Android smartphones with Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chipset in India in 2026

Mobile processors or SoC (system on a chip) have been getting incredibly powerful year after year. At the forefront of this breakout performance have been Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite chips. This extra muscle power comes handy beyond gaming too in processing higher resolution images faster, editing videos on the fly and even performing complex AI operations on the device. The latest and the most powerful of the lot at the moment is Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 SoC.

Without getting technical about its components and circuitry, it suffices to say that this chip delivers a noticeable jump in performance as compared to its predecessor, the Snapdragon 8 Elite, which itself is still quite a powerful chip. As one expects, this flagship Qualcomm chip is found in flagship phones from various brands, and they don’t come cheap. The prices range from Rs 72,999 to over a lakh Rupees more. Here are all the popular phones in India powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 8 SoC at the moment.

More from Tech

Android smartphones with Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chip in India

Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra

Let’s start with Samsung’s current flagship, the Galaxy S26 Ultra. From raw performance to a loaded photography department to the versatile S Pen, this premium device has got it all and some. Powered by Qualcomm’s flagship, you get multiple memory and storage options with the base variant offering 12 GB RAM and 256 GB internal storage. Be it day-to-day apps, gaming, photo editing or other productivity tasks, it handles everything with ease and with more than a handful of AI assistance.

The impressive photography department on the Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra features a 200MP primary camera with multi-directional PDAF and OIS (optical image stabilisation), a 10MP telephoto camera with OIS for 3X optical zoom and a 50MP periscope telephoto camera with OIS for 5X optical zoom. Not to forget the 50MP ultra-wide camera with dual-pixel PDAF. The cameras do a stellar job across the board in photography and videography both and can record videos in up to 8K resolution.

A sharp and vivid 6.9-inch QHD+ LTPO Dynamic AMOLED 2x display, respectable 5000 mAh battery backup with 60W wired and 25W wireless charging support round off the package. The S26 Ultra runs OneUI 8.5 based on Android 16, and Samsung has promised seven years of OS and security updates to keep this device secure and relevant for a long time.

Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra price in India: Rs 119,999 onwards

Vivo X300 Ultra

The Vivo and Oppo flagships are not just powerful phones but early contenders for the best camera phones of 2026 too. Other than the Qualcomm flagship SoC, the Vivo X300 Ultra boasts of an insane camera department that promises to take things a notch or two higher than the already impressive setup on the Vivo X300 Pro. You get two 200MP cameras here (that’s right) with the primary featuring a large 1/1.12” inch sensor and Gimbal OIS. The second 200MP sensor sits behind a periscope telephoto lens that offers 3.7X optical zoom, OIS and macro capabilities.

Last but not the least, there’s a 50MP ultra-wide camera with a large 1/1.28” sensor, 117-degrees FOV and OIS; this is probably the only phone around that offers OIS in an ultra-wide camera. Not to forget the 50MP front camera with PDAF to please the selfie enthusiasts. Things beyond photography haven’t been ignored either; you get a sharp 6.82-inch 144 Hz QHD+ display, ample 6600 mAh battery backup with fast wired and wireless charging and OriginOS 6 based on Android 16 with five major OS updates to follow.

Vivo X300 Ultra price in India: Rs 159,999 for 16 GB RAM/ 512 GB storage

Oppo Find X9 Ultra

The Find X9 Ultra is Oppo’s answer to the Vivo flagship, flaunting not three but four rear cameras. This phone too has two 200MP cameras with OIS with the primary having similar specs as the Vivo and the secondary doing telephoto duties and offering 3X optical zoom. In addition, you get two 50MP cameras - one a periscope telephoto unit with OIS providing a massive 10X optical zoom and the other with an ultra-wide lens with 123-degrees FOV and PDAF. There’s a 50MP front camera too with PDAF to capture some crisp selfies.

The other departments are impressive here too with the Oppo Find X9 Ultra featuring a sharp and vibrant 6.82-inch 144 Hz QHD+ LTPO AMOLED display. The battery backup is even better at 7025 mAh with support for 100W wired and 50W wireless charging. The phone runs ColorOS 16 based on Android 16 with many more years of OS and security updates to follow.

