The production of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 chip will be more expensive

When Qualcomm introduced the current most powerful Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chip last year, it teased the public with the news that the next-generation Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 could be more expensive. Although the launch is still at least a few months away, reliable whistleblower Ming-Chi Kuo has revealed that the Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 could be around 25-30 % more expensive than its predecessor. The production of the new chip would therefore be around 200 $. The reasons for the price increase are unknown. The 4th generation will be based on 3-nanometer architecture, new Oryon cores will also be included, which could be the reason for the price increase.

Although the chip will be more expensive, this does not mean that we can expect a significant increase in the price of the next generation of premium phones. Yes, the chip price increase is not good news, but manufacturers could balance this price increase with compromises on other components. It may also happen that other important components or raw materials would become cheaper.

We hope that the increase in price will not have a noticeable effect on consumers. Some premium phones have experienced a slight increase in price in recent years (around €100), so we cannot say that the trend of price increases does not exist. However, at least for now there hasn't been a major jump from year to year and we hope it will stay that way.

If Qualcomm follows suit, we can expect the new Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 chip in October. The first phones with the new chip could arrive in Slovenia at the end of the year, but no later than January, when Samsung will present the Galaxy S25 series.