Qualcomm’s new Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 chipWhile the Spectra ISP is...

Qualcomm’s new Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 chip

While the Spectra ISP is once again a triple ISP system, the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 upgrades things up to an 18-bit system (up from 14 bits on the 888). That translates to 4,096 times more camera data and up to four additional stops of dynamic range for very bright or very dark scenarios. The triple ISP (image signal processor) also allows for things like shooting 240 12-megapixel photos in a single second or simultaneously shooting in 8K with HDR while snapping 64-megapixel stills thanks to an increased 3.2-gigapixel per second throughput.

Qualcomm is also offering more high-end camera features out of the box, including support for shooting in 8K video with HDR 10 Plus and shooting in 18-bit RAW (assuming your phone has the camera hardware to actually pull it off).

The 8 Gen 1 also features a variety of other imaging improvements, including better dark mode pictures that can use data from up to 30 images in a single shot (up from six images on the 888). There’s also a host of better AI processing techniques, with improved auto-exposure, auto-focus, and auto-face detection technology, a dedicated “bokeh engine” for adding portrait effects to 4K video, and an “ultrawide engine” that can de-warp and remove chromatic aberrations from shots.

Qualcomm is also adding a fourth ISP, located in the dedicated sensing hub on the SoC: unlike the triple ISP for the primary camera, the new ISP is designed specifically to power an always-on camera that’s active at all times.Qualcomm has some big ambitions for what developers can do with the always-on camera, like automatically shutting off your screen when you put your phone down or if it detects someone trying to read over your shoulder.