- 0-20%: Unlikely - Lacks credible sources
- 21-40%: Questionable - Some concerns remain
- 41-60%: Plausible - Reasonable evidence
- 61-80%: Probable - Strong evidence
- 81-100%: Highly Likely - Multiple reliable sources
55%
Plausible
MediaTek appears to go ‘all out’ with the Dimensity 9600 Pro, as its first 2nm chipset’s specifications have been revealed, highlighting that the company’s best silicon is yet to be introduced. By leveraging TSMC’s latest and greatest N2P node, the Taiwanese fabless semiconductor manufacturer has not just targeted a higher frequency but has also changed the CPU cluster and paired this configuration with a new GPU. In short, we’re getting one blockbuster of an upgrade later this year, at least on paper.
TSMC’s 2nm N2P process enables up to a 30 percent reduction in power consumption, allowing the Dimensity 9600 Pro to reach 5.00GHz for its performance cores
Instead of the ‘1 + 3 + 4’ configuration, the Dimensity 9600 will rely on a ‘2 + 3 + 3’ cluster, making it the first time that MediaTek is transitioning to a dual-performance-core architecture where the targeted frequency will be 5.00GHz. According to Weibo’s Digital Chat Station, the two performance cores will hail from ARM’s Canyon architecture, while the remaining six will rely on the Gelas and Gelas designs.
The Dimensity 9600 will also support the second iteration of Scalable Matrix Extension instructions set, which allows for the acceleration of intensive tasks such as AI and multi-core workloads to be tackled with better efficiency. The new CPU cluster is expected to be paired with ARM’s Magni GPU, along with support for LPDDR6 RAM and UFS 5.0 storage.
While the following isn’t confirmed, it appears that the standard Dimensity 9600 will be limited to UFS 4.0 storage and LPDDR5X RAM. Given that both the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 Pro and MediaTek’s flagship SoC have been reported to move to TSMC’s 2nm N2P architecture, the lithography’s advantage allows for a 10-15 percent performance improvement and a power reduction of between 25-30 percent.
What remains to be seen is whether the newer manufacturing process gives the Dimensity 9600 Pro sufficient thermal headroom to maintain its aforementioned 5.00GHz clock speeds. Keep in mind that, at such frequencies, running in a congested space will almost immediately result in thermal throttle unless better countermeasures such as elaborate cooling are employed.
On paper, the Dimensity 9600 Pro is a beast of a chipset, but real-world performance and efficient metrics against Apple’s A20, A20 Pro, and the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 Pro will determine the kind of improvements we’ll expect later this year.
News Source: Digital Chat Station
About the author: Omar Sohail is a reporter and analyst for Wccftech's mobile section, specializing in the technology and business of the mobile industry. His expertise lies in the intricate hardware supply chain, covering developments in semiconductor manufacturing, chip lithography, and camera sensor technology.
Follow Wccftech on Google to get more of our news coverage in your feeds.
