A Qualcomm Snapdragon 836 SoC will not be coming to market. This is based on the latest information reported by XDA-Developers, which in turn credits “an extremely reliable source” for the details. If correct, then it seems Qualcomm is not preparing to release an updated version of the Snapdragon 835. At least not in the foreseeable future.
While there had not been any firm confirmation that there would be a Snapdragon 836 coming to market anytime soon, there had been plenty of indications that was likely to be the case. Firstly, this is something that has become a bit of a pattern of late with Qualcomm, following last year’s Snapdragon 820 which saw a revised version in the form of the Snapdragon 821. Which in itself was not the first time that Qualcomm had introduced an ‘interim upgrade’ between major SoC releases. Therefore, the assumption that a revised Snapdragon 835 would come through in 2017, and as the Snapdragon 836, was plausible. Likewise, and possibly more importantly, it had been previously understood that some of the still-to-come 2017 flagship smartphones would make use of a revised version of the Snapdragon 835. Most notably, the next-generation versions of the Google Pixel and Pixel XL – which had been pegged as the first phones to come sporting a Snapdragon 836. The original versions of these smartphones both came boasting an updated Snapdragon 821 SoC, and the common understanding had been that the new versions would also come with an upgraded SoC. However, if this current report and source is correct, then that is not the case. With the suggestion now being that the upcoming second-generation Pixel and Pixel XL will come loaded with the Snapdragon 835 instead – the same SoC currently found in most major 2017 smartphones.
It is worth noting that although the report specifies that there is no Snapdragon 836 in the works, it is not confirming that there will not be another SoC arriving from Qualcomm before the end of 2017 – in other words, before the reported arrival of the upcoming Snapdragon 845. So there is still a chance that a new SoC will arrive, and maybe even along with the likes of the Pixel 2. It just seems to be the case that if there is a new SoC, it will not be the Snapdragon 836.