devices on one network.

Our fastest-yet 7th Gen Qualcomm® AI Engine is democratizing modern day AI, enabling intelligent use cases in gaming, wellness, photography, and productivity. The Always-on 3rd Gen Qualcomm® Sensing Hub, featuring a new Low Power AI System and the world’s first always-on ISP. Plus, our Snapdragon™ Sight 18-bit ISP captures incredible color and clarity in photos and 8K HDR videos.

Topping off this premium platform are gaming, audio, and other multimedia experiences that are leaps ahead of the predecessor. The full arsenal of Snapdragon Elite Gaming™ Features offer desktop-quality realism and reaction times, while support for Bluetooth audio and Snapdragon Sound™ Technology add premium and immersive wireless audio.

The first flagship phones powered by the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 chipset will launch before the end of the year, though actual availability will be 2022.

Maybe it's just me, but every flagship phone for the last four years has been eminently fast enough, in terms of processor, GPU, display, and comms. Yes, faster is always 'better', objectively, but as with many tech enhancements, this new chipset isn't something to seek out per se. It's simply something that one may acquire in 2022 or 2023 with a new phone selected for other reasons.