These CPUs implement the ARM 64-bit instruction set and serve as the successor to the previous 32-bit Krait CPUs. It was first introduced in the Snapdragon 820 (2015). In 2017 Qualcomm released the Snapdragon 636 and Snapdragon 660, the first mid-range Kryo SoCs. In 2018 the first entry-level SoC with Kryo architecture, the Snapdragon 632, was released.
Kryo (original)
First announced in September 2015 and used in the Snapdragon 820 SoC.[2] The original Kryo cores can be used in both parts of the big.LITTLE configuration, where two dual-core clusters (in the case of Snapdragon 820 and 821) run at different clock frequency, similar to how both Cortex-A53 clusters work in the Snapdragon 615.
The Kryo in the 820/821 is an in-house custom ARMv8.0-A (AArch64/AArch32) design and not based on an ARM Cortex design.
The Kryo 200 Series CPUs is not a derivative of the original Kryo microarchitecture, but rather is a semi-custom design licensed under ARM’s Built on ARM Cortex Technology (BoC) license. The Kryo 200 Series CPUs is derivative of the ARM's Cortex-A73 for the Performance/Gold cluster and Cortex-A53 for the Efficiency/Silver cluster in a big.LITTLE arrangement.[5]
Kryo 280
The Kryo 280 CPU was announced along with the Snapdragon 835 Mobile Platform in November 2016.[6] Compared to the original Kryo the new Kryo 280 core has improved integerinstructions per clock but lower floating pointinstructions per clock.[5] However overall the 835 was praised by reviewers for offering significant performance and efficiency advantage compared to the 820 and Exynos 8895 largely due to improvements in CPU scheduling and DVFS systems.[7]
The Kryo 260 CPU was announced along with the Snapdragon 660 Mobile Platform for mid-range smartphone in May 2017.[9] The Kryo 260 cores are also used in the Snapdragon 636, Snapdragon 665, and Snapdragon 662.
Kryo 250 CPU was introduced in the Snapdragon 632 Mobile Platform, announced in June 2018.[12] Also built on a 14 nm process, it is similar to Kryo 260, with a few differences in the size for L2 cache. Qualcomm claims the Snapdragon 632 has an increased performance of 40% compared to the Snapdragon 625/450, which only uses Cortex-A53 cores. Kryo 250 is also the first in the series to be used on an entry-level platform.
Kryo 240 CPU was introduced in the Snapdragon 460 Mobile Platform, announced beginning 2020.[14] Built on 11 nm process, uses Cortex-A73 and Cortex-A53 cores with big.LITTLE architecture. Qualcomm claims this CPU have an increased performance of 70% compared to previous generation (the Snapdragon 450), which only uses Cortex-A53 cores. Kryo 240 is to be used on an entry-level platform.
11 nm LPP process, first in Snapdragon 4-series line
Kryo 300 Series
The Kryo 300 Series CPUs features semi-custom Gold and Silver cores derivative of Arm'sCortex-A75 and Cortex-A55 respectively, arranged in configurations with DynamIQ.[15] These are Qualcomm's first CPUs to support ARMv8.2-A and DynamIQ. DynamIQ allows for more flexibility in CPU configuration including the amounts of cores/cache in each CPU clusters.
Kryo 385
The Kryo 385 core was announced as a part of the Snapdragon 845 in December 2017. Qualcomm expected 25–30% increased performance in task run on the high-performance cores, and 15% increase on efficiency cores, relative to the Snapdragon 835.[16] Testing found significant advantages in performance and efficiency compared with the Exynos 8895 and 9810.[17] The Kryo 385 is also used in the Snapdragon 850.
The Kryo 360 is Qualcomm's upper mid-range semi-custom core. It was introduced in Snapdragon 710, announced in May 2018.[18] The Kryo 360 is also used in the Snapdragon 670 and 712.
The Kryo 400 Series CPUs features semi-custom Gold Prime/Gold and Silver cores derivative of ARM'sCortex-A76 and Cortex-A55 respectively, arranged in configurations with DynamIQ.[15] Qualcomm revealed that their semi-custom Cortex-A76 have larger out-of-order execution window (reorder buffer) and data prefetchers more optimised in floating point workloads.[19]
Kryo 495
The Kryo 495 CPU was announced with the Snapdragon 8cx on 6 December 2018.[20] Qualcomm claims the 8cx is 60% more efficient than the Snapdragon 850.
The Kryo 485 CPU was announced with the Snapdragon 855 on 5 December 2018. Qualcomm claims up to 45% increase in performance compared to 845's Kryo 385.[27] Testing found the 855 outperformed the 845 by 51% in SPECint2006, 61% in SPECfp2006 and 39% in power efficiency.[28] The 855 also is significantly more efficient than the Exynos 9820.[19]
The Kryo 475 CPU is Qualcomm's upper mid-range semi-custom core. It was introduced on 4 December 2019 in the Snapdragon 765 and 765G, and May 2020 in the Snapdragon 768G.[29][30]
The Kryo 470 CPU is Qualcomm's upper mid-range semi-custom core. It was introduced in April 2019 in the Snapdragon 730 and 730G, and August 2020 in the Snapdragon 732G.
The Kryo 465 CPU is Qualcomm's upper mid-range semi-custom core. It was introduced in January 2020 in the Snapdragon 720G, with hardware support for NavIC.
The Kryo 460 CPU is Qualcomm's mid-range semi-custom core. It was introduced in October 2018 in the Snapdragon 675,[32] in January 2021 in the Snapdragon 480[33]
The Kryo 500 Series CPUs features semi-custom Prime/Gold and Silver cores derivative of ARM'sCortex-A77 and Cortex-A55 respectively, arranged in configurations with DynamIQ.[34]
Kryo 585
The Kryo 585 CPU was announced with the Snapdragon 865 on 4 December 2019.[29] Qualcomm claims up to 25% increase in performance and 25% greater efficiency compared to the Kryo 485.[34]
1x Kryo 585 Prime @ up to 2.84 GHz + 3x Kryo 585 Gold @ 2.42 GHz + 4x Kryo 585 Silver @ 1.80 GHz
1x 512 KB pL2 cache for Prime, 3x 256 KB pL2 cache for Gold and 4x 128 KB pL2 cache for Silver
The Kryo 560 CPU was announced with the Snapdragon 690 on 18 June 2020.[29] Qualcomm claims up to 20% increase in performance compared to 675's Kryo 460.[36]
The Kryo 600 Series CPUs features semi-custom Prime/Gold and Silver cores derivative of ARM'sCortex-X1/Cortex-A78 and Cortex-A55 respectively, arranged in configurations with DynamIQ.
Kryo 680
The Kryo 680 CPU was announced with the Snapdragon 888 on 2 December 2020.[37]