diff --git a/src/video_core/renderer_opengl/gl_fence_manager.h b/src/video_core/renderer_opengl/gl_fence_manager.h
index 26622c396f..696e03ae36 100644
--- a/src/video_core/renderer_opengl/gl_fence_manager.h
+++ b/src/video_core/renderer_opengl/gl_fence_manager.h
@@ -1,3 +1,6 @@
+// SPDX-FileCopyrightText: Copyright 2025 Eden Emulator Project
+// SPDX-License-Identifier: GPL-3.0-or-later
+
 // SPDX-FileCopyrightText: Copyright 2020 yuzu Emulator Project
 // SPDX-License-Identifier: GPL-2.0-or-later
 
diff --git a/src/video_core/renderer_vulkan/vk_pipeline_cache.cpp b/src/video_core/renderer_vulkan/vk_pipeline_cache.cpp
index 196956e1d2..f8d847ab26 100644
--- a/src/video_core/renderer_vulkan/vk_pipeline_cache.cpp
+++ b/src/video_core/renderer_vulkan/vk_pipeline_cache.cpp
@@ -309,9 +309,8 @@ size_t GetTotalPipelineWorkers() {
     const size_t max_core_threads =
         std::max<size_t>(static_cast<size_t>(std::thread::hardware_concurrency()), 2ULL) - 1ULL;
 #ifdef ANDROID
-    // Leave at least one core free on Android. Previously we reserved two, but
-    // shipping builds benefit from one extra compilation worker.
-    constexpr size_t free_cores = 1ULL;
+    // Leave at least two cores free on Android to reduce thermal pressure.
+    constexpr size_t free_cores = 2ULL;
     if (max_core_threads <= free_cores) {
         return 1ULL;
     }
diff --git a/src/video_core/renderer_vulkan/vk_staging_buffer_pool.cpp b/src/video_core/renderer_vulkan/vk_staging_buffer_pool.cpp
index b6676041db..492df8867f 100644
--- a/src/video_core/renderer_vulkan/vk_staging_buffer_pool.cpp
+++ b/src/video_core/renderer_vulkan/vk_staging_buffer_pool.cpp
@@ -147,6 +147,7 @@ StagingBufferRef StagingBufferPool::GetStreamBuffer(size_t size) {
 }
 
 bool StagingBufferPool::AreRegionsActive(size_t region_begin, size_t region_end) const {
+    scheduler.GetMasterSemaphore().Refresh();
     const u64 gpu_tick = scheduler.GetMasterSemaphore().KnownGpuTick();
     return std::any_of(sync_ticks.begin() + region_begin, sync_ticks.begin() + region_end,
                        [gpu_tick](u64 sync_tick) { return gpu_tick < sync_tick; });
diff --git a/src/video_core/vulkan_common/vulkan_device.cpp b/src/video_core/vulkan_common/vulkan_device.cpp
index 20665bcefa..acf713b52a 100644
--- a/src/video_core/vulkan_common/vulkan_device.cpp
+++ b/src/video_core/vulkan_common/vulkan_device.cpp
@@ -978,13 +978,20 @@ bool Device::ShouldBoostClocks() const {
 }
 
 bool Device::HasTimelineSemaphore() const {
-    if (GetDriverID() == VK_DRIVER_ID_QUALCOMM_PROPRIETARY ||
-        GetDriverID() == VK_DRIVER_ID_MESA_TURNIP) {
-        // Timeline semaphores do not work properly on all Qualcomm drivers.
-        // They generally work properly with Turnip drivers, but are problematic on some devices
-        // (e.g. ZTE handsets with Snapdragon 870).
+    const VkDriverIdKHR driver_id = GetDriverID();
+    if (driver_id == VK_DRIVER_ID_MESA_TURNIP) {
         return false;
     }
+
+    if (driver_id == VK_DRIVER_ID_QUALCOMM_PROPRIETARY) {
+        // Drop the variant bits before comparing to the minimum supported timeline build.
+        const u32 driver_version = (GetDriverVersion() << 3) >> 3;
+        constexpr u32 min_timeline_driver = VK_MAKE_API_VERSION(0, 500, 800, 51);
+        if (driver_version < min_timeline_driver) {
+            // Older Qualcomm stacks still need binary fences for stability.
+            return false;
+        }
+    }
     return features.timeline_semaphore.timelineSemaphore;
 }