MediaTek’s success in the upper mid-range and budget flagship segments has been largely due to the Dimensity lineup. However, at the top level, the Taiwanese chipmaker has yet to challenge Qualcomm’s undisputed position. MediaTek has previously attempted to break into the flagship market with devices such as the Dimensity 1200, but its efforts have fallen short of Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8-series. The company is introducing a new chipset called the Dimensity 9000 in a renewed attempt to conquer the flagship space.
The MediaTek Dimensity 9000 is the world’s first 4nm-class smartphone chip and comes with a lot of features, including Arm’s most powerful Cortex-X2 core, an 18-bit image signal processor, Bluetooth 5.3 support, and more.
The MediaTek Dimensity 9000 has an octa-core CPU with 1x Arm Cortex-X2 core clocked at 3GHz, 3x Arm Cortex-A710 cores clocked at 2.85GHz, and 4x Arm Cortex-A510 cores for efficiency. The CPU and GPU are based on the new ArmV9 architecture, which is a direct successor to the Armv8 architecture and promises improved security and performance. The Dimensity 9000 is also the first chipset to include Arm’s most powerful CPU core, the Cortex-X2.
MediaTek Dimensity 9000: Specifications
| Specifications | MediaTek Dimensity 9000 |
|---|---|
| CPU | 1x Arm Cortex-X2 @ 3GHz3x Arm Cortex-A710 @ 2.85GHz4x Arm Cortex-A510 @ 1.8GHz |
| GPU | Arm Mali Mali-G710 GPURaytracing SDK using Vulkan for Android |
| Display | Maximum On-Device Display support: FHD+ @ 180Hz |
| AI | 5th Gen APU4x power efficiency over its predecessor |
| Memory | LPDDR5X (7500Mbps) |
| ISP | 18-bit HDR ISP4K HDR video on 3 cameras simultaneously Super Night Video Recording320MP camera support |
| Modem | Integrated multimode 5G/4G modemSub-6GHzDownlink: 7Gbps3CC Carrier Aggregation (300MHz)MediaTek 5G UltraSve 2.0 |
| Connectivity | Bluetooth 5.3Wi-Fi 6E 2×2 (BW160)Wireless Stereo AudioBeidou III-B1C GNSS support |
| Manufacturing process | TSMC’s 4nm-class process |
The Arm Mali-G710 GPU is in charge of graphics and gaming, and it promises a 20% performance boost over its predecessor. A FullHD+ display with a 180Hz refresh rate can be driven by the GPU. In addition, MediaTek is releasing a raytracing SDK that game developers can use to add new graphics techniques to their Android games.
The MediaTek 9000 uses its 18-bit HDR ISP for imaging, which can record 4K HDR video from three cameras at the same time. It also has a 320MP sensor and a video night mode called “Super Night Video Recording.”
Meanwhile, the Dimensity 9000’s 5th generation AI processing unit (APU) is 4 times more power-efficient than its predecessor and will power a variety of AI experiences in camera, gaming, and multimedia apps, among others.
The Dimensity 9000 includes an integrated 5G modem with downlink speeds of up to 7Gbps, 3CC Carriers Aggregation (300MHz), and uplink speeds of up to 300 percent faster.
The chipset supports Bluetooth 5.3, Wi-Fi 6E 22, Wireless Stereo Audio, and Beidou III-B1 C GNSS in terms of connectivity.
In late Q1 2022, the first smartphones with the Dimensity 9000 chipset will be available.
