OnePlus and Realme, the two leading Chinese smartphone brands, will only use Qualcomm Snapdragon chipsets in their upcoming devices, according to revelations from leading Chinese whistleblower Digital Chat Station on Weibo.

As per the clue, the upcoming OnePlus 12 will feature Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chipset, while the OnePlus 12R and Nord 4 or Nord 5 are expected to feature Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 and Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 chipsets respectively.

Snapdragon chipsets: powering the next generation of OnePlus devices

Historically, OnePlus has tended to use Snapdragon instead of MediaTek chipsets. For example, flagship smartphones OnePlus 11 and Ace 2 use Snapdragon processors. However, the OnePlus Pad, which is OnePlus’ first tablet alongside a few new versions like the Nord 3 and Ace 2V, has MediaTek chipsets.

According to rumors, OnePlus 12, which may be the first phone to feature the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chip, will be launched as early as November this year. Expected features include a 2K OLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate, up to 1TB of UFS 4.0 storage, and robust camera features. The device is also expected to support both wired and wireless fast charging.

The OnePlus Ace 2 Pro smartphone recently registered a staggering 150,000 pre-sales within 26 hours of its announcement, demonstrating the brand’s commitment to high-performance devices. The company’s strategy is to strengthen its leadership in the premium smartphone market by using powerful chipsets such as the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 processor.

However, there are concerns regarding the potential cost increase of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chipset, mainly due to TSMC’s move to the 4nm N4P process. The move may push some manufacturers towards MediaTek’s Size range, but big gamers may still prefer Snapdragon for their flagship phones and prioritize performance over cost.