MediaTek is ramping up production on two new 5nm chips

These new chips could be a follow-up to the Dimensity 1000 lineup.

What you need to know

• MediaTek has two new chips in the works, both based on a 5nm or 6nm process.
• The chips are likely to offer significant performance boost compared to the current Dimensity 1000 lineup.
• It's possible they may be announced before the year's end.

MediaTek has had its work cutout for it as chip makers begin to target the midrange segment as a way to offer flagship performance at a lower cost. The company launched its Dimensity 1000 lineup late last year, and new information suggests that the company may have two new smartphone chips in the works, and that they could be ready before the end of the year.

The chips in question are known internally as MT6839 and MT6891 and will likely be based on a 5nm or 6nm process. They will utilize the ARM Cortex-A78 architecture. For comparison's sake, the company's current flagship, the Dimensity 1000+, uses the Cortex-A77 architecture on a 7nm process. This means we could likely see a boost in both performance and efficiency with these new, unnamed chips.

MediaTek faces strong competition in the race for powerful, low-cost smartphones, as Qualcomm recently announced the Snapdragon 750G, and is expected to launch the Snapdragon 775 early next year, two chips that target the mid-range segment. The 765G was featured heavily in 2020 as OEM's sought a cheaper-yet-powerful alternative to the flagship 865 5G chipset.

The LG Velvet was among these smartphone to utilize the chip, although LG switched things up for the T-Mobile variant, instead opting for the MediaTek 1000C. This marked the first mainstream smartphone to feature a Dimensity 1000 chip in the US, which included some nice press from T-Mobile.

MediaTek is likely trying to woo more smartphone manufacturers to use its chips in hopes to gain more ground in the US, and given the increased price sensitivity of consumers, it may be in a good position to do so. And while we do not yet have any details regarding official marketing names for the chips, it is being said that they're being developed at a much faster pace than previous offerings. It is likely we should hear something before the end of the year.

LG Velvet

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The LG Velvet is a revamp of LG's mobile line. It's thoughtfully designed both when it comes to hardware and software. It still has its flaws, but the price makes those easy to overlook.