Yield Issues Continued to Plague Samsung’s Foundry, Which Likely Led to Qualcomm Making This Decision
With Samsung unable to provide a steady supply of Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 chips to Qualcomm due to reported yield issues, the immediate reaction for Qualcomm would be to head over to TSMC’s camp. According to Ice Universe, Samsung may lose out on Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 orders too, but no reasoning is provided by the tipster as to why that is. However, given the number of previous reports talking about this very subject, we can formulate an answer. It is no secret that TSMC produces better chips in better quantity, which is why Apple has secured shipments from the manufacturer exclusively for many years now. Mass producing both the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 Plus and Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 could have immense performance and power-efficiency improvements, not to mention a stable supply of chip shipments which Qualcomm can then pass onto its clientele. At this time, Samsung’s rumored yield rate for its 4nm process stood at an abysmal 35 percent, meaning 65 out of 100 chips were defective and likely had to be discarded. In comparison, TSMC is reportedly faring significantly better, possessing a 70+ percent yield rate, making it a no-brainer deal for Qualcomm. The chipset maker is said to be working closely with its new foundry partner to quickly bring the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 Plus to the market in an effort to replace the regular Snapdragon 8 Gen 1, meaning that its launch should happen earlier than expected. As for the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2, TSMC may mass produce it on its 4nm architecture, as chips fabricated on the 3nm process may not launch until late next year. Aside from a rumor claiming that the new SoC will get AV1 support, there is minimal information available to us at this time. We hope Qualcomm can fix its supply issues, and hopefully, the company churns out a better chipset to use in 2023’s Android flagship smartphones. News Source: Ice Universe
