When the Samsung Galaxy S23 series was released, Samsung had one feature that nobody else had: a custom 8 Gen 2 chipset from Qualcomm. The Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 for Galaxy was touted as an exclusive for Samsung, but at the time, we theorized that this was exactly what a "Plus" variant would look like. Now, what appears to essentially be a Snapdragon 8+ Gen 2 has quietly been released in the RedMagic 8S Pro. We can confirm after getting our hands on a review unit that it's the same chipset as the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 for Galaxy, and Qualcomm has now confirmed it to us.

As for how we confirmed this, the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 has a part code of SM8550 with a suffix of "AB" (so, SM8550-AB) to signify the regular variant. The 8 Gen 2 for Galaxy chipset, however, is SM8550-AC. On our RedMagic 8S Pro, the system identifies the SoC as SM8550-AC, matching the chipset in the Samsung Galaxy S23 series. We also verified that the clock speeds on the RedMagic 8 Gen 2 match the clockspeeds of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 for Galaxy. This increase is an increase from 3.2GHz to 3.36GHz on the primary core of the CPU and an increase of 680MHz to 719MHz in the GPU.

When we reached out to Qualcomm, we were provided the following statement. This statement confirms our findings and also states that this new chipset is still just referred to as the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2:

"There are no specification differences between Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 for Galaxy and this new variant of Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 with 3.36GHz peak CPU speeds.

Given the minor adjustment to CPU prime core frequency, we’re treating this platform as a variant of the original platform (Snapdragon 8 Gen 2). Our goal is to maintain our simplified naming structure that was introduced in November 2021 so it’s easier for OEMs and consumers to discover and choose devices powered by Snapdragon. "

What's especially interesting is that Qualcomm hasn't really drawn attention to this chipset at all. The official page for the 8 Gen 2 mentions this part number as an option and to "Consult OEM specifications for device CPU speed." Judging from the statement provided to us, it seems that Qualcomm is now essentially referring to these minor clock speed bumps as the same chipset name. That's not necessarily a bad thing, as it was typically the case that these minor clockspeed bumps were the only changes. That is, aside from last year when the 8+ Gen 1 changed fab process to TSMC as well. That change resulted in massive efficiency gains and led to gains that were more akin to a year-on-year improvement.

Nevertheless, we're curious if more smartphones will crop up later this year with this improved Snapdragon 8 Gen 2. If this chip was released in any other year, it would be a "Plus" variant for sure, but the marketing doesn't call it that, and, judging by the statement Qualcomm provided us, likely won't ever be the case. If this ends up being Qualcomm's long-term strategy, things might get confusing when it comes to figuring out what chipset is in a particular smartphone.