Some Galaxy S25 models might be more power efficient than others

Like this year, Samsung’s next S-series flagships are also expected to follow a dual-chip strategy, whereby the base and Plus model will be powered by either a Qualcomm chipset or a home-brewed processor, depending on the market, and the Ultra model will have a Qualcomm chip in all regions. In a strange turn of events, it looks like Samsung’s chipset might be a better option.After a barrage of complaints about overheating issues with its in-house Exynos chips, Samsung only used Qualcomm’s Snapdragon chips for last year’s Galaxy S23 series. This year, we saw a greatly improved Exynos 2400 which delivered performance on par with the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3.

Still, the decision to only use the Snapdragon 8 Gen for the premium Galaxy S24 Ultra was an admission of sorts that Qualcomm’s chip was superior to its own. And while it’s not known whether the Exynos 2500 will be able to match the Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 in performance, which will allegedly be a massive leap over its predecessor, it might edge Qualcomm’s chip out in efficiency.

The Exynos 2500 will feature Samsung Foundry’s Gate-All-Around (GAA) process technology, which should allow it to run cooler than the Snapdragon 8 Gen 4, per Business Korea.

While both of these chips will be based on the 3nm tech, the GAA process will give Samsung’s chip an edge in terms of efficiency. TSMC, which will reportedly produce the Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 for Qualcomm, will likely employ the FinFET tech.

The GAA architecture overcomes the challenges of FinFET, leading to increased performance and reduced power consumption.

The report says that while the Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 will lead in performance, the Exynos 2500 will be competitively close.

The Galaxy S25 series will reportedly be released early next year, probably in the first half of January. According to current rumors, the Ultra may lose a camera while the standard and Plus models may feature a Sony-made sensor. Will they still manage to make it to the best camera phones of the year list? Only time will tell.