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Qualcomm Makes Modest Updates to its Entry-Level Phone Chips

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May 7, 2026, 12:59 PM by Rich Brome @rbrome.bsky.social

Qualcomm has announced the Snapdragon 6 Gen 5 and Snapdragon 4 Gen chips intended to power affordable phones. For once, AI is not the focus of these new chips. One new technology in both chips is "Snapdragon Smooth Motion UI". In the 6 Gen 5, this should deliver 20% faster app launches and 18% less screen stutter. In the 4 Gen 5, it should deliver 43% faster app launches and 25% less screen stutter. The Snapdragon 6 Gen 5 offers the most upgrades compared to the Gen 4 version, although also a few curious downgrades. Graphics performance gets a 21% boost. The CPU has been re-arranged: instead of one "prime" core running at 2.3 GHz plus three "performance" cores, the new chip simply has four performance cores running at 2.6 GHz. There are also still four efficiency cores, now running at 2 GHz instead of 1.8. The camera subsystem gains a new night vision mode, the sole new AI-powered feature. However there are only two 12-bit ISPs, instead the three found in Gen 4. The 5G modem gets some minor upgrades, but removes support for mmWave 5G. The other radios do get upgrades, including Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6, and support for XPAN, Qualcomm's unique audio-over-Wi-Fi technology. Most other specs carry over from the Gen 4 chip. The Snapdragon 4 Gen 5 is the first update to the main 4-series chip since the Snapdragon 4 Gen 2, announced back in 2023. Even so, it makes surprisingly few changes. Qualcomm promises 77% improved graphics performance. The camera subsystem now has built-in support for face detection. The chip also supports Quick Charge 5 (previously, 4+) and 144 Hz display refresh (up from 120). Otherwise, the new 4-series chip is almost the same as the 2023 version, including Bluetooth 5.1 and Wi-Fi 5. Both new chips are expected to reach consumers in new phones in 2026.

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