MediaTek is reportedly preparing a price increase for its next flagship chipset.
According to supply chain sources, the Dimensity 9600 Pro will cost around $216 (roughly RMB 1,466) per unit.
This represents an 8% to 20% increase compared to the Dimensity 9500, which currently costs between $180 and $200.
Industry insiders describe the move as a "structural recovery" driven by stronger demand for new smartphones and improving markets in emerging regions.
Dimensity 9600 series details
The Dimensity 9600 series will include a standard model and a higher-end Pro version.
The Pro is rumored to use TSMC's advanced N2P (2nm-class) process and support faster LPDDR6 memory, while the regular model may stick with N2 and LPDDR5X.
On the CPU side, the Pro is expected to feature a 2+3+3 octa-core setup: two ultra-high-performance ARM Cortex C2-Ultra cores (close to 5GHz), three C2-Premium cores, and three C2-Pro cores.
This should deliver significant gains in both single-core and multi-core performance, positioning it as a strong competitor to Qualcomm's Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 Pro and Apple's A-series in certain benchmarks.
Other expected features include UFS 5.0 storage, an upgraded Arm "Magni" GPU, and enhanced AI capabilities.
The shift to 2nm technology brings efficiency improvements and higher peak performance but also increases wafer costs, partly explaining the price jump.
MediaTek has been gaining ground in the premium segment, especially with Chinese brands like Oppo and Vivo.
The Dimensity 9600 series is expected to appear in phones launching around September 2026.
The price increase will likely lead to slightly higher phone prices, but it reflects MediaTek's investment in new manufacturing technology and architecture to close the gap with rivals.
