It is not yet time for the Snapdragon 865, but it is on the contrary for a new high-end Qualcomm SoC. It is the Snapdragon 855 Plus: an evolution of the previous Snapdragon 855 platform. As the name suggests, designed for 5G devices, gaming and virtual/augmented reality. It’s an ‘incremental update’ (or more simply an overclock version) with refinements concerning the cores and the GPU.
Snapdragon 855 Plus is in fact equipped with 1 Kryo 485 (ARM Cortex A76-based) “Prime” CPU core clocked at up to 2.96GHz, 3 Kryo 485 (ARM Cortex A76-based) “Performance” CPU cores clocked at up to 2.42GHz, and finally 4 Kryo 385 (ARM Cortex A55-based) “Efficiency” CPU cores clocked at up to 1.8GHz.
The lone “Prime” CPU core has been clocked at up to 2.96GHz in the 855 Plus versus 2.84GHz in the standard 855. This ~3GHz core clock speed translates into an increase in performance in single thread equal to 4, 2%. The Adreno 640 GPU in the 855 Plus offers a 15% performance increase over the Adreno 640 in the 855. The operating frequency goes from 585 MHz to 672 MHz. The gaming experience also benefits from the Vulkan 1.1 driver which is 20% more efficient than Open GL ES, and further software optimizations such as Game Jank Reducer, Game Fast Loader and Game AntiCheat Extensions.
| Qualcomm Snapdragon Flagship SoCs 2019 | |||
| SoC | Snapdragon 855 | Snapdragon 855+ | |
| CPU | 1x Kryo 485 Gold (A76 derivative) @ 2.84GHz 1x512KB pL23x Kryo 485 Gold (A76 derivative) @ 2.42GHz 3x256KB pL2 4x Kryo 485 Silver (A55 derivative) @ 1.80GHz 4x128KB pL2 2MB sL3 | 1x Kryo 485 Gold (A76 derivative) @ 2.96GHz 1x512KB pL23x Kryo 485 Gold (A76 derivative) @ 2.42GHz 3x256KB pL2 Gizchina News of the week4x Kryo 485 Silver (A55 derivative) @ 1.80GHz 4x128KB pL2 2MB sL3 | |
| GPU | Adreno 640 @ 585MHz | Adreno 640 @ ~672MHz | |
| Memory | 4x 16-bit CH @ 2133MHz LPDDR4x 34.1GB/s3MB system level cache | ||
| ISP/Camera | Dual 14-bit Spectra 380 ISP 1x 48MP or 2x 22MP | ||
| Encode/ Decode | 2160p60 10-bit H.265 HDR10, HDR10+, HLG 720p480 | ||
| Integrated Modem | Snapdragon X24 LTE (Category 20)DL = 2000Mbps 7x20MHz CA, 256-QAM, 4×4 UL = 316Mbps 3x20MHz CA, 256-QAM | ||
| Mfc. Process | 7nm (N7) | ||
The 855 Plus will also support the dual 14-bit Spectra 380 ISP, have an integrated Snapdragon X24 LTE modem with optional Snapdragon X50 5G modem support, use the Hexagon 690 DSP for machine learning, be Wi-Fi 6 ready, and much more.
Snapdragon 855 Plus: the Qualcomm SoC has something extra
Qualcomm highlighted the renewed AI Engine dedicated to the management of artificial intelligence algorithms, now in its fourth generation and capable of processing 7 TOPs (trillion operations per second). Ultimately, the computing power is adequate to ensure optimal management of augmented and virtual reality viewers connected to the smartphone.
The first smartphones equipped with the Snapdragon 855 Plus will hit the market in the second half of the year.
Kedar Kondap, vice president of product management at Qualcomm commented:
“Snapdragon 855 Plus will raise the bar for elite gamers with the increase in CPU and GPU performance and elevate experiences for 5G, gaming, AI and XR, which is something our OEM customers look to us to deliver. Snapdragon 855 Plus is our most advanced mobile platform to date and will build upon the success of the 2019 Android flagship Snapdragon 855 5G mobile platform”.