One of the first considerations you’ll make when purchasing a new Windows laptop is the CPU to go with.
You would view of this as a simple battle between Intel and AMD, but there is a third major choice to consider.
Since 2019, Qualcomm, a firm famed for its smartphone processors, has begun producing laptop counterparts. These ARM-based chipsets feature both CPU and GPU components and are already in smartphones from Microsoft, Samsung, and Lenovo.
A fourth iteration of the flagship Snapdragon 8cx Compute Platform is unlikely for a long, but we already know what to anticipate. Everything you need to know is right here.
When will Snapdragon 8cx Gen 4 laptops be released?
Qualcomm often delivers new flagship laptop processors around the end of the year, although the interval between releases is sometimes more than a year. Here’s when they’ve previously been announced:
- Snapdragon 8cx Gen 3 – December 2021
- Snapdragon 8cx Gen 2 – September 2020
- Snapdragon 8cx – December 2018
With no trace of it last year, the Snapdragon 8cx Gen 4 is anticipated to appear before 2023. Aside from the pandemic-affected 2020, Qualcomm normally introduces new products in November or December during an event.
A late-2023 announcement would thus seem plausible, although that is merely speculation at this point. In a November 2022 tweet, leaker Kuba Wojciechowski stated that an impending ‘Hamoa’ processor, presumed to be the Snapdragon 8cx Gen 4, will arrive in 2024.
In any case, the first Snapdragon 8cx Gen 4 laptops are unlikely to come before 2024.
Which laptops will use the Snapdragon 8cx Gen 4?
It’s tough to predict at this point, but new models of the four smartphones that employ the Snapdragon 8cx Gen 3 are expected. They are as follows:
- Lenovo ThinkPad X13s
- Huawei MateBook E Go (Wi-Fi model only)
- Samsung Galaxy Book 2 Pro 360
- Microsoft Surface Pro 9 (custom ‘SQ3’ version)
The Snapdragon 8cx Gen 3 is also used in the Windows Dev Kit 2023, however it is intended for a desktop configuration rather than for customers.
It’s probable that some Snapdragon 8cx Gen 2 smartphones may make an appearance as well:
- Acer Spin 7
- HP Elite Folio
- Samsung Galaxy Book Go 5G
- Microsoft Surface Pro X (custom ‘SQ2’ version)
Along with the businesses mentioned above, Asus is the only other firm that has previously hinted about a Microsoft relationship. Hopefully, the improvements are convincing enough to entice additional manufacturers to join.
What will the Snapdragon 8cx Gen 4 specs be?
So far, there is just one significant source of information, but it discloses a lot. Kuba Wojciechowski claims to have obtained several crucial data concerning the Snapdragon 8cx Gen 4, and his January 2023 Twitter conversation contains a lot to unpack:
Leak: update on Qualcomm's Apple M rival – 8cx Gen 4, codename Hamoa 🧵 pic.twitter.com/1tptCk8ghf
— Kuba Wojciechowski 🩷 (@Za_Raczke) January 20, 2023
One of the most important conclusions is that the most powerful processor has eight performance cores and four efficiency cores. Qualcomm appears to be getting 3.5GHz (performance) and 2.5GHz (efficiency) clock rates during internal testing, but the maximum is likely to be much higher.
Those 12 CPU cores are allegedly divided into four blocks, each with 12MB of L2 cache and 8MB of L3 cache. The entire system cache appears to be 12MB, with an extra 4MB for graphics output.
Wojciechowski claims that up to 64GB of integrated DDR5 RAM will be supported. However, the inbuilt GPU – Adreno 740, which was utilized in the Snapdragon 8cx Gen 2 – will reportedly not be upgraded. The high-end 12-core version, on the other hand, will enable separate GPUs.
The 8cx Gen 4 will allegedly be upgraded to the latest Wi-Fi 7 standard in terms of connection. It is projected to be accessible in 2023, rather than the planned early 2024 target.
Remember, this is our sole source of information thus far. Wojciechowski has a good track record for leaks, but it doesn’t guarantee that everything discussed will make it into the final product.
The only thing we can be assured of is 5G support, however an update to Bluetooth 5.1 on the 8cx Gen 3 would make sense. Bluetooth 5.4 is scheduled in 2023, although Qualcomm may stick with the existing 5.3 instead.
We’ll update this post when additional information regarding the Snapdragon 8cx Gen 4 becomes available. See our Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 guide for the latest information on Qualcomm’s upcoming mobile processor.
