MediaTek has started the year 2026 with an announcement. They are bringing out two chips. These chips are for the end Android phones. The first chip is called the Dimensity 9500s. This chip is really powerful. Can compete with Qualcomms newest Snapdragon 8 Gen 5. The second chip is called the Dimensity 8500. This chip is for the mid range phones. It will make phones that are thinner and cooler and the batteries will last longer. The best part is that these phones will not be as expensive as the high end ones. MediaTek is trying to cover all parts of the premium Android market with these two chips. The Dimensity 9500s and the Dimensity 8500 are going to be deals, for Android phones. The timing is really important. Android phone makers are competing with each other in three areas. They are on-device artificial intelligence how well the phone can handle games for a long time and how well the phone can save battery power. The companies that make chips for these phones are talking about these features as the things that make their products special not just how fast the processor is. Android phone makers and chipmakers are focusing on these things because they want to make their products better than the others. Android OEMs are working hard to improve, on-device AI and sustained gaming performance and battery efficiency.

1) The main idea is that MediaTek has come out with two chips and people want to know why they did this. MediaTek launched these two chips and it is a big deal. The reason MediaTek did this is what everyone is talking about. MediaTek and their new chips are going to change things. People are curious, about what MediaTek’s trying to do with these two new chips.

MediaTek has a plan. It is very clear. They do not just want to compete with the best of the best. MediaTek wants to have products in the upper premium category. This means they want to make phones that’re like the really expensive ones but also the ones that people call flagship killers. MediaTek wants to be strong, in this area of premium phones.

The Dimensity 9500s is about giving you a high end experience. This means you get good gaming, advanced camera features, fast screens and artificial intelligence that works right on your device.. The Dimensity 9500s is not the very best that the company has to offer. It is a little, below the top of the line Dimensity 9500.

The Dimensity 8500 is for people who want a lot of features but do not want to spend much money. This Dimensity 8500 is for the price range of ₹30k to ₹60k. The price of the Dimensity 8500 can be different depending on the brand and the market. People who buy the Dimensity 8500 want things, like screens and good cameras. They also want the Dimensity 8500 to not get too hot and the battery to last a time.. They do not want to pay for the most expensive and powerful Dimensity 8500.

The two chip idea is also a response to what Qualcomm’s doing. Qualcomm made two types of chips: an end Elite chip and a cheaper Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 chip for less expensive top of the line phones. The two chip approach is a response, to Qualcomms decision to make two separate chips the Qualcomm Elite chip and the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 chip.

2) Dimensity 9500s: what MediaTek is trying to do with the Dimensity 9500s. The people at MediaTek have some plans for the Dimensity 9500s. They want to make the Dimensity 9500s a good chip. The Dimensity 9500s is a project for MediaTek.

They are working hard on the Dimensity 9500s to make it special. The goal of MediaTek is to make the Dimensity 9500s better than chips. MediaTek is putting a lot of effort into the Dimensity 9500s. The Dimensity 9500s is very important, to MediaTek.

A) This is a 3nm platform that’s at the flagship level. The 3nm platform is really end. It is, like the best you can get with a 3nm platform. The 3nm platform has all the features.

MediaTek and the people who wrote about the launch say the Dimensity 9500s is a good chipset, like the kind you would find in a flagship phone. When they say it is a 3nm chipset the number 3nm is not something they use to make it sound good. The Dimensity 9500s being a 3nm chipset is actually important because it allows the Dimensity 9500s to do things.

better performance per watt (more performance without draining battery as quickly),

better thermals (less heat for the same workload),

room for bigger GPUs/NPUs without turning phones into hand warmers.

MediaTek says the 9500s is a competitor to the Snapdragon 8 Gen 5. MediaTek is trying to make the 9500s a real alternative to the Snapdragon 8 Gen 5. The 9500s from MediaTek is meant to be a rival to the Snapdragon 8 Gen 5, from companies.

