Now that the iPhone 13 and Pixel 6 are available in stores, we’re already thinking about the next big flagship smartphone. Up next is the Galaxy S22, and we recently learned that Samsung’s next phone will deliver a great surprise. The Galaxy S22 Ultra will become the Note 20 successor many fans wanted. The Ultra will feature a built-in S Pen stylus that will allow Samsung to introduce a distinct design. But all three Galaxy S22 models should feature the same powerful specs. This means Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 898 flagship processor will power the Galaxy S22, S22 Plus, and the new S22 Ultra.
The Galaxy S22 processor mystery
Samsung will be the first vendor to release a smartphone with an AMD GPU, but we have no idea when that will happen. AMD confirmed its partnership with Samsung several months ago, but we’ve yet to see a new Exynos-branded System-on-Chip (SoC) that will include a new processor and AMD GPU.
Samsung has recently been teasing some sort of Exynos announcement for mid-November that could focus on the graphics performance of mobile devices. That’s not to say that the Galaxy S22 will definitely be the first handset to rock this processor. Or that it’s AMD-related.
Separately, some reports claimed that Samsung was not going to rely on the Exynos 2200 for the Galaxy S22 series. However, an insider contested the rumor that said the Snapdragon 898 will be equipped on every Galaxy S22 model.
Samsung used the same playbook for various Galaxy S and Note models in the past. Some markets got the latest Snapdragon SoC, while others got Samsung’s newest Exynos chip. The same might happen next year when the Galaxy S22, S22 Plus, and S22 Ultra hit stores.
Snapdragon 898 might deliver significant upgrades
Qualcomm should unveil the Snapdragon 898 SoC later this year. And we’d expect Xiaomi to unveil the world’s first smartphone packing the new flagship chip. The Galaxy S22 series launches in mid-February, according to the latest rumors, so Samsung shouldn’t be far behind.
After saying that Samsung will use the Exynos 2200 in the S22 series, Ice Universe is back with exciting details about the Snapdragon 898. The insider has been a solid source of information in the past few years, providing valuable insight into Samsung’s plans for the industry.
The leaker said on Twitter that the GPU performance and energy efficiency of the Snapdragon 898 are “too strong,” indicating the upgrade is even better than expected.
The GPU performance and energy efficiency of Snapdragon 898 are too strong. Far more than expected. 😳😳😳😳😳😳😳😳😳😳😳
— Ice universe (@UniverseIce) November 12, 2021
According to Ice, the Snapdragon 898 has dramatically improved in all other aspects, including GPU, AI, and ISP. Heat dissipation continues to be a problem, the leaker said.
Snapdragon 898 has greatly improved in all aspects: GPU, AI, and ISP.
Only the CPU is worrying, the worry about heat.
Need further observation.— Ice universe (@UniverseIce) November 12, 2021
He followed up on the Exynos rumors, saying that the Exynos 2200 will have to deliver a monster GPU upgrade to match the Snapdragon 898’s Adreno 730 GPU.
I lack Exynos data, but according to my estimation, Exynos 2200 AMD GPU must be 50% faster than Exynos 2100 in order to catch up with the Snapdragon 898 Adreno 730 GPU
— Ice universe (@UniverseIce) November 12, 2021
Otherwise, only the Snapdragon 898 will compete against the A15 Bionic’s GPU next year.
If Exynos 2200 can't play its full strength, then the Snapdragon 898 GPU will be the only GPU that can compete with the A15 GPU. I am very pleased that the performance of the Android camp has finally achieved a breakthrough.
— Ice universe (@UniverseIce) November 13, 2021
The surprise rebrand
In-depth iPhone 13 reviews showed the massive power of the A15 Bionic, which has no rival in the industry. Real-life speed tests also proved that the Snapdragon 888 powering the Galaxy S22 predecessor had no chance of outperforming the iPhone 13.
Finally, the leaker also dropped another tidbit about the Snapdragon 898. Qualcomm might be looking to rebrand the flagship processor, going for “Snapdragon 8 gen1” for the new SoC.
While Ice has an excellent track record, we’ll point out that we’re looking at unconfirmed rumors at this time. Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Tech Summit takes place in late November. Samsung will launch the Galaxy S22 series in mid-February.
