Qualcomm has a new Snapdragon chip that could be perfect for Galaxy S26 FE

The Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 is a powerhouse, but not every phone needs such high performance. That’s why Qualcomm has created a new high-end chip that brings most of the features and performance of its flagship chip to non-flagship phones. This could be a perfect match for the Galaxy S26 FE.

During the Snapdragon Summit 2025 event last week, Qualcomm announced the Snapdragon 8 Gen 5. It sits one step below the Snapdragon 8 Elite but still brings most of the important features of Qualcomm's newest flagship chip, including TSMC's 3nm process and Oryon CPU cores. It also uses the same next-gen Adreno GPU, an advanced NPU, and an AI-equipped ISP for powerful camera performance.

So, how does it differ from the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5? Qualcomm has revealed that the new chip features a 1+7 CPU core configuration, unlike the 2+6 configuration used in the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5. This means the Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 has just one prime CPU core clocked at 3.8 GHz, while the other seven are performance cores clocked at 3.32 GHz.

While detailed specifications of this chip haven't been revealed yet, Alex Katouzian, Group GM of Mobile, Compute, and XR at Qualcomm, said, “We developed this chipset to give you more choices and flexibility, while still delivering flagship features.” This strategy is similar to Apple, which used the A19 chip in the iPhone 17 and the A19 Pro chip in the iPhone Air, iPhone 17 Pro, and the iPhone 17 Pro Max.

The Snapdargon 8 Gen 5 will debut with an upcoming OnePlus 15 phone. It will also rumored to be used in the Motorola X70 Air that it will be announced in China in late October 2025. It would also be a great fit for the Galaxy S26 FE that will likely be launched in late 2026.