MediaTek announced its flagship chip of the year, the Dimensity 9500 . Within the next few hours, we’ll witness the unveiling of the rival, the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 . While the focus has been on the improvements and upgrades the chips bring to the table, the latest report sheds more light on the financial aspects. Both Qualcomm and MediaTek have reportedly paid TSMC up to 24% more for their SoCs, leveraging the newer 3nm “N3P’ tech .
Qualcomm and MediaTek paid up to 24% more to TSMC for their flagship chips
China Times reports that Qualcomm and MediaTek had to pay a premium for TSMC’s 3nm N3P node. This is despite the newer manufacturing process offering fewer benefits: a 5% performance bump at the same power consumption, and between 5-10% in energy savings at the same frequency. However, the report doesn’t mention the exact price details of the chips at the moment.
Reportedly, Qualcomm forked over a 16% premium to TSMC, while MediaTek paid a 24% higher sum. It’s not clear whether the hike in price is against their predecessors.
The report also mentions that TSMC’s 2nm wafers could be 50% more expensive. Despite this, Qualcomm and MediaTek may not get ample shipments available to them. Apple has reportedly secured more than half of the capacity.
TSMC’s 2nm wafer could be more expensive
There’s a mention of Apple’s A19 in the report, but there are no figures regarding the transaction with TSMC. However, it is said that 3nm N3P wafer prices have increased by 20% compared to the 3nm N3E processor. This suggests that Apple may have paid TSMC the difference. Apple uses the new A19 series chips only on its devices, but that’s not the case with rivals.
Both the chipmakers, with up to a 24% increase in payments, may have to overcharge their partners. This, in return, might force brands to increase the prices of their flagships, thereby placing a burden on customers.
