Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 price leaks and its bad news for your next phone purchase

Robert Triggs / Android Authority

Qualcomm suggested at its Snapdragon Summit last year that the Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 would be more expensive than its predecessor. We’ve also seen leaks hinting at this increased price point. Now, a Chinese source has revealed apparent pricing for the new Snapdragon and MediaTek chips.

Digital Chat Station posted apparent Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 and MediaTek Dimensity 9400 pricing on Weibo, and it doesn’t make for good reading. The tipster asserts that both chips will be ~20% more expensive than their predecessors due to the cost of TSMC’s 3nm manufacturing process.

More specifically, the Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 is said to cost $190, while the Dimensity processor apparently costs $155. The leaker cautioned in a follow-up comment that this was approximate pricing only.

It’s worth adding that chipset prices can fluctuate based on several factors, such as exclusivity and volume. So this price doesn’t necessarily reflect what Samsung, Xiaomi, or ZTE would pay, but it still doesn’t bode well for consumers.

The apparent Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 price lines up with analyst Ming Chi-Kuo’s report earlier this year. The analyst noted at the time that the new flagship processor would be 20% to 30% more expensive than the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, pointing to a $190 to $200 price tag.

Xiaomi previously noted a rise in “upstream costs” for upcoming phones and even asked followers what they should do. The Chinese maker specifically asked fans if they should downgrade phones to maintain pricing or offer upgraded phones with an increased price. We’re guessing plenty of other Android phone makers are caught in this dilemma too.

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