Snapdragon 7+ Gen 3 vs 7 Gen 3 vs 7+ Gen 2: Mid-range Chip Comparison

After releasing the Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 just four months back, Qualcomm is back with an upgraded midrange chipset. The new Snapdragon 7+ Gen 3 chipset seems to be a significant upgrade in many aspects. It seems to be derived from the Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 chipset, which was launched recently as an affordable alternative to the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3.

Now, how does the Snapdragon 7+ Gen 3 compare with its predecessors, the Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 and Snapdragon 7+ Gen 2 from last year? To find out, let’s go through our detailed comparison.

Specs Comparison Table

Take a glance at the specs comparison below to understand the difference between Snapdragon 7+ Gen 3, Snapdragon 7 Gen 3, and Snapdragon 7+ Gen 2.

CPU

Starting the comparison between Snapdragon 7+ Gen 3, Snapdragon 7 Gen 3, and Snapdragon 7+ Gen 2 with the CPU first.

This time, Qualcomm has packed a powerful CPU inside Snapdragon 7+ Gen 3. In fact, the CPU is nearly identical to that of Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 (read our comparison between Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 and Snapdragon 8 Gen 3). It has the same cores and the same core layout, except for the clock speeds.

The Snapdragon 7+ Gen 3 comes with eight Kryo cores (1+4+3) and is developed on TSMC’s 4nm process node. It packs all the latest ARM cores. You have a single Cortex-X4 prime core clocked up to 2.8GHz, 4x Cortex-A720 cores clocked up to 2.6GHz, and 3x Cortex-A520 cores clocked up to 1.9GHz. In comparison to the 8s Gen 3, the Snapdragon 7+ Gen 3 has a frequency difference of just 200MHz – 100MHz across different cores.

Now, coming to the Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 that released just four months back in November 2023, it also packs eight Kryo cores and is built on TSMC’s 4nm process node. However, it doesn’t pack the latest ARM cores. In fact, there is no prime core inside the chipset.

It features a single Cortex-A715 performance core clocked up to 2.63GHz, 3x the same Cortex-A715 core clocked slightly below at 2.4GHz, and 4x Cortex-A510 cores clocked up to 1.8GHz. The CPU on the Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 is by far the weakest among the chipsets in this comparison.

Finally, we come to the Snapdragon 7+ Gen 2 chipset, which was released in March 2023. It also features an octa-core Kryo CPU and is fabricated on TSMC’s 4nm process node. Here, the CPU packs older ARM cores from 2021, but clocked at a higher frequency so the results are better.

The CPU includes a single Cortex-X2 prime core clocked up to 2.91GHz, 3x Cortex-A710 cores clocked up to 2.4GHz, and 4x Cortex-A510 cores clocked up to 1.8GHz.

Considering the CPU architecture of all three chipsets, it’s evident that the CPU on the Snapdragon 7+ Gen 3 is powerful and efficient. Qualcomm says the SD 7+ Gen 3’s CPU is 15% faster than the SD 7+ Gen 2’s CPU in multi-threaded tasks. However, in terms of efficiency, the Snapdragon 7+ Gen 3 should deliver much better results because it packs all the latest ARM cores.

What is disappointing is that the four-month-old Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 chipset can’t even outperform the year-old Snapdragon 7+ Gen 2 SoC. Nevertheless, to sum up, the Snapdragon 7+ Gen 3 includes the same CPU as the Snapdragon 8s Gen 3, but it’s slightly underclocked.

GPU

Coming to the GPU, Qualcomm has added a significantly powerful GPU to the Snapdragon 7+ Gen 3. The new Adreno GPU is 45% more powerful than the GPU on the Snapdragon 7+ Gen 2, according to Qualcomm. In addition, Snapdragon 7+ Gen 3 GPU brings some Elite Gaming features as well.

You also get Snapdragon Game Super Resolution, Adreno Frame Motion Engine 2.0 (AFME), Game Post Processing Accelerator, HDR gaming, and Shadow Denoiser. Some of these features are available on Snapdragon 8-series processors.

On the other hand, the Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 has again a muted Adreno 720 GPU that features the older AFME 1.0 engine, Game Super Resolution, and HDR gaming. Next, the Adreno 725 GPU on last year’s Snapdragon 7+ Gen 2 is a bit more powerful but comes with the same set of features.

Overall, the new Adreno GPU on the Snapdragon 7+ Gen 3 comes with a notable upgrade over the last two chips in the 7-series segment. It also brings flagship features like AFME 2.0 and Game Super Resolution to the midrange segment.

NPU

Qualcomm says the highlight of Snapdragon 7+ Gen 3 is its Hexagon NPU which can now run AI models on the device locally. It can run smaller AI models such as Baichuan-7B, Llama 2, and Gemini Nano on your device and power on-device Generative AI features.

