Qualcomm has been the gold standard for smartphone and tablet processors for quite a long time, and today they have announced their latest, the Snapdragon 835 processor, whose new features have been detailed by us here. The latest addition to its top-of-the-line 800 series will pack a serious punch, as it is stated to be manufactured using the 10nm FINFET process (I’ll get back to this later on).

This year only saw a modest upgrade over the previous chip Snapdragon 820 to the Snapdragon 821. The 821 basically offered incremental advancement in VR performance. So what does the Snapdragon 835 offer? We can’t say much for now as details on the specifications are minimal as of now, but it is said to feature the next generation Quick Charge 4.0 which will offer 20% faster and 30% more efficient charging than Quick Charge 3.0.

Also stated, was that the new SoC will follow Google’s new protocol for USB type C charging, thereby ensuring safer charging for your device. Earlier on, I mentioned the 10nm FINFET process, and I did so because it is a big deal in all its actuality. The 10nm FINFET manufacturing process was first showcased by Samsung two years ago. And the result to commercial production is right on queue as expected back then.

Now brace yourself for the technical jargon that’s about to come. The FINFET process basically allows the Foundry or Wafer manufacturer to decrease transistor size, in this case to 10nm, which is the size of single water molecule! This is achieved using 3D transistor placement instead of planar, leading to reduction in space used.

Phew! Now that the boring part is done, you must be wondering what it all means for the end user. The bottom line is, OEMs will be able to utilise the space saving from the smaller process and include bigger battery, or cut down on thickness of their smartphones. It can also mean more power efficient and faster devices, simply put because, signal distances have been cut down.

As of now, the successor to this generation of flagship smartphones will most probably receive this SoC. All the flagships to come were originally expected to pack the Snapdragon 830, but today we know that, that variant of the processor just does not exist, or its exists as Snapdragon 835.

Here’s a list of Android devices that could be powered by Snapdragon 835 processor, and due to arrive in 2017.

Snapdragon 835 Phones

Samsung Galaxy S8

The Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus (US variants only) are expected to be equipped with the Snapdragon 835 processor. Rest of the S8 specs aren’t any far from the best available as per rumors, as it’s expected to hit the market with 6GB/8GB RAM, 64GB storage, dual camera, full front display, and 3d/Force touch pressure-sensitive display.

Find more at our Galaxy S8 specs page. Expected Galaxy S8 release date is set for March 2017, with announcement on February 26.

Samsung Galaxy Note 8

With the Note series still seemingly alive in spite of the Note 7 blunder, we expect the Galaxy Note 8 (again US variants only) to house a SD835 chipset, unless Qualcomm release an upgrade to it in the form of Snapdragon 836 or something.

All the specs from the S8 should be taken to Note 8 too, with the addition of Note line super-favorite, the S-Pen. Expected to release in September 2017.

HTC 11

The HTC 11 would be powered by the Snapdragon 835 too, and will sport a 5.5″ dual-curve display, 8GB RAM, 3500mAh battery and even 256GB storage.

Expected HTC 11 release date is March 2017.

LG G6

The LG G6 will not be featuring the LG G5 — whose Nougat update is now released in Korea — but would definitely feature the Snapdragon 835 processor. Other specs could be 6GB RAM, 64GB storage, dual camera, and dual-edge display.

Expected release date for the LG G6 is April 2017.

Xiaomi Mi6

No details are available at the moment about the Xiaomi Mi6, but given that Mi5 was launched back in April 2016, a refresh would be due come March or April 2017. And that would come in the form of Xiaomi Mi6, which would give the likes of Galaxy S8 and HTC 11 a run for their money.

OnePlus 4

The OnePlus 3T was only recently launched, getting the fans of OnePlus a product that housed the then-latest processor in Snapdragon 821 chipset. The next iteration, the OnePlus 4 will most definitely feature the Snapdragon 835 processor. Expected release date is August 2017.

Moto Z2

Motorola’s flagship will obviously feature the best from Snapdragon processor available on the market, as Motorola hasn’t used any other processor for its smartphones, save for the exception of the Moto E3 Power. Expect the Moto Z2 to become available in August-September 2017, with around 4-6GB RAM, 64/128GB storage, dual camera and of course, the Snapdragon 835 processor.

Asus Zenfone 4 Deluxe

Asus will upgrade its portfolio with the 4th gen of its Zenfone series in Zenfone 4, of which we think the Deluxe variant — the most premium one, as is the case among Zenfone 3 variants — would be powered with Snapdragon 835 processor, along with greater RAM and storage choices. Expected release date is August 2017.

Sony Xperia X Performance 2

Of the numerous Sony Xperia X sets, only the X Performance offers top CPU power in Snapdragon 820 chipset. So, expect its revision, which could be conveniently dubbed as X Performance 2, to get you Snapdragon 835 processor in a beautiful colored (pink, anyone?) glass body. Expected release date would be June 2017.

Huawei uh?

Well, Huawei is Qualcomm’s competitor as it manufacturers and uses its own processors in its devices, like the Mate 9 Pro, which is a latest release. Without adopting Snapdragon chipset, Huawei has successfully installed good firepower in its devices — as a proof, just check out the Mate 9 comparison GIF here, which blows — no pun! — Note 7’s performance by a mile, and does the same for iPhone 7.

With such success with its own Kirin line of processors, we don’t expect Huawei to show Snapdragon 835 processor any love in 2017 either.

More devices with SD835 chipset

Other devices that could come equipped with Snapdragon 835 processor include:

  • Vivo Xplay 7 (Xplay 6 just arrived, BTW!)
  • Xiaomi Mi Note 3
  • Google Pixel2 and Pixel2
  • LeEco 3 or 3S
  • Lenovo Zuk Z3 pro
  • ZTE Axon 2

So, which device is the most exciting one to you?

Does the high-end devices like Galaxy S7 and HTC 10 still look fully worthy to you, or the best specs-on-budget devices like OnePlus 3 and ZTE Axon 7 becoming more of your liking?