Samsung has long used Qualcomm chips to powers it flagship phones. But now a report from Bloomberg suggests that the company is to drop Qualcomm’s Snapdragon chips in its new Galaxy S6 due to overheating issues.
The report from Bloomberg explains that Samsung will be “dropping its use of a Qualcomm Inc. chip that overheated during the Korean company’s testing.” The component in question is the Snapdragon 810, and Bloomberg fairly points out that it would be a big risk to use a chip that’s been shown to overheat during tests.
Instead, Bloomberg suggests, the “new Galaxy S will be equipped with Samsung’s most advanced chips.” That presumably hints that the South Korean company will fall back on its own Exynos processor range, which it currently uses mainly in Eastern markets. But that would have its downsides: Samsung has leant on Qualcomm’s chips for their superior LTE integration, which is lacking in its homegrown silicon.
Meanwhile, LG and Xiaomi have already announced phones that will feature Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 810 chips. If Samsung does ditch the silicon, 2015 could be an odd year for Android phones, where competing specs—not features—battle for success. Let’s wait see. [Bloomberg]
