We got to know last month that Samsung was working with Qualcomm on a version of the upcoming Snapdragon 8 Elite 2 SoC, potentially for future Galaxy devices. A new report now sheds light that Qualcomm could have dropped the idea.
According to tipster Jukan Choi on X, Qualcomm has removed the codename 8850-S as a distinguishing identifier from its internal listings. For context, 8850-S, which stood for "Kaanapali S", was the Samsung-made version of the Snapdragon 8 Elite 2. And, 8850-T or "Kaanapali" was the TSMC variant.
The removal of the identifiers could mean Qualcomm has potentially discontinued the Samsung version. So, for the time being, the Snapdragon 8 Elite 2 will only be fabricated by TSMC. This doesn't necessarily mean that the brand won't be manufacturing a custom version of Snapdragon 8 Elite 2 for Galaxy phones. It means that this "Snapdragon for Galaxy" version could also be possibly fabricated by TSMC, not Samsung as some rumours had previously implied.
A previous report indicated that Samsung was making a custom version of Snapdragon 8 Elite 2 based on a 2nm process node, and it could've been exclusive to Galaxy smartphones. The TSMC variant was to be based on a 3nm node, and power other flagships.
Another important piece of information from the leak is that – SKU 8845, which is presumably the Snapdragon 8s Gen 5, is under development and is being “rearranged.” Besides, it also suggests that the Snapdragon 8 Elite 2 will get a significant price bump from last generation.
Qualcomm's decision to cancel the Samsung's version of the Snapdragon 8 Elite 2 is a bummer, but not completely surprising. The Samsung foundry has been going through a rough patch, with both internal decisions and world politics affecting it. Although you should take this information with a grain of salt, if it does turn out to be true, this would be another major punch to Samsung foundry's gut.
Not much is known about the exact specifications of the Snapdragon 8 Elite 2 except that it could use Qualcomm's second generation Oryon cores, boasting around 25% higher performance. A previous Snapdragon 8 Elite 2 benchmark rumour suggested over 4,000 points in single-core and 11,000 points in multi-core. The company is expected to unveil Snapdragon 8 Elite 2 at the upcoming Snapdragon Summit scheduled from September 23–25.
