MediaTek is working on its new flagship system-on-chip, the Dimensity 9300, which is expected to appear in high-end smartphones from OPPO, Vivo and Xiaomi. This chipset is manufactured using TSMC’s advanced 4nm process and uses a configuration of 3 Cortex-X4 cores running at 3.25 GHz, 3 Cortex-X4 cores running at 2.85 GHz, and 4 Cortex-A720 cores running at 2 GHz . This configuration clearly stands out because it completely forgoes the economical, low-power cores that are usually used for less demanding tasks in order to save energy.
Energy efficiency in question
In comparison, Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 uses a 1+5+2 configuration with lower-performance cores, while Samsung announced the Exynos 2400 with an AMD GPU and a similarly diverse core configuration. The Dimensity 9300 is said to be 10% faster than the rumored Snapdragon 8 Gen 3. The chip is also expected to accommodate Arm’s latest GPU, the Immortalis-G720.
One of the most surprising aspects of the Dimensity 9300 is the lack of fuel-efficient cores. Typically, these cores are used for less demanding tasks such as streaming videos or music, to save battery when the phone is in sleep mode, or to perform less intensive operations. MediaTek’s decision not to integrate these cores could therefore lead to higher energy consumption under certain conditions, which not without raising questions about the overall energy efficiency and battery life of the smartphone.
According to an indiscretion published on Weibo, the first smartphones with Dimensity 9300 will be the Vivo X100 and the X100 Pro, which are scheduled to hit the market in November. For its part, Qualcomm is scheduled to unveil the new Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 during Snapdragon Summit 2023, which will take place between October 24th and 26th. The Xiaomi 14 and 14 Pro are also expected to be the first phones to use Qualcomm’s new chip, with a launch expected as early as October 27 in China.
The new chipset could even compete with Apple’s chips in terms of performance, especially the current A17 Pro, which outperforms the iPhone 15 Pro. The Dimensity 9300 therefore seems well placed to offer high levels of performance, but Mediatek needs to show how it can ensure better energy efficiency from its chip compared to its predecessors.
Mediatek, whose chips are often relegated to entry-level and mid-range smartphones, has been chasing other silicon manufacturers for several years. The Dimensity 9300 could bring everyone on the same page and put the company back on the radar of key chip designers.