Samsung’s upcoming Exynos 2600 is poised to power the Galaxy S26 lineup, while archrivals MediaTek and Qualcomm are teeing up launches for the Dimensity 9500 and Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 next week, setting the stage for a high-stakes flagship chip battle. MediaTek has confirmed a 22 September reveal for its new Dimensity at 2:00 PM GMT+8, and Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Summit kicks off 23 September, where the 8 Elite Gen 5 will take center stage.
Dimensity 9500: what to expect
MediaTek’s Dimensity 9500 is tipped to use TSMC’s 3nm N3P process with Arm’s new Lumex CPU platform, pairing a 4.21GHz C1‑Ultra core with three 3.5GHz C1‑Premium and four 2.7GHz C1‑Pro cores for balanced performance. A Mali‑G1 Ultra MC12 GPU and an NPU reportedly rated at 100 TOPS round out the platform, alongside Wi‑Fi 7, Bluetooth 6.0, and UFS 4.x support.
Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5: specs and partners
Qualcomm’s 3nm flagship will continue with custom Oryon cores, with the prime core expected to hit up to 4.6GHz, and a “For Galaxy” variant potentially nudging 4.7GHz for Samsung’s top-end models. A next‑gen Adreno GPU around 1.2 GHz and early AnTuTu scores around 4.2–4.4 million are being reported, with the Xiaomi 17 series slated to debut the chip.
Exynos 2600: first 2 nm mobile SoC
Samsung has signalled that Exynos 2600 will be the first 2 nm smartphone chipset, entering mass production this month, ahead of a likely Galaxy S26 deployment in select regions. Reports suggest major efficiency and thermal gains via a new heat pass block design, plus strong early Geekbench results that could outpace current Snapdragon and Apple peers.
Why this matters
With MediaTek and Qualcomm moving on to 3 nm and Samsung jumping to 2 nm, the 2026 flagship cycle could see clear differentiation in efficiency, AI throughput, and GPU features like ray tracing. Launch windows and OEM partnerships indicate rapid adoption across Xiaomi, Samsung, and BBK brands through late 2025 and early 2026.
FAQs
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When are the launches?
Dimensity 9500 on 22 September (GMT+8) and Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 at Snapdragon Summit on 23 September; Exynos 2600 formal unveiling expected later this year. -
Which phones launch first with these chips?
The Xiaomi 17 series is expected to debut the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5, while Samsung’s Galaxy S26 Ultra should feature a tuned “For Galaxy” variant. -
What’s special about the Exynos 2600?
It targets a 2 nm process with improved thermals via a heat pass block and aims for performance leadership in multi‑core and AI workloads. -
How powerful is Dimensity 9500’s AI?
Rumors point to an integrated NPU delivering around 100 TOPS, positioning it strongly for on‑device AI tasks. -
Will Samsung split chips by region again?
Indications suggest a dual‑chip strategy, with Exynos 2600 for some Galaxy S26 variants/regions and Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for the Ultra.