Chipmaker Qualcomm launched two new processors meant for lower-cost phones<\/span><\/span> Thursday, adding support for the faster Wi-Fi 7 standard along with higher display refresh rates. The announcement is especially notable as the cost of electronics continues to rise amid the global RAM shortage<\/span><\/span>, putting more focus on what phone buyers can still get at value-focused prices.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The Snapdragon 6 Gen 5 is the higher-end of the two, and will be the first for its series to include Wi-Fi 7 support. The newer wireless internet standard generally supports faster speeds and improved multitasking for networks powered by a newer Wi-Fi 7 router<\/span><\/span>.<\/p>\n In addition to faster speeds, CNET Senior Writer Joe Supan notes in his Wi-Fi 7 analysis<\/span><\/span> that these routers have also come down in price, making them more accessible to recommend when building out a home internet network (barring separate concerns relating to the recent US ban on foreign-made routers<\/span><\/span>). The new processor also includes Bluetooth 6.0 support<\/span><\/span>, which should improve pairing speed when connecting other devices and audio latency.<\/p>\n <\/div> Motorola’s $500 Moto G Stylus runs on Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 6 Gen 3. The new Gen 5 edition of the processor could power similar phones.<\/p>\n <\/span> Joseph Maldonado\/CNET<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n Meanwhile, the Snapdragon 4 Gen 5 adds a number of features that could improve gaming on lower-end phones, such as support for 144Hz refresh rates and 90 frames per second. Both of these are among the features I’ve seen on gaming phones that I’ve tested<\/span><\/span>, and if something that cost around $300 were to support them, it would be quite the boost for phones in this price range.<\/p>\n To put into further context, the new $499 2026 Moto G Stylus<\/span><\/span> runs on the prior Snapdragon 6 Gen 3 processor, while the HMD Fusion from 2024 ran on the Snapdragon 4 Gen 2 and sold for 249 euros (around $300). There are no guarantees about when we will see devices with these Gen 5 processors, as there is a lot of competition among companies that make this component for lower-cost phones.\u00a0<\/p>\n Mediatek competes directly with Qualcomm with its Dimensity chips: Its Dimensity 6300 powers the 2026 Moto G Power<\/span><\/span>, for instance. Google and Samsung also have in-house processors in their under-$500 devices, with the $499 Pixel 10A<\/span><\/span> running on Google’s Tensor G4 and the $450 Galaxy A37<\/span><\/span> running on Samsung’s Exynos 1680.<\/p>\n<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>\n