Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 smartphones expected to launch in India

(Image credit: Qualcomm)

With 2020 upon us, we already have a few Android flagships announced, equipped with the latest internals. Most of these are powered by the latest Snapdragon 865 SoCs, bringing more processing power and 5G capabilities to the mix.

To keep the excitement high, Qualcomm talked about upcoming smartphones that will be powered by the Snapdragon 865, along with new features and future improvements. Interestingly, a list was also shared, which confirmed which other upcoming smartphones will be powered by the Snapdragon 865 as well as sport 5G.  

Evidently, the list includes smartphones from a multitude of manufacturers. Some of these smartphones were talked about for the first time, confirming that they will be launching soon. A good chunk of these is gaming smartphones Qualcomm said that over 70 devices Snapdragon 865 powered 5G devices are currently in development with more coming soon.

Snapdragon 865 phones expected to launch in India

While some of these have already been announced, devices such as the Oppo Find X2, Vivo APEX 2020, the Redmi K30 Pro, and the Black Shark 3 are just around the corner. It looks like almost every Android manufacturer wants to jump on the Snapdragon 865 bandwagon and play a role in bringing more 5G smartphones to the market.

The list has a few notable omissions, such as the upcoming OnePlus 8 series, the Galaxy Fold 2, and the Note 20 series from Samsung and others, which are all expected to be powered by the Snapdragon 865 chipset.

The keynote didn't touch upon global availability or timelines for these phones. But, if we were to guess, we expect the Xiaomi Mi 10 series, the Oppo Find X2, the Asus Zenfone 7, and the Redmi K30 Pro (rebranded or otherwise) to come to India. Lenovo has been a little passive off-late, so it's unclear which markets the Legion gaming phone will go to. Red Magic and Black Shark didn't bring their latest gaming phones to India, too, so their future also seems uncertain. Sony and ZTE no longer bring their flagships to India, so even they are off the list.

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It’s not surprising that these phones are 5G-capable, as the Snapdragon X55 modem doesn’t have a 4G-only variant. Qualcomm also announced the next-gen Snapdragon X60 modem which can support download speeds of up to 7.5Gbps.

Aakash Jhaveri

Aakash is the engine that keeps TechRadar India running, using his experience and ideas to help consumers get to the right products via reviews, buying guides and explainers. Apart from phones, computers and cameras, he is obsessed with electric vehicles.