This is in line with Snapdragon 8-series processors where Qualcomm is embedding a powerful NPU to deliver new AI experiences and the new Snapdragon 7+ Gen 3 borrows similar capabilities from the premium segment.

On the other hand, you have the Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 and Snapdragon 7+ Gen 2 SoC, both feature a Hexagon AI engine and it’s fairly capable. However, the NPU, along with CPU and GPU are not powerful enough to run on-device language and vision models.

ISP

The ISP has also seen a remarkable upgrade on the Snapdragon 7+ Gen 3. In fact, I find little to no difference between the ISPs of Snapdragon 7+ Gen 3 and Snapdragon 8s Gen 3. Except for some flagship features, you get almost all premium features on this Cognitive ISP. It comes with triple 18-bit ISPs and supports premium features like real-time semantic segmentation for both photos and videos, up to 12 layers.

Apart from that, it can capture photos up to 200 MP, and record 4K HDR videos at 60 FPS. There is also support for Bokeh Engine 2 for videos and Snapdragon Low Light Vision (LLV). It also brings the AI-powered video super-resolution feature and support for Google Ultra HDR photo capture.

In comparison, the triple 12-bit ISPs on the Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 can capture photos up to 200MP, and record 4K HDR videos at 60 FPS. However, it only gets support for the older Bokeh Engine 1.0 for videos. The same is the case with the ISP on the Snapdragon 7+ Gen 2. It brings triple 18-bit ISPs but only gets the AI video super resolution feature along with Bokeh Engine 1.0.

5G Modem and Connectivity

Both Snapdragon 7+ Gen 3 and 7 Gen 3 feature the Snapdragon X63 5G modem. However, strangely, Qualcomm says that the SD 7+ Gen 3’s modem can deliver a peak download speed of up to 4.2 Gbps, whereas the SD 7 Gen 3’s modem can push the speed up to 5 Gbps. On the other hand, the Snapdragon 7+ Gen 2’s X62 5G modem can deliver up to 4.4 Gbps.

As for local connectivity, Qualcomm has truly brought the flagship FastConnect 7800 system from premium chipsets to the Snapdragon 7+ Gen 3. It’s equipped with Wi-Fi 7 with High Band Simultaneous (HBS) Multi-Link support and offers a peak speed of up to 5.8 Gbps. The chipset also supports Bluetooth 5.4, and LE Audio.

Next, the Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 has the older FastConnect 6900 system, which brings Wi-Fi 6E (speed up to 3.6 Gbps), Bluetooth 5.3, and LE Audio. The Snapdragon 7+ Gen 2 is equipped with the FastConnect 6700 system that brings Wi-Fi 6E (speed up to 2.9 Gbps), Bluetooth 5.3, and LE Audio.

Memory and Storage

In the memory and storage department, the Snapdragon 7+ Gen 3 again mirrors the capabilities of the Snapdragon 8s Gen 3. You are getting UFS 4.0 support and LPDDR5X memory speed up to 4200MHz.

On the other hand, the Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 and Snapdragon 7+ Gen 2 bring support for the older UFS 3.1 storage standard and LPDDR5 memory speed up to 3200MHz. If OEMs choose to pack UFS 4.0 storage and LPDDR5X memory in their Snapdragon 7+ Gen 3-powered smartphones, it would deliver incredible performance in the midrange segment.

Snapdragon 7+ Gen 3: A Flagship-Grade Midrange Chip

It’s quite evident from the comparison that the Snapdragon 7+ Gen 3 is a powerful chipset in the midrange segment, much better than the four-month-old Snapdragon 7 Gen 3, and the year-old Snapdragon 7+ Gen 2. Qualcomm seems to have derived the Snapdragon 7+ Gen 3 chipset from the recently released Snapdragon 8s Gen 3, which is the underclocked version of the premium chipset, Snapdragon 8 Gen 3.

Qualcomm has not included some of the premium Snapdragon features, yet the Snapdragon 7+ Gen 3 shines in all aspects. It brings the latest CPU cores, gets an upgraded GPU with some flagship gaming features, and the NPU is capable of running on-device AI models.

Furthermore, the latest FastConnect 7800 system brings Wi-Fi 7, and Bluetooth 5.4 support. Not to mention, support for UFS 4.0 storage and LPDDR5X memory is available in a midrange chipset.

I would rank the Snapdragon 7+ Gen 3 right below the Snapdragon 8s Gen 3, so expect a lot of sub-Rs 35,000 phones to include this 7-series chipset. Finally, Qualcomm has brought an impressive 7-series chipset which was missing for a long time.

What is your opinion on the Snapdragon 7+ Gen 3? Let us know in the comments below.