It seems that smartphone manufacturers now have one more reason to increase the prices of their upcoming flagship processors. According to a new leak, the prices of the next-gen flagship processors from Qualcomm and MediaTek are expected to rise by almost 20%.
A Chinese leaker Digital Chat Station (via a post on Weibo), has shared the alleged pricing of the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 and MediaTek Dimensity 9400 processors. The tipster shares that the upcoming processors will be roughly 20% more expensive than their predecessors because of the cost associated with TSMC"s 3nm manufacturing process.
Specifically, the MediaTek Dimensity 9400 SoC is tipped to cost $155, whereas the Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 processor is said to cost $190. The leaker has duly mentioned that these were approximate pricing only.
Notably, the prices of the processors can vary on various factors including exclusivity and volume of production. Brands such as Samsung, Xiaomi, etc., could pay variably for the procurement of the chipset, based on the aforementioned factors. However, it could eventually lead to an increase in prices of the smartphones, which may not be good for customers.
This price leak information aligns with a previous report by Min-Chi Kuo, which suggested that next year"s flagship processors could be 20%-30% more expensive than the current ones. He even suggested a $190-$200 price tag.
As far as usability is concerned, Samsung is expected to introduce the Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 processors in next year"s Galaxy S25 series. There were also rumors that Samsung could also add MediaTek processors to its flagship lineup, alongside Exynos 2500.
Xiaomi is expected to launch the Xiaomi 15 series, making the Chinese OEM the world"s first Android smartphone brand to launch a Snapdragon 8 Gen 4-powered phone. It is then expected that Asus could launch the ROG Phone 8 powered by Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 chipset in Q1 of 2025.