Qualcomm and MediaTek are expected to introduce their latest flagship chipsets in October. Qualcomm will unveil its Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 SoC at the Qualcomm Summit 2024 event on October 24. As for MediaTek, it is hosting an event in China on October 9 to unveil the Dimensity 9400 chipset. We already know a lot of details about the upcoming mobile SoCs. Now, a leak from China has revealed the prices of the upcoming Snapdragon and Dimensity flagship chipsets.
Upcoming Snapdragon & Dimensity SoCs will be pricier than their predecessors
The Chinese tipster Digital Chat Station has posted the prices of the upcoming Snapdragon and Dimensity flagship chipsets on Weibo. Both Qualcomm and MediaTek will offer a price hike on their high-end processors. Their upcoming flagship SoCs will cost 20 percent more than their predecessors.
As per the source, the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 / Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset will be priced at $190. As for the MediaTek Dimensity 9400 SoC, it could carry an approximate price tag of $155.
The chipset makers generally don’t disclose the prices of their products. However, if the source is correct, last year’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 should cost $152. The Dimensity 9300 should cost the phone makers around $124, given the 20 percent hike on the upcoming chipsets.
Other reliable sources have also predicted a price hike for the new chips
Notably, this isn’t the first time we have heard that Qualcomm and MediaTek will increase the pricing of their new chips. Earlier in June, industry analyst Ming-Chi Kuo claimed that the new Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 SoC could see a 25-30 percent hike compared to its predecessor. If his predictions are better than the latest leak, the new Snapdragon chip could cost somewhere between $240 and $260. This is much higher than what the latest leak has suggested.
Furthermore, the reliable gadget tipster Ice Universe also suggested a nearly 21 percent price increase for the upcoming Snapdragon chip. Ice Universe’s claim aligns more closely with Digital Chat Station’s claim.
According to DCS, the main reason behind the increased pricing is TSMC’s expensive N3E or 3nm manufacturing technology. Both the new Snapdragon and Dimensity chipsets are rumored to utilize this fabrication process. Furthermore, the new chipsets are expected to provide significantly improved performance and power efficiency than their predecessors. Since the pricing of the core chip components is increasing over time, the increased hike in the pricing of the new chips is justified.
Brace yourselves: flagship Android phones will get more expensive next year
That said, the increased prices of the chips will significantly hike the pricing of the upcoming flagship smartphones from major brands. The Chinese phone maker Xiaomi has already hinted at increased prices of its upcoming flagships.
So, you can brace yourself as we’re expecting a price hike for almost all flagship Android smartphones in early 2025. A lot of new flagship phones will be unveiled during the October to December period. Most of them will debut in China first, before making their way to the international markets in early 2025.
2024-09-30 15:06:57