OnePlus will unveil the OnePlus 15R on December 17, but we already know that the phone will be the first to ship with Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 chipset.
Announced at the Snapdragon Summit in September, the Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 is effectively a non-Elite version of the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5, and its launch will mark the first time Qualcomm has pursued a dual-flagship chipset strategy, giving brands like OnePlus the opportunity to bring flagship-level power to cheaper Android phones.
“If you buy a base model iPhone in 2021 [the iPhone 13]”It has the same chipset as the Pro model,” Xu explained on stage. “In 2022, things will start to get interesting. If you buy the iPhone 14 Pro, use the A16, but the base model [the iPhone 14] It stays on the A15. Then with the iPhone 15 Pro, it’s the A17 Pro, but the base model is still last year’s A16. Basically, Apple was reusing its chipsets from the previous year in its base models.
“But, in 2024, and this is the most interesting thing, if you buy the iPhone 16 Pro, you will get the A18 Pro. And if you buy the base model, you will no longer get last year’s A17: you will get the A18. It is a separate silicon. Qualcomm understands this competitive situation and knows it has to fight back.”
“Bottom line: In your best flagship, you need to boost the power of your silicon,” Xu continued. “That’s what Apple [did] with the A18 Pro and with the base model [from that year]they [wanted] to download [sic] the best advances of the Pro on a separate silicon. That’s the A18.
“And it’s the same situation with the iPhone 17 series. You have the A19 Pro in the iPhone 17 Pro and the A19 in the iPhone 17. Apple is using a dual-flagship strategy with its silicon. And that’s why Qualcomm is also using a dual-flagship strategy this year, starting with the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 and the Snapdragon 8 Gen 5.”
Now, I’m not sure Qualcomm would so openly admit to having copied Apple’s duties, but the logic in doing so is valid. And in an interview with TechRadar after Xu’s presentation on stage, the executive explained in more detail why Qualcomm’s change in strategy is better for Qualcomm, better for OnePlus and, fundamentally, better for consumers:
“Qualcomm is definitely seeing a trend that [suggests] a dual flagship strategy works best. Because with him [Snapdragon 8] Elite, you can strive for the best,” Xu said. “You can pack all the best technology you have from that year. [into one chipset]. And for the base model, when you add a new flagship [chipset]you can download [sic] the latest developments from that year, instead of using last year’s architecture.
“He [Snapdragon] 8 Gen 5 actually has the same architecture as 8 Elite Gen 5: same CPU architecture, same GPU architecture. And consumers will also feel that it is better, because they will know that this is the latest chipset, a new one, instead of borrowing an older one from last year. That is the perspective of psychology.
“And as for why this is great for OnePlus, the 15 and 15R get the latest chipsets, and because they use the same architecture, it’s very easy for us to carry over the latest benefits from the 15 to the 15R. For example, the 120fps always-on display and games that support 165Hz. It’s very easy for us to make the transfer, because they share the same software foundation.”
There you have it: the OnePlus 15R will be a cheaper alternative to the OnePlus 15. But thanks to the power of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 5, it won’t compromise on the level of performance that earned the latter phone a five-star TechRadar review rating.
As for what else we know about the OnePlus 15R, OnePlus has confirmed that the phone will use the same Detailmax engine as the OnePlus 15, as well as the same G2 Wi-Fi chip for strong Wi-Fi connectivity.
It’s safe to expect a smaller battery and some lower-spec camera hardware, but in any case, everything will be revealed on December 17.
Follow TechRadar on Google News and add us as a preferred source to receive news, reviews and opinions from our experts in your feeds. Be sure to click the Follow button!
And of course you can also follow TechRadar on TikTok for news, reviews, unboxings in video form and receive regular updates from us on WhatsApp also.
