New Snapdragon chip hints at superior gaming experience without breaking the bank

Mid-range Android phones are about to enjoy a new chip that could account for a far better gaming experience than what we're used to.

The upcoming Snapdragon 4 Gen 6 – a chipset meant for mid-rangers and budget-friendly smartphones – is not yet official, but detailed leaks point to a GPU upgrade.

The successor

The latest report about the Snapdragon 4 Gen 6 shows that Qualcomm is serious about the SM4875, the successor to the Snapdragon 4 Gen 5 which was released not so long ago.

So, the alleged Snapdragon 4 Gen 6 (SM4875) doesn't make significant changes to the CPU, but it upgrades many of the surrounding components.

It keeps the same CPU configuration as its predecessor, with 2 Kryo Gold (Cortex-A78-based) performance cores, each with 256 KB of L2 cache, and 6 Kryo Silver (Cortex-A55-based) efficiency cores, each with 64 KB of L2 cache. All eight cores share a 1 MB L3 cache.

The two Cortex-A78 cores should handle demanding tasks like gaming and launching apps, while the six Cortex-A55 cores will focus on lighter tasks to save battery. The shared L3 cache helps the processor access frequently used data more quickly.

Relatively advanced chip

Like the Snapdragon 4 Gen 5, the upcoming chipset is manufactured using TSMC's 4 nm process. We're waiting for the mass adoption of 2nm silicon (the smaller the number, the more advanced the chip), but 4nm is great, too. This means good power efficiency and heat management.

The biggest performance upgrade comes from the graphics processor. The GPU moves from the Adreno 4-series to the Adreno 6-series, which should deliver noticeably better gaming performance, smoother graphics and faster image processing.

Qualcomm says the Snapdragon 4 Gen 5 already improved GPU performance by 77% over its predecessor, and this new GPU is expected to push graphics performance even further.

New memory

Memory support also gets an upgrade. Instead of supporting only LPDDR4X, the new chip adds dual-channel LPDDR5 memory running at up to 3,200 MHz, while still keeping LPDDR4X compatibility for lower-cost phones. LPDDR5 offers higher bandwidth, which can make multitasking, app loading and gaming feel smoother.

The security hardware is also updated with hardware-based ECC image authentication, which helps verify that software hasn't been tampered with before it loads, Widevine L1 support, which enables HD streaming on services like Netflix, and an updated Trust Management Engine, which securely stores encryption keys and other sensitive information.

The launch window remains unknown, but it could happen at the start of 2027.

Mid-rangers are cool

Flagships are great and there's no doubt about it, but with great price tags comes great responsibility… and sudden panic attacks.

Nowadays, all phones – including flagships – are much sturdier than before and you don't exactly need to baby your premium phone all the time. But the feeling you get upon watching your $1,300 Galaxy S26 Ultra fly towards the concrete ground is not one I'd recommend.

Now that flagships are expected to come with serious price hikes in H2 2026 and in 2027, going back to mid-rangers and budget-friendly phones could be the saner option. Gravity works on them, too, but the thousand dollars difference doesn't shower you in cold sweat.

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