B) CPU: “All Big Core” design (no tiny efficiency cores)

MediaTek does something that’s very typical of them in their recent top of the line products. They use a lot of cores in their designs. This means they use the good cores in all parts of the processor. They do not mix in the cores that are not as good. MediaTek calls this the “All Big Core” approach. It is what sets their products apart from others. The “All Big Core” approach by MediaTek is really about using these high performance cores, over the place.

For Dimensity 9500s, the CPU configuration is:

1× Arm Cortex-X925 “Ultra” core up to 3.73GHz

3× Arm Cortex-X4 cores

4× Arm Cortex-A720 cores

…and a sizable cache setup listed by MediaTek.

So what does this really mean when you are actually using it?

Some apps that use up a lot of the computers power like the ones that process camera pictures or export videos can seem to work. This also includes apps that have intelligence features or when you have many apps open at the same time. These apps, like the ones that process camera pictures can feel faster.

The problem is that phones do not work well when they are not doing much. Usually small cores help phones use power when they are doing things in the background. MediaTek says that big cores can also be very efficient if they are smart, about what they’re doing and if the phone is made to work well. This is true if the people who make the phones set them up correctly and if the phone is designed to stay cool. MediaTek says that their big cores and the way they schedule tasks and make processes better can help phones use power. The phones efficiency really depends on how the people who make the phones tune them and how well the phone is designed to handle heat.

C) GPU: Immortalis-G925 for “console-grade” mobile gaming features

The Dimensity 9500s comes with a CPU and an Immortalis-G925 GPU. This is what was said when the Dimensity 9500s was launched. The Dimensity 9500s also has some features, from MediaTek that are meant for gaming. These features include Adaptive Game Technology and things that help with frames. The Dimensity 9500s also supports advanced ray tracing on the Dimensity 9500s.

Why this is important in 2026:

Mobile gaming is now less about peak FPS in a 30-second benchmark and more about:

sustaining performance over 20–40 minutes,

avoiding thermal throttling,

keeping battery drain manageable.

MediaTek is telling people that they have a thing going on. They have high-end graphics, which’s really cool and they also have power-saving technologies. This means that when you use your device it will stay stable and work well. MediaTek is really pushing the fact that they have high-end graphics and power-saving technologies.

D) NPU and AI: “generative AI” and “agentic AI” messaging

MediaTek says that the Dimensity 9500s has a part called an NPU. This NPU is really good for things, like AI and agentic AI capabilities. The Dimensity 9500s is supposed to be very smart because of this NPU. MediaTek is talking about the Dimensity 9500s and its ability to handle AI and agentic AI.

So when we say that it usually means this for the people who are actually using the product, the consumers.

on-device text summarization and rewriting,

real-time translation or transcription,

AI photo editing and enhancement workflows,

potentially “agent-like” tasks (e.g., doing multi-step actions across apps).

The main benefit of having intelligence on your device is that it is private and fast and you can use it without internet.. How well it actually works depends on the software that is used with it like Android and the apps that the phone company makes and the partnerships they have. MediaTek also wants to make sure that its special processor, for intelligence works well with popular language models and image generation models.

E) Imaging: 8K60 video claims and very high sensor support

MediaTek is launching some stuff and they are talking about the Imagiq image processor and what it can do, such as:

8K 60fps full-focus video recording with Dolby Vision HDR (as described in coverage),

real-time motion tracking,

support for up to 320MP camera sensors.

It is important to understand this if a phone can support a 320MP sensor that does not mean the phone will actually have a 320MP sensor. Also when you see 8K60, that does not mean the video will be perfect. The phone companys camera settings, the type of sensor they choose and how well the phone can handle heat are what decide if these special modes are really useful, on the 320MP sensor.

F) Displays + memory + connectivity

The Dimensity 9500s supports a lot of things.

* It has features

1. The Dimensity 9500s has performance

The Dimensity 9500s is very good.

The Dimensity 9500s also has things.

The screen has a good resolution it is called WQHD+ and it can go up to 180Hz refresh rate. This means it can show a lot of frames per second which’s great for watching videos or playing games. MediaTek also says that it can support a kind of display interface that can fold three times, which is really cool. They even mention this on their spec page for the WQHD+ display, with 180Hz refresh rate.

