All flagships with Snapdragon 8 Elite will support UWB

Qualcomm recently unveiled the Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset, which delivers significant performance gains for Android devices. Despite the chip’s ultra-wideband (UWB) capabilities thanks to the FastConnect 7900 platform, not all devices with this chipset will support UWB. Qualcomm clarifies that enabling this feature is left to the discretion of device manufacturers.

UWB is a wireless communication protocol with high-precision location tracking that allows you to, for example, use your phone as a digital key for your car or connect to nearby devices for seamless casting. Apple’s AirTags, for example, use UWB for precise location, and Google’s Find My Device network is expected to use UWB as well, allowing Android-based item-tracking systems to approach Apple’s ecosystem in terms of accuracy.

And Google’s Find My Device network is expected to use UWB as well.

Although Qualcomm said the FastConnect 7900 supports UWB without the need for additional hardware, activating UWB requires regulatory requirements, which adds complexity and increases the cost of the device. For example, Realme explained that it decided to drop UWB support in the GT7 Pro because of the limited real-world use cases for the technology.

Realme explained that it decided not to support UWB in the GT7 Pro because of the limited real-world use cases for the technology.

Besides connectivity options, the Snapdragon 8 Elite offers significant performance improvements. The chip includes a new large-core Oryon architecture consisting of two high-performance cores clocked at 4.32GHz, as well as an improved Adreno GPU that boosts gaming performance by up to 40%. The AI Engine module accelerates the image processor (ISP), processing up to 4.3 gigapixels per second to deliver high-quality photos and videos even in challenging conditions. These improvements allow Snapdragon 8 Elite-based devices to compete with MediaTek’s Dimensity 9400 in the premium Android smartphone market.

Snapdragon 8 Elite.