Qualcomm launched the Snapdragon 8 Elite processor back in October, and now we are waiting for a more affordable variant expected to be called the Snapdragon 8s Elite. However, it seems there’s an unexpected twist in the story.

Qualcomm has quietly listed an underpowered variant of its flagship Snapdragon 8 Elite chip with one fewer Performance core.

Qualcomm's Snapdragon 8 Elite chip will power most of the flagship Android smartphones and foldables this year. The foldable version of the chip features a 7-core CPU cluster that reduces power consumption and heat generation.

In related news, Qualcomm is reportedly developing a Snapdragon 8s Elite chipset as the successor to the Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 from last year. According to recent reports, this upcoming processor is expected to be a slightly scaled-down version of the standard Snapdragon 8 Elite flagship SoC.

Qualcomm is developing a new high-end chipset that will be positioned below the Snapdragon 8 Elite (and even the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3).

The lower-tier offering comes as Qualcomm is rumored to be working on midrange and overclocked Snapdragon 8 Elite variants.