LPDDR5X memory and UFS 4.0 storage support,

Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 5.4,

multi-constellation navigation support including NavIC (highlighted in the coverage).

MediaTek is talking about something called UltraSave. This is a power-saving technology that MediaTek made. The main goal of UltraSave is to help improve the battery life of your device when you are using it for things. MediaTek wants UltraSave to make your battery last longer when you are, on a call or using the internet on your phone.

3) Dimensity 8500: the “premium midrange” play

The 9500s is about competing with the best parts, from Qualcomm.. The Dimensity 8500 is really the more important chip when it comes to selling phones because the Dimensity 8500 can be used in a lot of different phone models.

A) Process and positioning

MediaTek says the Dimensity 8500 is a choice, for phones that are not too cheap and not too expensive. The Dimensity 8500 chipset is made using a 4nm process. This means the MediaTek Dimensity 8500 is a middle of the road option that’s also a little bit premium.

Four nanometer can still be power efficient and it is a good point, for cost and the number of working chips. Meaning companies that make phones can put four nanometer into very good “value flagship” phones.

B) CPU: eight Cortex-A725 cores (an “all big core” approach, midrange edition)

The Dimensity 8500 CPU configuration (MediaTek spec page) is:

1× Cortex-A725 up to 3.4GHz

3× Cortex-A725 up to 3.2GHz

4× Cortex-A725 up to 2.2GHz

…and cache details.

This is worth talking about because the 8500 has an “all-A725” setup. This means it does not have any efficiency cores. For a phone this is a big deal. It seems like MediaTek wants the 8500 to be really fast and responsive when you use it every day. MediaTek does not just want the 8500 to be good for the price you pay. The company wants the 8500 to feel snappy and responsive all the time like the MediaTek 8500 is a device. The MediaTek 8500 is supposed to be fast, like an expensive phone.

C) GPU: Mali-G720 class graphics with efficiency claims

The announcement of the 8500 says that the 8500 has a Mali-G720 GPU. This is supposed to be better, than the one. The 8500 is supposed to be faster and use power than the prior generation of the 8500.

D) Imaging + display support

The information, about the launch says that the Dimensity 8500 supports:

video recording up to 4K 60fps,

camera sensors up to 320MP,

WQHD+ up to 144Hz displays.

These are what we call platform ceilings, not the specifications, for a phone.

E) NPU: MediaTek NPU 880 and on-device AI models

MediaTek is talking about the NPU 880 for the Dimensity 8500. This NPU 880 can handle language and image generation models.. It can only do this if the software allows the Dimensity 8500 to use the NPU 880. The Dimensity 8500 has the NPU 880. This is what makes it special. The NPU 880 in the Dimensity 8500 is important for running language and image generation models, on the Dimensity 8500.

F) Connectivity: “5G-Advanced” features and efficiency tooling

MediaTeks own page that is 8500 pages long says that MediaTek really wants to tell us something about MediaTek. MediaTek is trying to make a point about MediaTek. The page, from MediaTek is very long. It has a lot to say about what MediaTek can do.

3CC carrier aggregation and up to 5.17Gbps downlink,

Smart Network Suite / “Subway Mode” improvements,

UltraSave 3.0+ power saving features.

The Subway Mode style is really important to people. What matters most is not how fast the internet is at its best. For people who use this mode the problem is not getting the fastest 5G speeds. The real issues are getting a signal back when they lose it their battery running out of power when the signal is weak and having a connection when they are, on their way to work.

4) Let us compare the Dimensity 9500s and the Snapdragon 8 Gen 5. We want to see how these two chipsets stack up against each other on paper. The Dimensity 9500s and the Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 are two players in the market. People are curious to know which one is better. The Dimensity 9500s has some features and the Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 has some amazing specs too.

We will look at the Dimensity 9500s. The Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 to see what they have to offer. The battle, between the Dimensity 9500s and the Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 is going to be interesting. We will compare the Dimensity 9500s and the Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 to find out which one comes out on top.

