Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 Orders Delayed, Costs Higher Than Gen 3

Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 has been hinted by a company executive to be more expensive than the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 as the transition to custom Oryon cores is not a ‘chump change’ endeavor. Unfortunately, it is difficult to calculate how pricey the upcoming SoC will be because, as per the latest rumor, smartphone OEMs have yet to place orders for it. It appears that even Qualcomm’s partners might be hesitant about incorporating the Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 in their upcoming flagships due to its high price, but their only other option now is MediaTek.

Estimated cost per unit of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 could reach up to $240, but that also depends on the total orders given by the OEM

Jumping from the 4nm process to TSMC’s 3nm ‘N3E’ immediately meant that the improvement in the manufacturing process would make the Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 expensive. Pair that with Qualcomm’s insistence on developing its in-house Oryon cores, and you will have an investment that will reach millions. The San Diego firm will naturally want to recoup those funds, and the only way to do that is to charge its clients more. Unfortunately, it is difficult to determine how much each Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 unit will cost because Yogesh Brar has pointed out on X that Qualcomm’s partners have yet to place orders.

Additionally, it is not like Qualcomm will provide all of its customers with the exact quote, as depending on how many Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 shipments are ordered, these partners could be forced to pay more. The post on X estimates that the SoC could be priced in the $220-$240 range, making it slightly more pricier than the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, which costs approximately $200. When companies like Samsung, Xiaomi, and others order this chip in the millions, it becomes a hefty bill, and the rising costs of Qualcomm chipsets are one of the reasons why Samsung has adopted a dual-chipset launch strategy for its flagship smartphone releases.

There are also rumors that the Korean giant will introduce its Galaxy S25 series with a MediaTek SoC, with the Dimensity 9400 expected to power one of the models alongside the Snapdragon 8 Gen 4, as Samsung aims to reduce its chipset expenditure. Popular Weibo tipster Digital Chat Station had previously commented that Qualcomm’s phone partners will have to think long and hard about their products’ overall configurations, as using the Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 can substantially increase the components bill. In short, Android flagships might strain your finances a bit next year, assuming you choose to upgrade.