Samsung Galaxy S25 could get a major speed boost — here's what you need to know
Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 could hit 4GHz, tipster claims
The Samsung Galaxy S24 may still be a few days away from release, but an established leaker has popped up with a compelling reason to wait for next year’s model.
On Weibo, Digital Chat Station writes that the prospects of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 chipset (apparently codenamed “Tongzi”) hitting 4GHz “is not a dream”. For reference, the current Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 reaches 3.3GHz, making this quite a substantial upgrade.
Phones being faster from generation to generation is hardly news, but — if true — this would be quite a sizeable jump. It’s not completely unexpected, however, as Qualcomm is reportedly looking to switch to a 3-nanometer manufacturing process with its next generation of chips. That means more transistors on the silicon, leading to more power and better energy efficiency in a smaller area.
Whether you need anything that fast in a smartphone is another matter, of course. Frankly, there’s nothing on the Google Play Store that would cause any of the best Android phones any serious problems, and the Galaxy S25 will need more than a speed burst to make it stand out in 2025.
Samsung Galaxy S25: What we know so far
Beyond the chipset, we haven’t heard too much about the Galaxy S25 — though we can safely assume that Samsung will continue to embrace artificial intelligence, given the efforts the company has made for the S24 family.
There have been a couple of camera-related rumors, however. Last month, the leaker @Tech_Reve claimed that the Galaxy S25 would ditch the Isocell GN3 sensor and switch to something made by Sony instead. While the tipster didn’t mention which Sony sensor it would be, it was still a cause for celebration in his eyes: “I’m very happy!”.
The leaker returned later in the month with a specific prediction for the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra. It will apparently come with an upgraded main sensor, a boosted telephoto lens with “variable capabilities” and a 50MP ultra-wide lens (unsurprising, as this is the upgrade the Galaxy S24 Ultra just received.)
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All of these rumors should be taken with a pinch of salt, of course, because the S25 likely won’t be with us until January 2025, if not later. But we’ll likely have more from Samsung before the year is out. We’re likely to see a fresh batch of foldables, the Galaxy Watch 7 and perhaps the Galaxy Tab S10 in the late summer.
Freelance contributor Alan has been writing about tech for over a decade, covering phones, drones and everything in between. Previously Deputy Editor of tech site Alphr, his words are found all over the web and in the occasional magazine too. When not weighing up the pros and cons of the latest smartwatch, you'll probably find him tackling his ever-growing games backlog. Or, more likely, playing Spelunky for the millionth time.