The Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra might be more expensive because the new Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 chipset costs more. Industry expert Ming-Chi Kuo says the Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 will be 25 to 30% more expensive than the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3.
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Reasons Behind the Price Increase
Its almost certain that the Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 will power Samsung’s next flagship phone, which is expected to cost more to produce than its predecessor. This is because the chip will use TSMC’s new 3-nanometer production process, which is more advanced but also more expensive.
Qualcomm is also adding new artificial intelligence capabilities to enhance features, further adding to costs. Samsung may only include the new Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 in its highest-end Galaxy S25 Ultra model at first, rather than using it across many phones. This limited use may drive up the average cost.
Expected Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 Specs
Based on previous leaks, the Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 is expected to be fabricated on TSMC’s 3nm process node and feature Qualcomm’s custom Oryon CPU with a 2+6 core design, ditching efficiency cores entirely. Key rumored specs include:
- High-performance cores clocked up to 4.26 GHz
- Adreno 830 GPU
- Snapdragon X80 modem for fast 5G speeds
- Support for latest LPDDR6 RAM
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While Samsung managed to keep the prices of its current flagship lineup unchanged, the increased cost of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 may lead to a price hike for the Galaxy S25 Ultra, potentially impacting consumer purchasing decisions in the premium smartphone segment.
