Qualcomm has announced the Snapdragon 888 Plus, with the chipset set to power the best Android phones launching in the latter half of the year. As was the case last year, Qualcomm isn't changing too many things; after all, the Snapdragon 888 is one of the fastest chipsets in the world, delivering excellent performance figures and global 5G connectivity.
But for manufacturers releasing flagships in the latter half of 2021, Qualcomm is offering an even faster version of the Snapdragon 888. At its core, that's what the Snapdragon 888 Plus; with the clocks on the Cortex A1 core now going up to 2.996GHz, the chipset will deliver incremental performance gains over the regular Snapdragon 888. The chipset also delivers 20% better performance in AI tasks while using the same Hexagon 780 module.
Other than the increase in AI performance and clock speeds, the Snapdragon 888 Plus is identical to the Snapdragon 888. In essence, the chipset is a higher-binned version of the Snapdragon 888. Here's the full hardware rundown:
Snapdragon 888 vs. Snapdragon 888 Plus
| Category | Snapdragon 888 | Snapdragon 888 Plus |
|---|---|---|
| CPU Cores | 1 x 2.84GHz Cortex X13 x 2.42GHz Cortex A784 x 1.80GHz Cortex A55 | 1 x 2.995GHz Cortex X13 x 2.42GHz Cortex A784 x 1.80GHz Cortex A55 |
| GPU | Adreno 66025% faster than Adreno 650 | Adreno 66025% faster than Adreno 650 |
| AI Engine | Hexagon 78026 TOPS | Hexagon 78032 TOPS20% more than SD888 |
| 5G Modem | Snapdragon X60 (Integrated)5G NR Sub-6 + mmWaveUp to 7.5Gbps downUp to 3Gbps uplinkDynamic Spectrum Sharing | Snapdragon X60 (Integrated)5G NR Sub-6 + mmWaveUp to 7.5Gbps downUp to 3Gbps uplinkDynamic Spectrum Sharing |
| Connectivity | FastConnect 6900Wi-Fi 6EBluetooth 5.2 | FastConnect 6900Wi-Fi 6EBluetooth 5.2 |
| Display | QHD+ at 144Hz4K at 60HzHDR10+, 10-bit color | QHD+ at 144Hz4K at 60HzHDR10+, 10-bit color |
| Memory | LPDDR5 up to 3200MHzUp to 16GB RAM | LPDDR5 up to 3200MHzUp to 16GB RAM |
| ISP | 14-bit Spectra 5804K video at 120fps8K at 30fps | 14-bit Spectra 5804K video at 120fps8K at 30fps |
| Node | 5nm | 5nm |
Qualcomm isn't changing too many things with the Snapdragon 888 Plus because it doesn't need to. The chipset will be limited to devices that are aimed at gamers or flagships that want to make use of the latest silicon. And if the Snapdragon 865 Plus was any indication last year, you won't be able to notice any difference between the Snapdragon 888 and the Plus model in day-to-day use.
The power on offer with the Snapdragon 888 is more than adequate for even the most demanding of games, so if you just got a phone powered by the chipset, you don't have to worry about it being obsolete. The likes of Motorola, Xiaomi, ASUS, Vivo, and Honor set to roll out phones with the Snapdragon 888 Plus starting in Q3, so if you're interested in seeing what Qualcomm's latest chipset has to offer, hang tight. If you don't want to wait, any of the Snapdragon 888-powered phones will serve you just fine.
The ultimate flagship
The Galaxy S21 Ultra features a sublime QHD+ AMOLED screen that runs at 120Hz, the latest internal hardware with Sub-6 and mmWave 5G, outstanding cameras, and all the extras you'd want in 2021. If you want the best flagship around right now, look no further.
