Caught between a rock and a hard place: Why Galaxy S25 is doomed to disappoint

That’s not to say that Exynos chips are woefully behind Snapdragon chipsets. In fact, there have hardly been any complaints regarding the Exynos 2400 which fuels the Galaxy S24 and S24 Plus.

This is a huge improvement over two years ago when criticism of the Exynos 2200 forced Samsung to not release any Exynos-powered S series model at all in 2023.

Rumors say that due to a low yield rate, which is the percentage of functional chips made during the manufacturing process, the Exynos 2500 will not be seen in any Galaxy S25 model. While this is likely a production-related issue, there’s a small likelihood that problems in the chip’s design led to poor yield.

Either way, it’s another hit to Exynos’ image.

Up until a few years ago, MediaTek chips were only found in low-cost phones and were criticised for their laggy performance and weak graphics.

The company turned a new leaf in 2020 with the introduction of the Dimensity brand for high-end 5G smartphones. Dimensity chips deliver performance on par with premium Qualcomm chips and while there may be an odd problem here and there with heat management, there is nothing lacking in them that should exclude them from being used in high-end phones.

MediaTek 9400, the chip that will supposedly power some Galaxy S25 models, may turn out to be the fastest chip of 2024. But the company’s reputation of being a chip maker for budget phones still sticks.

The Galaxy S series is an upmarket family of phones. It’s in a different league than Chinese brands like Xiaomi and Vivo whose claims to fame is providing a good balance of specs and price.

A flagship phone is a status symbol. Like it or not, we live in a world where people value things that not everyone can have. That’s why, a MediaTek Dimensity 9400-powered phone may not be as well-regarded as a handset fueled by the Snapdragon 8 Gen 4.

Samsung really has no choice

If Samsung equips all Galaxy S24 models with the Snapdragon 8 Gen 4, the price is guaranteed to go up and this could alienate buyers. The company’s latest foldables are exclusively powered by Snapdragon chips and are more expensive than their predecessors. This is one of the reasons why they aren’t selling as well as their predecessors.

Samsung is in a good place right now. The Galaxy S23 sold well and the Galaxy S24 is doing even better. Rocking the boat with a price increase doesn’t sound like a good idea.

Samsung just can’t make a good choice. If it opts for the Snapdragon 8 Gen 4, it will have to raise prices. If it settles for a MediaTek chip, it risks harming the brand image. It will be interesting to see how the company handles this problem.