Snapdragon 835 now official as Qualcomm teams up with Samsung over 10nm process

Qualcomm collaborated with Samsung over the 14nm Snapdragon 820 and 821, and the company is continuing to work with the South Korean foundry over its next-gen SoC, the Snapdragon 835.

The Snapdragon 835 will be built on Samsung's 10nm FinFET node, which entered mass production in October. The node shrink allows for up to 30% increase in area efficiency with 27% higher performance, but those figures aren't indicative of performance gains over the Snapdragon 821. The smaller footprint gives handset manufacturers the headroom to add larger batteries or opt for thinner designs.

From Keith Kressin, senior vice president of product management at Qualcomm:

We are excited to continue working together with Samsung in developing products that lead the mobile industry.Using the new 10nm process node is expected to allow our premium tier Snapdragon 835 processor to deliver greater power efficiency and increase performance while also allowing us to add a number of new capabilities that can improve the user experience of tomorrow's mobile devices.

The Snapdragon 835 is now in production, and will make its way into consumer devices in the first half of 2017.

Harish Jonnalagadda
Senior Editor - Asia

Harish Jonnalagadda is a Senior Editor overseeing Asia at Android Central. He leads the site's coverage of Chinese phone brands, contributing to reviews, features, and buying guides. He also writes about storage servers, audio products, and the semiconductor industry. Contact him on Twitter at @chunkynerd.

