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Qualcomm has launched a new 4nm chipset for smartphones. The Snapdragon 7s Gen 2 is a mid-range solution seemingly positioned as an entry-level offering in the 2023 7-series lineup. It could arrive in the market as early as this month.
Snapdragon 7s Gen 2 specs
The naming of the Snapdragon 7s Gen 2 is a bit confusing. Qualcomm didn’t launch a Snapdragon 7s Gen 1 or a Snapdragon 7 Gen 2. Its modern 7-series lineup only includes a 7 Gen 1 and a 7+ Gen 2. However, the specs of the new chip tell us that the “s” versions would be the least powerful solutions in the lineup.
The new chip features an octa-core CPU setup with four Cortex-A78-based Kyro Gold cores clocked at 24GHz and four Cortex-A55-based Kyro Silver cores clocked at 1.95GHz. Qualcomm has paired the CPU with the Adreno 710 GPU, and it can handle up to FHD+ resolution on-device displays at a 144Hz maximum refresh rate.
Manufactured using Samsung’s 4LPE 4nm process, the Snapdragon 7s Gen 2 boasts the FastConnect 6700 connectivity platform and the Snapdragon X62 5G Modem-RF System capable of delivering up to 2.9 Gbps of download speeds. The chip supports both sub-6GHz and mmWave 5G networks (with mmWave-sub6 aggregation) as well as Wi-Fi 6 and Wi-Fi 6E. It isn’t ready for Wi-Fi 7.
Coming to photography, the new Qualcomm chip supports up to 200MP single camera system. The Spectra Triple ISP (Image Signal Processor) can capture 4K videos at 30 fps (frames per second) and 1080p slow-motion videos at 120 fps. Supported camera features include Multi-frame noise reduction, AI-based de-noising engine, Deep-learning face detection, and Deep-learning facial landmark detection.
The Snapdragon 7s Gen 2 offers LPDRR5 RAM at 3200 MHz. It also boasts Qualcomm Quick Charge 4+ technology, NFC, and USB 3.1 support. Other known features include Qualcomm Hexagon NPU (Neural Processing Unit), Snapdragon Elite Gaming, Hybrid Log Gamma (HLG) video codec, Qualcomm aptX Lossless audio, and dual-frequency (L1 and L5) location support over QZSS, Galileo, Beidou, NavIC, GLONASS, and GPS satellite systems.
The new Qualcomm chip could debut later this month
Qualcomm hasn’t revealed when we’ll see the first batch of Snapdragon 7s Gen 2-powered devices in the market. However, there are rumors that the chip will debut with Xiaomi’s Redmi Note 13 series later this month. The Chinese firm is all set to launch three models in its home country tomorrow, September 21. The Pro model is expected to feature the new Qualcomm processor. Xiaomi has yet to announce the global availability of the Redmi Note 13 series.