Snapdragon 8 Elite 3 may be too expensive for some flagship phones, leak reveals
While Qualcomm's Snapdragon 8 Elite 2 may still be months away from launch, next year's Snapdragon 8 Elite 3 looks to be in the works already, and a new leak now claims the flagship chipset could be worryingly expensive.
Supposedly, the Snapdragon 8 Elite 3—expected to debut in late 2026 and power flagships like the Galaxy S27 and Xiaomi 17 series—could be incredibly expensive. So expensive, in fact, that some OEMs may choose not to equip their premium devices with the chipset.
According to Digital Chat Station, the Snapdragon 8 Elite 3 will be available in two forms: the standard SM8950, and a cheaper, likely less powerful version, potentially coded as the SM8945. Both chipsets are said to mirror the relationship between Apple's A18 and A18 Pro on the current-gen iPhones.
Although "SM8950" may be too expensive, it appears its sibling "SM8945" could be more reasonably priced, and could even end up powering quite a few premium devices in 2027. If this leak turns out accurate, it wouldn't be surprising to see "SM8945" underpin lower-end premium phones like the Redmi K100 Pro and iQOO 15.
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