On May 30, MediaTek unveiled the Dimensity 7300 series mobile chips, including the Dimensity 7300 and Dimensity 7300X, both utilizing TSMC’s highly efficient 4nm process. The Dimensity 7300 offers exceptional energy efficiency and performance, meeting the high demands for multitasking, imaging, gaming, and AI computing in terminal devices. The Dimensity 7300X supports dual-screen displays, making it suitable for foldable devices.

The Dimensity 7300 series features an octa-core CPU with 4X Arm Cortex-A78 cores operating at 2.5GHz paired with four Cortex-A55 cores. Compared to the Dimensity 7050, the advanced 4nm Cortex-A78 cores in the Dimensity 7300 can achieve up to 25% power savings at the same performance level.

The Dimensity 7300 is equipped with a 12-bit HDR-ISP image processor, Imagiq 950, which supports up to a 200MP main camera, enabling smartphone users to capture images with outstanding color and detail. The Dimensity 7300 combines a new hardware engine that provides precise noise reduction (MCNR), hardware face detection (HWFD), and video HDR capabilities, allowing users to capture clear images in various lighting conditions.

“The MediaTek Dimensity 7300 chips will be important for integrating the latest AI enhancements and connectivity features so consumers can seamlessly stream and game,” said Dr. Yenchi Lee, Deputy General Manager of MediaTek’s Wireless Communications Business. “Furthermore, the Dimensity 7300X enables OEMs to develop innovative new form factors thanks to its dual display support.”

Compared to the Dimensity 7050, the Dimensity 7300 offers a 1.3 times improvement in live focus photo performance and a 1.5 times improvement in photo remastering. Additionally, the dynamic range for 4K HDR video recording has been enhanced by 50% compared to similar products, delivering richer image details. The Dimensity 7300 integrates the AI processor APU 655, which delivers performance that is twice that of the Dimensity 7050.

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(Photo credit: MediaTek)

The global semiconductor supply chain may face disruption as the Samsung Electronics union announces its first-ever company strike on June 7. According to a report from BBC, approximately 28,000 union members, accounting for more than 20% of Samsung’s total workforce, are expected to participate. The union accuses the company of long-term neglect of employees’ and the union’s demands.

Samsung Electronics is a major subsidiary of the Samsung Group, primarily responsible for the design, production, and assembly of consumer electronics, semiconductors, and communication devices. In the wafer foundry sector, Samsung is a key competitor to TSMC, with the two giants vying for leadership in advanced manufacturing processes.

In addition to its impact on the foundry industry, Samsung is also one of the world’s largest smartphone manufacturers and a leader in memory production. It is among the few global companies capable of integrating advanced memory chips into generative artificial intelligence technology.

Samsung is now facing the impact of a strike, which could further affect the global semiconductor supply chain.

However, as per industry sources cited by TechNews, it’s suggested that the strike by the Samsung union is unlikely to impact plant operations significantly.

As the union announces the strike, there has also been a significant shake-up in the chip division’s leadership. Young Hyun Jun has been appointed as the new head of the Device Solutions (DS) division, responsible for leading the company’s semiconductor business.

Per a report from Reuters, a source has noted that since Samsung’s personnel changes typically occur at the beginning of the year, it is unusual to replace a high-ranking executive like this in the middle of the year.

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(Photo credit: Samsung)

As reported by the South Korean tech media outlet TheElec, South Korean smartphone giant Samsung is said to be planning to increase the production of phones manufactured by joint development manufacturers (JDM) in China from 4.4 million to 6.7 million units this year. The increased output from its JDM partners indicates that outsourced orders will account for 25% of Samsung’s smartphone production target for the year.

Reportedly, its JDM partners typically handles the production of low-end smartphones, being responsible for design and component procurement while Samsung provides the brand. For the past couple of years, the company has used JDM partners like Wintech to reduce its production cost for smartphones.

Furthermore, collaborating with JDM partners also enables Samsung to leverage the local manufacturers’ expertise in understanding trends. For instance, with the assistance of JDM partnerships, the Galaxy C55 was optimized locally for the Chinese market.

The number of Samsung smartphones produced by these JDM partners has also been steadily increasing in recent years. Data indicates that in 2019, JDM-produced phones accounted for less than 7% of Samsung’s smartphone output, but this year, that proportion has risen to 25%.

