Qualcomm and MediaTek’s newest application processors (APs) are expected to be rolling out of TSMC’s fabs later this year. The world’s top foundry will be using its 3rd-generation 3nm process node (N3P) to produce the flagship application processors (APs) designed by the aforementioned companies. Staying with the 3nm process to build chips like the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 2 and the Dimensity 9500 should keep price hikes for these components in check. As a result, phone manufacturers might have the opportunity to keep price hikes from getting out of hand while still benefiting from healthy margins.
While application processor prices are expected to be slightly higher, Digital Chat Station also says that prices for top LPDDR5X RAM memory chips have already increased 5% with more increases possible during the third and fourth quarters this year. These price hikes could impact new flagship models at the end of 2025. This is setting things up for an unusual twist in the 2026 smartphone market, as AP pricing might not be as important in determining smartphone price hikes as the pricing of RAM chips is
The new RAM chips will be built by Samsung Foundry using its advanced 1c DRAM process. “1c” is actually the sixth-generation process, with “1x” being the first. Each generation process features performance and energy efficiency improvements.
