In Summary
- The Snapdragon 778G 5G was recently launched as the successor to the Snapdragon 768G 5G which was launched last year.
- It is a slightly downgraded version of the Snapdragon 780G which was launched earlier this year.
- All three chipsets fall into the upper-midrange category in Qualcomm’s 5G portfolio.
- We try to find out how improved the new generation of 700 series chipsets is.
Qualcomm has been focusing a lot on improving their mid-range chipsets especially from the past year or so. The 700 series processors which slot in right below the flagship 800 series have been getting closer to previous-gen 800 series mobile platforms which is a win-win situation for the end consumer. They are getting solid performance at a comparatively lower price. The Snapdragon 765G was one such chip that provided reliable performance even while gaming and was found on phones around the USD 300 (INR 25000) mark.
The SD 765G 5G was succeeded by the 768G 5G which was essentially a slightly improved version with not a lot of changes. Then came the Snapdragon 780G 5G which was a slightly more premium chip in the 700 series that brought about notable changes like the 5nm manufacturing process and new Kryo 670 CPU cores.
Since the SD 780G belonged to a slightly higher segment, Qualcomm also recently launched the Snapdragon 778G which sounds like the spiritual successor to the Snapdragon 768G. If you are looking to buy a new mid-range smartphone with any of these three chipsets, we’ll make your job easier by telling you what are the similarities and differences among these processors and what are the parameters you should look out for while buying a smartphone with any of these three mobile platforms in 2021.
Table of Contents
Snapdragon 768G vs Snapdragon 778G vs Snapdragon 780G
All three chipsets belong to the upper mid-range category of processors from Qualcomm. Since the names of all three processors are suffixed by ‘G’, they are all inclined towards gamers so if you are into mobile gaming but don’t want to spend a bomb on flagships, phones with these processors will get the job done just fine. Also, all three chipsets have integrated 5G modems.
CPU and GPU Performance
The SD 768G, being the oldest of the three processors, has Kryo 475 CPU cores coupled with the Hexagon 696 DSP for AI processes. Both the SD 778G and 780G, on the other hand, come equipped with newer and more powerful Kryo 670 CPU cores along with the Hexagon 770 DSP to aid with AI. According to Qualcomm, the new Kryo 670 cores give the processors up to a 40% boost in CPU performance compared to the Snapdragon 768G which is quite substantial.
Even in terms of graphic performance, the Snapdragon 778G and Snapdragon 780G pull ahead of the Snapdragon 768G by a good margin. The Snapdragon 768G has the older Adreno 620 GPU which has been replaced by the Adreno 642 on the Snapdragon 780G and a slightly less-powerful Adreno 642L on the Snapdragon 778G. Qualcomm claims that the new GPU allows heavier games to render better details.
The Snapdragon 768G was manufactured using the 7nm process while the Snapdragon 778G uses the 6nm node. The Snapdragon 780G uses the latest 5nm node which results in the best performance and battery efficiency among the three chipsets. Even the AI capabilities of the Snapdragon 778G and 780G have improved up to two times that of the Snapdragon 768G as per Qualcomm’s claims.
Network and Connectivity
As we mentioned earlier, all three chipsets come with an integrated 5G modem which makes even mid-range smartphones capable of accessing faster network speeds, of course with the clause that your region should have support for 5G already. Even if there isn’t support for 5G in your area, it is good to be future-proof if you plan to use your smartphone over a period of 3-4 years.
The Snapdragon 768G has the Snapdragon X52 5G modem which has support for both sub-6 GHz as well as mmWave connectivity. The Snapdragon 778G and Snapdragon 780G, on the other hand, get the newer X53 5G modem from Qualcomm. Weirdly, though, while the Snapdragon 778G has support for mmWave 5G, the more premium Snapdragon 780G only supports sub-6 GHz 5G. We assume that the Snapdragon 780G is primarily meant for markets outside of the US where mmWave 5G is still absent which is why Qualcomm decided to not include it on the Snapdragon 780G.
In terms of Wi-Fi connectivity, the Snapdragon 768G is only Wi-Fi 6-ready whereas the Snapdragon 778G and 780G have support for Wi-Fi 6 and 6E. This means stronger connection and lesser battery consumption albeit while using a Wi-Fi 6 capable router. All three chipsets have support for Bluetooth 5.2 and NavIC as well.
Display and Cameras
Phones with the Snapdragon 768G can support displays at up to Full HD+ with a refresh rate of up to 120Hz. The Snapdragon 778G and Snapdragon 780G take it up a notch by supporting up to 144Hz panels at Full HD+. All the processors are capable of processing HDR10 and HDR10+ images.
In terms of camera processing, the ISP plays a major role in the actual output of the camera sensor on any smartphone. If the ISP is superior, chances are that the image quality obtained from a smartphone is better, of course considering that the sensor used is also a good one. The SD 768G has the Spectra 355 ISP which can shoot in HDR and capture images up to 192MP. The Spectra 255 has dual 14-bit ISPs.
The Snapdragon 780G takes it up a notch with the Spectra 570 ISP that has triple 14-bit ISPs and can process more information. It can also shoot images up to 192MP. The Snapdragon 778G has a slightly more toned-down Spectra 570L which also has triple 14-bit ISPs. The difference between the two ISPs is that the Spectra 570 on the Snapdragon 780G has a lot more power in terms of AI computation and multi-frame processing.
Miscellaneous features
All three chipsets have support for Qualcomm Quick Charge 4+, but we rarely see brands using this standard. Most brands prefer their proprietary standards for fast charging. As we mentioned earlier, these three chipsets are gaming-oriented and hence have Snapdragon Elite Gaming features. The Snapdragon 768G supports up to 12GB of LPDDR4X RAM while the Snapdragon 778G supports up to 16GB of LPDDR5 RAM. Weirdly again, the Snapdragon 780G only has support for LPDDR4 RAM up to 16GB. Someone at Qualcomm really needs to get their numbering right.
Those were all the similarities and differences between the older Snapdragon 768G 5G and the newer Snapdragon 778G 5G and Snapdragon 780G 5G. Needless to say, the two new chipsets are more powerful and power-efficient so given a choice, you should opt for smartphones with either the Snapdragon 778G or Snapdragon 780G over the last-gen Snapdragon 768G. As for when smartphones with these new processors will be available to purchase, we can expect brands to launch phones with these chips in the coming months around the USD 350 (Rs 30,000) mark.