Oppo Find X9 Ultra price in India: Rs 169,999 for 12 GB RAM/ 512 GB storage

Realme GT 8 Pro

The current Realme flagship, the GT 8 Pro, is by far the most affordable phone in India at the moment with the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chip. It offers up to 16 GB RAM and 512 GB UFS 4.1 storage. It has a 6.79-inch QHD+ 10-bit LTPO AMOLED display with 120 Hz refresh rate and up to 7000 nits peak brightness. The HDR10+ and Dolby Vision compliant screen is protected against scratches by a layer of Corning Gorilla Glass 7i. This rugged phone flaunts an IP69-rated ingress protection

The camera department here uses Ricoh lenses and consists of two 50MP cameras at the back, the primary with OIS and the ultra-wide shooter with 116-degrees FOV. Giving them company is a 200MP periscope telephoto camera with OIS that offers 3X optical zoom. The phone lets you record videos at up to 8K resolution. Battery backup is impressive at 7000 mAh with a 120W fast charger bundled along to juice it up fully in under 45 minutes. It also supports 50W fast wireless charging. The Realme GT 8 Pro runs Android 16 with Realme UI 7.0, with four more major OS updates promised.

Realme GT 8 Pro price in India: Rs 72,999 onwards

iQOO 15

iQOO 15 is another relatively affordable option with the top Qualcomm chip with its 12 GB RAM and 256 GB UFS 4.1 storage variant going close to 75K. This phone has a 10-bit 6.85-inch HDR10+ compliant LTPO AMOLED display with a resolution of 3168 x 1440 pixels, 144 Hz refresh rate and 6000 nits peak brightness. It is fitted with a large 7000 mAh battery with a 100W fast charger bundled along.

The iQOO 15 has three 50MP cameras at the back, starting with the primary with OIS, accompanied by an ultra-wide unit with auto-focus that provides macro photography capabilities as well. The third 50MP periscope telephoto camera with OIS provides 3X optical zoom and is handy in portrait photography too. The 32MP front camera handles selfies and video calls quite well. The phone runs Android 16 with Vivo’s OriginOS 6 and one can expect five major OS updates and seven years of security updates for this device going ahead.

iQOO 15 price in India: Rs 76,999 onwards

Xiaomi 17

The Xiaomi 17 is by far the most compact phone in India to be powered by the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 SoC. It comes with 12 GB RAM and 512 GB internal storage. It has a sharp and vibrant 6.3-inch 12-bit 1.5K LTPO AMOLED display with 120 Hz refresh rate and HDR10+ and Dolby Vision compliance. Battery life is quite impressive for a compact phone with its 6330 mAh battery keeping the phone running for two days of moderate use. A 100W fast charger is bundled along and the phone supports 50W fast wireless charging as well.

The Xiaomi 17 has a fully stacked camera department designed in collaboration with Leica. You get three 50MP modules at the back, with the primary camera flaunting a Light Fusion 950 image sensor, Leica Summilux optics and OIS. You also get an ultra-wide shooter with 102-degrees FOV and a telephoto camera with OIS that provides up to 2.6X optical zoom. A fourth 50MP camera with PDAF takes care of selfies and video calls. The phone runs Android 16 with Xiaomi’s HyperOS 3, with more OS updates expected going ahead.

Xiaomi 17 price in India: Rs 89,999 for 12 GB RAM/ 512 GB storage

OnePlus 15

The current OnePlus 15 was a hard sell at launch as it missed some key features of its predecessor, in addition to offering a relatively inferior camera department. Things may be even harder now with a price hike forced by the global memory and storage shortage. But do look for some major discounts in the upcoming sales. While the company got a few things wrong with this phone, not everything is doom and gloom here if you spot it for a good price.

The OnePlus 15 does have a couple of impressive features like its 6.78-inch 165 Hz LTPO AMOLED display with support for Dolby Vision, HDR10+ and HDR Vivid. Battery backup here is quite robust too courtesy of a 7300 mAh Silicon Carbon battery that provides over two days of up time. It supports 120W wired and 50W wireless charging. The OnePlus 15 runs the latest OxygenOS 16 based on Android 16 with the company promising four major Android updates for this phone.

OnePlus 15 price in India: Rs 85,999 onwards