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Samsung seems all set to launch the Galaxy Tab S10 series with MediaTek’s Dimensity 9300+ chip in October. It would be the company’s first flagship Android tablet with a MediaTek processor. According to the Korean media, it’s a well-thought-out strategy from the firm to bolster its bargaining powers with Qualcomm.
Samsung uses MediaTek chip to make Qualcomm drop prices
Flagship Galaxy tablets have long used Qualcomm’s Snapdragon chips globally. Samsung also uses Qualcomm processors in its foldables globally, while its flagship smartphones are often split between Snapdragon and Exynos chips. Depending on where you live, you get one or the other version (the Galaxy S23 series didn’t have an Exynos version).
However, for a change, Samsung is using a MediaTek chip on the Galaxy Tab S10 series. And it isn’t necessarily a bad move. The Dimensity 9300+ is equivalent to the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, both on paper and in real-world performance. They are fabricated on TSMC’s 4nm process node and offer comparable raw performance and power efficiency.
It always looked like the Korean firm was making the switch due to price differences. MediaTek’s flagship chipsets are said to be about ten percent cheaper than Qualcomm’s competing solutions. However, this move may have multiple benefits for Samsung. Alongside saving some costs, the firm is reducing its reliance on Qualcomm, giving itself more space for price negotiations. It can make Qualcomm offer special discounts on its chipsets.
There have been rumors of Samsung considering using MediaTek’s next-gen Dimensity 9400 3nm chip in its Galaxy S25 flagships next year. The company might equip the Galaxy Tab S10 series with the Dimensity 9300+ to see how Qualcomm reacts. Ideally, Qualcomm would want to power as many Galaxy S25 units as possible with its 3nm Snapdragon 8 Gen 4. This competition between the two chip vendors may benefit Samsung.
“If it increases its reliance on Qualcomm, it will lose its bargaining power in price negotiations,” The Koreran Economic Daily quotes a semiconductor industry source as saying about Samsung primarily using Snapdragon chips in its devices. “MediaTek is a good card that Samsung can use as leverage in negotiations with Qualcomm.” The Dimensity 9400 and Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 arrive later this year as the first 3nm chipsets for Android flagships.
Samsung has two more flagship products in the pipeline
Alongside the Galaxy Tab S10 series, Samsung has two more flagship products in the pipeline. The company is readying the Galaxy S24 FE and Galaxy Z Fold 6 Ultra/Slim. These devices are also expected to launch between October and December this year. Time will tell whether we will see a MediaTek chip in either device. Well, chances of MediaTek powering the Fold are slim, but we won’t rule out the Fan Edition phone getting a Dimensity processor.