So when we talk about the 9500s being a rival to the Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 we should see what Qualcomm is saying about it. We need to look at what the regular Snapdragon 8 Gen 5’s meant to be, not the special Elite version. This will help us understand the competition, between the 9500s and the Snapdragon 8 Gen 5.

Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 5: the “more affordable flagship” tier

The Verge says that Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 is supposed to be used in flagship phones that’re not as expensive as the ones with Qualcomms higher-end Elite tier. These phones will still have the features but some things like clock speed and specs will be a little lower. Qualcomm is talking about how Snapdragon 8 Gen 5’s better than the older Snapdragon 8 Gen 3. However Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 is not as good as the version in some ways like the speed of the modem the differences in the GPU and NPU and the limits, on storage support. Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 has some downsides compared to the version.

The Dimensity 9500s is really trying to be the best. It wants to win people over with what it can do. The Dimensity 9500s is all about being better, than the rest. So what makes the Dimensity 9500s think it can win?

MediaTek has made some claims, about the Dimensity 9500s. The features they talked about in the announcement make it seem like the Dimensity 9500s is trying to compete with products in a few areas. The Dimensity 9500s is trying to compete on things.

3nm efficiency + sustained performance

GPU gaming features + ray tracing maturity

The idea of intelligence that works on a device is really interesting. This is often called, on-device AI framing. It is made up of two parts: something that can create new things, which is called generative and something that can act on its own, which is called agentic. On-device AI framing is a combination of these two parts, generative and agentic. It is a pretty cool concept to think about. On-device AI framing is what makes this technology so unique.

High-end display and imaging ceilings (WQHD+/180Hz, 8K workflows)

Where Qualcomm often has the hand although this is not always the case and depends on the situation Qualcomm still has an advantage, in these areas, which is something that Qualcomm usually does well.

When MediaTek has the same or better specifications on paper Qualcomm usually does better because of the way it actually works. Qualcomm has an advantage over MediaTek in life even if MediaTek looks good on paper. Qualcomm is just better at doing its job so it gets chosen often.

* This is what usually happens when we compare MediaTek and Qualcomm.

1. Qualcomm has a reputation for making chips that work well.

2. People trust Qualcomm to make products so they choose it over MediaTek.

Qualcomm is still the choice even when MediaTek matches or exceeds what it says on paper. Qualcomm is just better, at making its products work well in life and that is what matters most.

deep OEM relationships in premium devices,

wide developer optimization focus (especially for games),

mature ISP pipelines and camera tuning partnerships in many flagships.

The difference is not that big anymore. MediaTeks Dimensity 9500 family is a deal. It is a step forward, for MediaTek and it puts them with the best companies that make SoC. The new chips are a lot better when it comes to performance and they use less power. MediaTeks Dimensity 9500 family is really good.

5) So what does the term “All Big Core” really mean for people who are looking to buy something.

The term “All Big Core” is important for buyers to understand because it affects what they are getting.

When we talk about “All Big Core” we are talking about “All Big Core”. How it impacts buyers.

Buyers need to know what “All Big Core” means in order to make a decision, about “All Big Core”.

People who buy these chips need to know that they have cores. This is what these chips focus on.. There are some downsides, to this design that buyers of these chips should think about when they are deciding which chip to buy. These chips are made to have cores and that is important to consider.

There are some things that could happen with this.

The potential upsides are things that we think might be good.

We should look at the upsides and see what we can get from them.

The potential upsides can make a difference.

Faster short bursts (opening apps, switching tasks, on-device processing).

Strong multitasking performance.

Better “premium feel” even if the phone isn’t a top flagship.

Potential downsides (if OEM tuning isn’t great)

The background efficiency is not very good if the scheduler tuning is not done properly. This is because the scheduler has an impact, on the background efficiency. If the scheduler tuning is poor then the background efficiency will suffer. The background efficiency and the scheduler tuning are closely linked poor scheduler tuning will always affect the background efficiency.

