The Dimensity 9400 and Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 have often been rumored to be the initial 3nm chipsets for high-end Android phones. Now, a tipster has spilled the beans that MediaTek plans to use TSMC’s second-gen node for mass production of the upcoming SoC. While there’s no concrete proof of stellar performance, the same tipster suggests we might be in for a pleasant surprise.
Just last year, TSMC’s sole 3nm customer was Apple. Apple used TSMC’s ‘N3B’ process for its A17 Pro and the entire M3 lineup, marking the debut of the first-generation 3nm technology from the Taiwanese manufacturer.
On Weibo, Digital Chat Station talks about the Dimensity 9400 using a second-gen process. He’s probably talking about TSMC’s ‘N3E’ lithography, known for better wafer yields compared to N3B and being more reasonably priced. This has resulted in both Qualcomm and MediaTek securing orders for this technology.
According to the tipster, the Dimensity 9400 will use ARM’s CPU and GPU designs. Primarily, MediaTek’s upcoming flagship chip will feature the Cortex-X5, but other specifics are still unknown at this point.
The tipster also hints that the chipset’s ‘design performance’ is ‘very strong,’ suggesting that the Dimensity 9400 will outperform the Dimensity 9300. As we mentioned before, similar to the Dimensity 9300, its successor will feature a mix of Cortex-X5 and other high-performance cores, with no efficiency cores included.
The previous rumor also stated that the Dimensity 9400 would outperform the Snapdragon 8 Gen 4. However, with the latter transitioning to its custom Oryon cores this year, it will be intriguing to see how it stacks up against its direct rival. For now, it’s advisable to take Digital Chat Station’s statements with a grain of salt. We’re likely to get more details about the Dimensity 9400’s performance in the next few weeks, so it’s better not to draw conclusions just yet.