82 Comments
  • Yahooo! Let the Note 8 production begin!
  • Yes, exactly! Stylus addict here... Still rockin' the Note 4. The upgrade will be YUUUGE!
  • They are skipping the 830?
  • What 830? I missed the announcement for that.
  • are they skipping 825?? as well as 826?? /s
  • Maybe something about the number 830 is unlucky. Like how fans left on while you are sleeping can kill you.
  • "The smaller footprint gives handset manufacturers the headroom to add larger batteries or opt for thinner designs." Hopefully it's the former.
  • Knowing OEMs it so be the latter.
  • I hope not.
  • we all do...
  • Right. I mean how much thinner do you want a phone to be? Some are getting so thin, they start feeling like toys and cheap
  • The moto z is ridiculous. Feels like if you carry it in your front pocket you could inadvertently fold it up with a boner
  • "with a boner"... you made my day!
  • Maybe it'll leave enough room for headphone jacks and ir sensors too Posted via the Android Central App
  • Larger batteries = Larger Samsung Note explosions. Kidding. Smaller footprint = Less heat = Less explosions. Now, if Samsung could only take a page form HTC's book and make it easier to flash custom ROM's.
  • I know! 10nm and a huge battery would be awesome.
  • I hope they take advantage of that efficiency gain with better software efficiency and a larger battery. Efficiency gains are always welcome, but I hope we actually use this to improve battery life rather than keeping them the same as its predecessors. Also, I guess there's no 830. The 821/820 straight to the 835.
  • Do those numbers even mean anything or are they just thrown out there randomly??
  • Usually to highlight the relative performance of each chipset throughout the lineup when it comes to the last 2 numbers, along with progression. Like 801 < 805 < 810 (theoretically) < 820 < 835
  • There's no 822 either. Or 823. Or 824. Straight to the 835. How odd.
  • I wonder if they jumped to such a larger number to try to highlight the new 10nm chip vs the 14?
  • I agree. Today's top-of-the-line processors are more than powerful enough to deliver a superb user experience to 95% of the folks utilizing a smartphone. Battery consumption, heat generation, software integration, and component integration are way more important than more transistors and smaller size.
  • I have no issue with the Snapdragon 820 on my Moto Z. Sure, the SD835 will be faster, but I don't think I can really see the benefits in a significant fashion over my current phone. Efficiency should be the focus, since we've reached a peak when it comes to real-world performance for daily use.
  • Sign me up for a Note8! I hope it at least has a 4100mAh battery.
  • I agree, put the 830 or 835 processer in it. 6gb's & a 4000mamp battery and have it removeable! Ok, take my money!!
  • More efficient designs year over year forever. Where will it ever plateau? Posted from my unlocked S7 Active/ matte black iPhone 7/ peerless Note 4/ or iPad Pro 12.9
  • when it hit server level performance with no battery use
  • When they get to single-molecule transistors on a processor.
  • When they use jedi crystals for power and double as lightsabers.
  • Now we wait three more months for EOL of OP 3T and announcement of OP 3TS...
  • Well done Qualcomm. But I really would like to see the 835 be more evenly matched on paper and synthetic benchmarks with Apple's next chipset. I know there's alot of things to take into account however.
  • Me too
  • Benchmarks can be cheated(quite easily). I'll take performance everyday over useless numbers on a page.
  • +1
  • Synthetic benchmarks are pretty much meaningless. But overall the A10 does have the 821 beat. We'll see how the 835 fares
  • Agreed: Winning at the numbers just means you are winning at the numbers. The benchmarks do not reflect UI performance or software optimization. The active phones I have right now are the iPhone 6S Plus, S7 Edge, and two HTC M8's. My 6S does not feel any faster than the S7 or the M8. It's been my experience that Apple devices slow down with OS updates. The 6S is slower now than it was when it was new on iOS 9.0, and my work iPhone 5C is utterly pathetic in the performance department now thanks to the iOS updates now at version 10.1.1. The oddball is the HTC, which got faster with OS updates and does not bog when loaded. For perspective, the 5C and M8 are similar in age (6 months apart), and the 6S is much newer than either. The iPhone 5C loads Google News and Weather in 8.8 seconds, the 6S Plus in 6.78 seconds, and the M8 does it in 1.35 seconds. The S7 Edge has fared far better than the iPhone, even though is not *quite* as snappy as day one. However, this is due to app loading and not because of OS updates.
  • The 835 should be compared to Apple A10 fusion. Thats Apples "next" chipset. They will both coexist untill the end of 2017. just like the A9 and the 820
  • So far, I do believe that Apple has smoked Qualcomm. But then again who knows if Apple's chips are indeed better or if Apple is able to design great devices because they have tight control over all components and software integration. Apple has a much easier time evolving their phones since they literally don't have to potentially start over every year.
  • That's right. But it's pretty much irrelevant that Apple is making better chipsets on paper Because real world usage does not show the A series having any better real world performance. I've done the side by sides and seen many on YouTube as well. Really the only area that apple's chipsets show consistently faster performance is when launching games. After seeing side by sides between the 6s and 6P, I saw the 810 perform faster in in quite a few scenarios. It's all about optimization and it varies by manufacturer
  • A10 is 16nm and this new Snapdragon 835 is 10nm. So can't compare performance and efficiency fairly on an architecture basis as the process node is entirely different.
  • You're right
  • Does the A10 run Android now or any other OS besides iOS? It does not so the A10 is just not relevant to me at all.