The phone can get really hot if its cooling system is not very good. This is because heat can rise quickly if the phones cooling system is weak. When the phones cooling system is weak the heat, from the phone can rise fast.

The battery life of a product can be really different from one brand to another. This is because the chip inside the product needs to be managed well so that it uses power properly. The battery life varies more, between brands because the chip depends on power management of the battery life.

So basically these chips can be really great. How well they work in the real world depends on how well the phone company makes them. The phone makers execution is the thing that will make a big difference, in how these chips perform in everyday life. These chips have a lot of potential. The phone makers execution will determine if they are actually excellent or not.

6) impact: what kinds of phones are going to use these new chips?

MediaTek talks about the 9500s in a way. They say these chips are, like “flagship killers”. What that usually means is:

high-end displays,

very strong performance,

aggressive pricing,

big cooling chambers,

large batteries.

This usually happens with phones that are made for people who want good performance like the ones made for playing games or the “Turbo” lines or the “Neo” lines and so on. It also happens with some of the phones that are not too expensive the ones that are called “premium affordable” flagships.

For the Dimensity 8500 you should expect:

premium midrange phones with big batteries,

When it comes to flagships where thermals are a big deal the thermal issue is really important for these thin flagships. Thin flagships can have problems with thermals because they are so slim. This is a concern, for flagships where thermals matter a lot.

People who want devices with artificial intelligence features do not have to buy a device that has a top of the line chip. These devices that want strong artificial intelligence features can still work well without using a flagship chip. Devices that want strong artificial intelligence features are now available, for people who do not want to spend a lot of money on a flagship chip.

Some early rumors, about devices and the companies that make them might show up fast but it is best to think of these rumors as not totally sure until the companies that make the devices the Original Equipment Manufacturers say they are true.

7) Why this matters in 2026: AI + imaging + gaming are now the “headline specs”

A few years ago, chip launches were mostly about:

CPU speed,

benchmark wins,

modem generations.

Now the marketing pivot is obvious:

Artificial intelligence is not something that happens on the internet anymore. The 9500s and 8500 machines are designed to run language models and picture making models using special computer chips called NPUs. These computer chips are really good, at helping artificial intelligence work. Artificial intelligence can now work well on these machines because of the chips.

Imaging needs a lot of computer power these days. Things like HDR pipelines and motion tracking require computer chips. Also artificial intelligence enhancements and high-resolution video need computer power. Imaging, like resolution video and HDR pipelines really need powerful silicon.

Gaming is really about things running smoothly. The people who make the graphics cards are talking about some features. They are saying that things like lighting effects and better frame rates are good for the people who play games. They are also saying that the graphics cards use power and that is a good thing. Gaming is about stability: the people who make graphics cards are working on things like GPU features and efficiency improvements. These things are important, for gaming because they make the games look better and run smoothly.

The announcement is not about two new chips. It is actually a statement about what people think a premium phone experience is, like these days.

8) So what is the main point here: who should be concerned about each of these computer chips?

If you really want a phone choose one with Dimensity 9500s if the Dimensity 9500s is important, to you.

flagship-like gaming and sustained performance,

the newest wireless stack (Wi-Fi 7 class features),

heavy AI features and fast on-device processing,

top-tier display and imaging ceilings.

You have to look at the phone to see how it really works. The cooling system, the size of the battery the camera and how it is set up will decide if it is good or not. These things will decide the experience you have, with the phone.

If you want a good phone choose one that has the Dimensity 8500. The Dimensity 8500 is great, for a phone. You should get a phone with the Dimensity 8500 if you want an one.

strong “premium feel” performance without flagship prices,

better efficiency and consistency in daily use,

modern connectivity features and power-saving improvements,

high-refresh displays and capable cameras in a cheaper package.

What to watch next

The next big thing to think about is not just looking at a list of features. It is which phones come out first with these chips and what people say about them when they try them out.

stable gaming FPS over long sessions,

real battery life improvements,

meaningful on-device AI experiences that are fast and reliable.

That’s where “rival to Snapdragon” becomes real.