Regarding the current smartphone market in China, the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology (CAICT) has released its April 2024 analysis of the Chinese mobile phone market, showing a year-on-year increase of 28.8% in mobile phone shipments to 24.071 million units during the period.

According to the data from CAICT, in terms of brands, local brands dominated with 85.5% of the shipments, approximately 20.576 million units, while overseas brands, including Apple, accounted for nearly 3.5 million units.

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• [News] Continued Slump in iPhone Demand in China – February Shipments Reportedly Plunge by 33%

(Photo credit: Samsung)

Google has reportedly collaborated with TSMC on the upcoming Tensor G5 chip, slated for use in the Pixel 10 series smartphone to be released next year, according to media outlet Android Authority, based on information it spotted in trade databases.

Google has been cooperating with Samsung on its self-developed Tensor processors since 2021, including the Tensor G4 used in the Pixel 9.

The US tech giant’s latest strategic move is reportedly making Tensor G5 the first Google smartphone chip not produced by Samsung.

According to industry insiders cited by the aforementioned report, despite Google’s relatively low smartphone market share, the act would signify TSMC’s leading position in advanced nodes, and is expected to foster closer collaboration between the two companies in the future.

According to the market share data released by Trendforce in March, in 4Q 2023, Apple ranked as 1^st in global smartphone production, with a 23.3% market share, while Samsung (15.9%) and Xiaomi (12.8%) ranked as 2^nd and 3^rd, respectively. Google, on the other hand, has not made it to the top six.

Regarding other major smartphone players’ product roadmaps next year, in addition to Google’s Pixel 10, Apple is also rumored to cooperate with TSMC on the A19 Pro chip in the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max, based on a previous report from Wccftech.

Samsung, on the other hand, is reportedly planning to use its 2nm process on the latest Exynos 2600 chip, which is expected to start mass production in 2025, and be used in the Galaxy S26 series smartphone, according to a previous report by the Korea media outlet ET News.

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• [News] Samsung Reportedly to Challenge Apple/TSMC with 3nm Exynos W1000

(Photo credit: Google)

The market was originally concerned that NVIDIA might face a demand lull during the transition from its Hopper series GPUs to the Blackwell series. However, the company executives clearly stated during the latest financial report release that this is not the case.

According to reports from MarketWatch and CNBC, NVIDIA CFO Colette Kress stated on May 22 that NVIDIA’s data center revenue for the first quarter (February to April) surged 427% year-over-year to USD 22.6 billion, primarily due to shipments of Hopper GPUs, including the H100.

On May 22, during the earnings call, Kress also mentioned that Facebook’s parent company, Meta Platforms, announced the launch of its latest large language model (LLM), “Lama 3,” which utilized 24,000 H100 GPUs. This was the highlight of Q1. She also noted that major cloud computing providers contributed approximately “mid-40%” of NVIDIA’s data center revenue.

NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang also stated in the call, “We see increasing demand of Hopper through this quarter,” adding that he expects demand to outstrip supply for some time as NVIDIA transitions to Blackwell.

As per a report from MoneyDJ, Wall Street had previously been concerned that NVIDIA’s customers might delay purchases while waiting for the Blackwell series. Sources cited by the report predict that the Blackwell chips will be delivered in the fourth quarter of this year.

NVIDIA’s Q1 (February to April) financial result showed that revenue soared 262% year-over-year to USD 26.04 billion, with adjusted earnings per share at USD 6.12. Meanwhile, NVIDIA’s data center revenue surged 427% year-over-year to USD 22.6 billion.

During Q1, revenue from networking products (mainly Infiniband) surged more than threefold to USD 3.2 billion compared to the same period last year. Revenue from gaming-related products increased by 18% year-over-year to USD 2.65 billion. Looking ahead to this quarter (May to July), NVIDIA predicts revenue will reach USD 28 billion, plus or minus 2%.

NVIDIA’s adjusted gross margin for Q1 was 78.9%. The company predicts that this quarter’s adjusted gross margin will be 75.5%, plus or minus 50 basis points. In comparison, competitor AMD’s gross margin for the first quarter was 52%.

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(Photo credit: NVIDIA)