Snapdragon 8 Elite Extreme Gen 6 Phones Facing Black Screen and Restart Issues in China: Reports

About a month ago, Qualcomm announced the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 and 8 Elite Extreme Gen 6 chipsets, and they are powering several recently-launched smartphones. However, there are reports of some of these phones facing unexpected crashes, black screens, and random reboots in China.

Earlier this month, several users took to social media to complain about these issues, citing devices such as the Honor Magic9 Pro Max, Xiaomi 18 Pro series, and iQOO 16. Some users also said that the problems become more noticeable while playing demanding games.

However, it is to be noted that there is no confirmed evidence that the Snapdragon chipset itself is responsible for these issues. The reports are based on user complaints shared online, and neither Qualcomm nor the smartphone manufacturers mentioned have publicly confirmed the cause. It is also unclear how many devices are affected or whether the reported problems have a common cause.

What Is Happening With the New Snapdragon-Powered Phones

According to a PhoneArena report, some users in China are experiencing sudden black screens, system crashes, and unexpected restarts, particularly when running demanding games. Other reports on X suggest that similar problems can occur during lighter use, although the frequency and circumstances of these incidents remain unclear.

A tweet by tipster Abhishek Yadav is also garnering attention online. The tweet reads, “Snapdragon 8 Elite Extreme Gen 6 phones are facing random black screen and restart issues in China. Xiaomi 18 Pro Max, Honor Magic9 Pro Max and iQOO 16 users report sudden reboots, mostly while gaming. Some Xiaomi 18 Pro units with 8 Elite Gen 6 are hit too.”

The tweet adds, 'Reports claim this is due to low voltage tuning in the firmware; brands give the chip less power to save battery, so in heavy games it doesn't get enough power and the phone restarts. Qualcomm hasn't said anything yet, while the Dimensity 9600 Pro on TSMC's same 2nm process has almost no such reports.’

Note: These reports do not mean every phone powered by the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 series is affected. There is currently no verified failure rate or independent evidence showing how widespread the problem is across the reported devices.

Is TSMC's 2nm Manufacturing Process to Blame?

Some online discussions have also raised the possibility of a problem with TSMC's 2nm manufacturing process. The theory has gained attention because reported Snapdragon-powered phones use a chipset based on this process, and Apple's A20 Pro chip in the iPhone 18 Pro series also uses 2nm technology.

However, the available reports do not link the manufacturing process to the smartphone issues. Reports of restart problems affecting the iPhone 18 Pro series do not, on their own, prove that the two cases share the same cause.

PhoneArena also reports that Apple attributed an issue affecting the iPhone 18 Pro's Face ID sensor to a specific problem and released a software update to address it. This points to a separate explanation for that reported issue, rather than evidence of a wider problem with TSMC's manufacturing process.

Can a Software Update Fix the Issue?

A software update could potentially resolve the reported problems if they are caused by firmware or software. However, no confirmed fix or rollout schedule has been announced by Qualcomm or the smartphone brands mentioned in these reports.

If further investigation identifies a hardware or manufacturing defect, the solution could be more complicated than an over-the-air update. For now, there is not enough information to determine whether the issue can be fixed through software or requires another form of repair.