A new Kirin chipset is expected to be announced later this year, with Huawei rumored to use its upcoming silicon in the Mate 70 series. So far, all of the former Chinese giant’s SoC releases have been disappointing, but that is no fault of Huawei, as the U.S. trade ban prevents it from procuring cutting-edge wafers from TSMC. However, the upcoming Kirin version could deliver the most significant performance leap in a long time, with a rumor claiming that it will be faster than the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2. Additionally, the interface fluidity of devices powered by this chip, which are any members of the Mate 70 family, will be similar to handsets featuring the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3.
Transitioning to HarmonyOS NEXT could be a major reason why slower Kirin chipsets could deliver better fluidity
Huawei is said to introduce the Kirin 9100 later this year, and it is rumored to be mass produced on its 5nm node from SMIC. Previously, we reported that China’s biggest semiconductor manufacturer had successfully developed the new process using the DUV machinery instead of the ‘state of the art’ EUV hardware. While it is nothing short of a miracle that this technology was developed, the apparent caveats are the high costs and low yields associated with using non-EUV equipment. Fortunately, this breakthrough should allow Huawei to bridge the performance gap.
According to @jasonwill101 on X, the upcoming Kirin SoC will have an ‘overall’ better performance than the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2. Additionally, he claims that while this chipset may not match the specifications of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, the ‘actual experience’ will improve. The rumor might have meant that the interface fluidity would match what other Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 flagships bring to the table, but how would Huawei achieve this? Well, specifications are one thing on paper, with software playing an integral role in all of this.
The next-gen Huawei Kirin flagship chip will undoubtedly have a higher overall performance than the SD8gen2.
Although the paper specifications may not match those of the 8gen3, the actual experience will certainly be better.— jasonwill (@jasonwill101) July 7, 2024
Huawei is said to officially launch HarmonyOS NEXT later this year and completely rid itself of Google’s Android platform. The biggest perk of running HarmonyOS NEXT is that it is reportedly three times more efficient in memory utilization than Android, hinting that it will be more lightweight regarding resource consumption. This advantage alone can mean that Huawei’s older smartphones running previous-generation Kirin chipsets could handle the UI tremendously well, running various tasks smoothly.
The new Kirin SoC will also boast improved power efficiency thanks to being mass produced on the 5nm process, but we have yet to witness actual performance leaks. With the lack of evidence available at this time, we cannot comment on what to expect from Huawei’s future releases, but we have to say that we are highly excited about what comes next.
News Source: @jasonwill101
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.
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