Qualcomm provided travel and lodging to Snapdragon Summit. There was no additional compensation, and Qualcomm did not have any input on this article prior to publication.
This year’s Snapdragon Summit came and went, and I was fortunate enough to be on the ground in Maui to check out everything that Qualcomm and its partners had to show off. From powerful new smartphone chips to very interesting smartphones, more capable earbuds to chonky AR smart glasses, and, of course, the first batch of Googlebooks.
The Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 Extreme was the star of the show, but Summit also showcased a host of devices powered by Qualcomm’s latest chip and other Snapdragon platforms. Here are some of the most interesting things I saw during Snapdragon Summit 2026.
Xiaomi 18 Pro comes with two unique displays
It’s not too surprising, but Xiaomi was the first Android OEM to launch a smartphone powered by the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 series. In fact, it has two phones, the Xiaomi 18 Pro and 18 Pro Max, sporting each of the new Snapdragon chips.
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Beyond using some of the most powerful smartphone chips, the Xiaomi 18 Pro series has unique features you won’t find on most Android smartphones. The most obvious is the rear display, which lets users set customizable wallpapers, check notifications, adjust settings, and even take selfies using the rear 200MP cameras.
In addition, the front OLED display utilizes a new pixel layout that lets the Xiaomi 18 Pro utilize a new privacy display feature, similar to the Galaxy S26 Ultra. With it, you can hide the contents of your display from onlookers while still seeing your display clearly. It’s also customizable, so you can hide only notifications or specific apps.
The Xiaomi 18 Pro is available in China, with a global launch coming soon.
Motorola Signature 27 brings the heat to Samsung
The original Motorola Signature didn’t make it to North America, but its successor, the Signature 27, will launch globally later this year. The phone is a true Motorola flagship, powered by the Snapdragon 8 Elite Extreme Gen 6, with a completely new design and some impressive-sounding cameras.
The main camera is a 50MP Lytia 910, and there’s also a 200MP periscope telephoto lens, with cameras supported by Qualcomm’s Image Stabilization tech and the device’s 3.5-degree OIS hardware. This is all housed in a striking camera layout, covered in ceramic and brushed aluminum.
Motorola is also partnering with Bang & Olufsen to deliver a high-quality audio experience and has promised up to seven years of software updates, which is pretty rare for Moto phones.
We don’t know exactly when the Signature 27 will be available, but it’s at least coming in 2026, so it won’t be much longer.
Snapdragon gaming is getting a major boost
The Snapdragon 8 Elite Extreme Gen 6 is a powerful chipset that promises to upgrade your gaming experience with a new Adreno Neural Fusion. This enables new features like advanced AI frame generation for smoother gameplay and Super Resolution to improve graphics quality.
During my hands-on with reference devices, I played a game that used both features and could toggle them on or off to see the difference. This also included Unreal Engine’s Lumen lighting engine.
(Image credit: Derrek Lee / Android Central)
The visual and gameplay differences were quite obvious, and Qualcomm says developers could decide themselves which of the Adreno Neural Fusion features they want to utilize for their games for the best experience.
Googlebooks bring your phone to your laptop
Google has finally introduced the next evolution of Chromebooks, and it features a lot more Android. The first batch of Googlebooks is here, with devices from HP and Dell running the new Googlebook OS and powered by the Snapdragon 8 Elite.
The result is a more premium experience than what you’d expect from most Chromebooks. For starters, the Googlebook OS is built on an Android foundation, so it’s more capable than what’s possible on current Chromebooks. This makes it easier to add more features to the OS and supports AI features like Rambler, Gemini Live, Magic Pointer, and more.
Googlebooks can also access the full suite of apps on the Play Store, and connecting to your phone is now easier and more intuitive. You can access your phone’s files from your laptop without plugging them in, drag and drop files between devices, and even cast apps from your phone to the laptop with ease.
Googlebooks start at $899, and they’ll eventually come down in price and replace Chromebooks. But for now, the Googlebook experience is shaping up to be a premium one.
Snap Specs are cooler than I thought
Snap Specs were announced in July, but I finally got my hands on Snap’s rather divisive AR glasses. Given their bulky design, I expected to hate them. However, once I put them on, it was clear that Snap has done something quite impressive.
Unlike other dual-display smart glasses, Specs don’t require an external puck for battery and processing; everything is squeezed into the glasses, including the two Snapdragon processors, which is part of why they’re so huge. That said, despite their size, they’re surprisingly light and comfortable to wear.
(Image credit: Derrek Lee / Android Central)
I was able to play with a few demos, including a Harry Potter experience and a putting app. I was rather impressed with how well the glasses tracked my hand movements and anchored content to my environment. It felt a bit like using a Meta Quest 3 headset, but on a smaller, more comfortable pair of glasses. And while the Specs features some surprisingly good visuals, I was fairly disappointed in the field of view, which was rather narrow.
I can’t imaging these going mainstream, but they’re still pretty cool for anyone willing to spend $2,195 on these.
Your headphones are getting new superpowers
Alongside the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 series, Qualcomm also introduced the Snapdragon Sound Elite Gen 2, which promises some pretty neat features for your next pair of headphones.
While headphones and earbuds generally route AI requests to your smartphone, Snapdragon Sound Elite Gen 2 brings micro-power Wi-Fi, so your earbuds can connect to your AI assistant or other services without your smartphone. And with Snapdragon Sound Apps & Agents, manufacturers can build on these experiences, which could greatly enhance your audio experience.
(Image credit: Derrek Lee / Android Central)
In one demo, I translated audio from several languages into English directly on the headphones I was using. Another demo highlighted the AI capabilities, where the earbuds enhanced the voice of the person speaking directly in front of me.
The best part is that Snapdragon Sound Elite Gen 2 is targeting not only headphones and earbuds, but also smart glasses, AI wearables, hearing aids, and even a new category of camera buds.
Your glasses want to be your next doctor
In an interesting demo, I saw how medical professionals could use smart glasses to help diagnose you. A nurse or doctor could wear smart glasses while assessing you, and the glasses would use visual cues to decide what questions to ask next to get the right information.
While I’m not sure if something like this would be well-received by the public right now, especially when there’s so much scrutiny surrounding the use of smart glasses, I can see how something like this could be used to help medical professionals triage patients, especially during busy times when there may be a wait to see an actual doctor.
(Image credit: Derrek Lee / Android Central)
This also appears to be part of Qualcomm’s new Personal AI Health Alliance, which aims to make the health data our wearables capture meaningful through a more proactive, detailed, and accessible approach.