Android phones just took a major leap – will be even more appealing in 2026

Every year, Qualcomm gathers for its Snapdragon Summit, where the chip-maker presents its latest mobile innovations. Although this year it's a little different – as we already officially knew what was coming.

Qualcomm's Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 is the latest platform, which Xiaomi already confirmed will be in its new Xiaomi 17 flagship (yes, there's no Xiaomi 16 series, as the maker trails the iPhone 17 namesake as close as possible!).

But that Xiaomi device won't be on Western shores for some time, so Qualcomm's big reveal is more a tease for what's coming in 2026 – and the Android phone upgrade that it represents.

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Given that Samsung launches its flagship Galaxy models in January each year, expect the S26 Ultra to be a major player in the chipset's greater appeal.

Qualcomm’s new Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 doesn’t just bring back a naming convention, however, its hardware boosts performance significantly – at up to 20% more than its predecessor.

Which phones will feature Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5?

Qualcomm continues its ongoing partnership with Samsung for its Galaxy devices, so expect the new S26 series to feature potentially 'for Galaxy' versions of Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5. However, this is all speculation for now.

Other than the Xiaomi 17 series, however, no other specific handsets have been revealed that will utilise the latest Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 platform as yet.

Qualcomm's official release, however, confirms that brands including Honor, OnePlus, Samsung, Sony, Vivo and Xiaomi will utilise the chipset.

There is more competition, of course, with MediaTek having just revealed its Dimensity 9500 hardware, which is likely to appear in a variety of handsets.

T3 is on the ground at Snapdragon Summit 2025 and will be keeping our eyes peeled for further concrete announcements about future handsets that will use Qualcomm's latest. More to come...