Snapdragon "8 Plus" tipped to debut in late 2025 for next-gen Android flagship killers

Qualcomm is thought to introduce the Snapdragon 8 Elite 2 as its latest flagship processor for smartphones and tablets in the third quarter of 2025. With the latest custom Oryon cores made using an up-to-date 3 nanometer (nm) node at TSMC, it might make supposed new devices such as the successor to the ~$1,000 Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra even more expensive than their predecessors.

For those less than enthused by that prospect should it come to pass, Qualcomm might start offering a new alternative to the 8 Elite 2 from the last quarter of its release year. Now projected to have some things such as the same new GPU in common with the upcoming top-end processor, the "SM8845" is backed to be something other than a successor to the 8s Gen 4.

Instead, it might be called something like the 'Snapdragon 8 Plus', a name which, while not original, might bring it into line with the sub-Elite Snapdragon X Plus platform for PCs.

The first device to be powered by the chipset is predicted to be announced by the end of 2025. Its internals might be less than Elite, yet might be paired to a battery larger than that of its top-tier counterpart from the same brand - the identity of which remains a mystery for now.