  • Way to sandbox yourself there champ...
  • Or garden wall ;)
  • Sandbox myself? There is no other mobile OS out there right now that would be suitable for me but if one did come about it would run on Qualcomm SDs and NOT the Axx series. I did have high hopes for Sailfish...sigh.
  • Let's just hope the manufacturers go with bigger batteries rather than thinner devices.
  • And flagship caliber phones with 5" - 5.2" screens!
  • there are people who like 5.5" - 6.0"... they should not forget them either :)
  • I don't think you have anything to worry about hoping for larger phones. It's smaller versions with flagship components that are scarce.
  • Let's hope. But we are sure to see someone coming out with the "Thinnest smartphone in the world" line again...
  • What happens when they get to 1?
  • Then they'll start denoting picometers (1 nanometer is 1000 picometers)
  • For dumb people, they'll use the minus such as: -10nm, -14nm, and etc. lol
  • The chip ground rules don't determine the size or thickness of the package. That is determined by the packaging technology which is independent of the chip ground rules.
  • Those new chips are amazing , DAYS of batterylife and over 14 hours SOT with my moto z play, yay
  • Hey Android Central, is there any way to mute certain users? This guy is getting really annoying bragging about his Moto Z Play even on articles that have nothing to do with it. The Snapdragon 625 and 835 are NOT the same SOC!
  • And I thought his lg flex posts were annoying haha.
  • You know he's exceptionally annoying when even someone who has the same phone and loves it as much as he does (myself) gets irritated with his posts :D
  • Don't feed the troll. He's getting a kick out of your responses.
  • I know, I already called him out before but this is the last time I'll waste time with this Moto snob. This comment was more for reaching out to AC to see if I can block or mute him
  • I like his comments about the Z Play. About $400 is the right price for a good phone. I can't wait until manufacturers figure out that they don't need power hungry state-of-the-art chips and battery sucking quad HD display in a 5" form factor. Now if they would upgrade the camera a little bit...
  • I really like the Z play. I think it's the battery champion. Plus the mods are a nice feature. Not the best camera but above average!
  • These are exactly the type of members I wish AC would ban. But even when they ban people they let them back in anyway. I could name a few people who were banned and were let back in but I'm not going to waste my time. Phillip Pugh may be the biggest Samsung fan ever but at least he sticks to the Samsung articles and doesn't troll other articles not related to Samsung.
  • don't come back with you moto z play again plz... it's getting old
  • 'Member when Intel used to be the first to die shrinks?
  • Oooo, I 'member!
  • Hahaha and just like that the Pixel is antiquated. Glad I'm not getting one of those obsolete pieces of junk.
  • well if you take it like that, any phone having current SD821 is also antiquated... they are all pieces of junk....
  • Well yes, but my comment is specifically aimed at the"flagship" moniker Google attached to the Pixel. We knew the 821 was garbage before it went on sale, now it's official.
  • If that's your language then every phone you've ever bought has been a "garbage" phone.
  • Y'all got anymore of them die shrinks? I want 2 things out of my next phone. Better effiency and a bigger battery.
  • I have a feeling this will still be less powerful than Apple's processors.
  • Apple makes GREAT software and HARDWARE....a Mac from 94'still boots up and runs flawless.......this 'upgrade' year after year is such a lie.....you keep raising the horsepower allegedly yet phones STILL lag....its the software that needs upgrading NOT the SOC
  • this GAME is so tired through and delayed......optimize software and we will be just fine - a JOKE here
  • I definitely would go back to the Note line for this. Hell, if the fires didn't happen I would had chosen the Note 7 over my current V20, that I upgraded from the Note 4 from. This is exciting news.
  • Can't wait for the next Pixel and other Android flagships.
  • What's with the thinner design nonsense, a slightly thicker phone with a bigger battery would be nice for a change.
  • I find it funny how the Pixel would be considered obsolete, with the news of the SD835. As no phone on the market today has a SD835 yet. When that day comes then a person could possibly speak about phones with the SD821 being obsolete. I bet somebody will speak the same nonsense, the day they hear the news about a certain phone model with the 835. Even at that it will probably take another 1-2 months after the news, for an official release of the aforementioned device. So we might be looking at April, May or June for launch of a device having an 835. That puts it at about 6 months after the release of the Pixel, I think that is an average span of time to be a flagship in today's Market. With all the software optimizations that have been done to the Pixel, it will probably outperform in daily operations, whatever device in question.
  • Won't this (QC 4.0) beat the snot out of the life span of the battery? That kind of matters if the battery is not user replaceable.
  • Snapdragon 835? So they ditched the 830 after all of the rumors?
  • I hope that this new Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 does reduce the number of phone explosions that has happened recently. With Quick Charge 4, "5 hours of use from just 5 minutes of charging.”
    It is something I doubt, like how Google said at first how the Pixel could charge "7 hours in 15 minutes" Here is a more indepth article on Qualcomm's new Snapdragon 835. http://saintlad.com/the-new-qualcomm-snapdragon-835-quick-charge-4/
  • Oh please, no more"thinner designs", I don't want to put my phone in my wallet, I want to be able to hold it in my gnarly old hands. If it doesn't explode, that would be good too....