MediaTek has officially unveiled its latest flagship chipsets, the Dimensity 9600M and Dimensity 9600 Pro, manufactured on the 2nm process. These new SoCs introduce a modern “2 + 3 + 3” CPU cluster design and support for LPDDR6 memory, targeting improved performance and efficiency in upcoming Android smartphones.
Dimensity 9600 Pro: High-End Performance and AI Capabilities
The Dimensity 9600 Pro features three clusters of Arm C2 cores: two ultra-performance cores clocked at 4.55GHz, three performance cores at 4.35GHz, and three efficiency cores running at 3.10GHz, forming an All Big Core configuration. It includes a combined 34.5MB cache (L2, L3, and system-level cache) and supports LPDDR6 RAM along with UFS 5.0 storage.
The GPU is an Arm Mali G2-Ultra NX, enhanced with MediaTek’s Neural Network Rendering Architecture and 3rd-generation ray tracing technology. This GPU can manage up to 185 frames per second in gaming scenarios.
For AI workloads, the Pro model comes with a dual AI Engine setup consisting of the NPU 1090 and an ultra-efficient second-generation NPU. It supports advanced AI engines named Generative AI Engine 3.0 and Agentic AI Engine 3.0, enabling local on-device processing of up to 30 billion parameter AI models. MediaTek claims significant boosts in AI token generation speeds and efficiency, as well as improved power savings across CPU, GPU, and NPU components.
Camera features include the Imagiq 1290 ISP, which supports ultra-slow-motion video at 4K 240fps, 4K 60fps movie mode with a wider color range, and advanced multi-frame compensation.
On connectivity, the chip supports both sub-6GHz and mmWave 5G with tri-SIM tri-standby, alongside Bluetooth 6.2.
Dimensity 9600M: Balanced Features with a Traditional CPU Setup
The Dimensity 9600M shares the 2nm process but features an older “1 + 3 + 4” CPU cluster. It includes one ultra core with 2MB L2 cache, three premium cores with 1MB L2 each, and four performance cores with 512KB L2 each, supported by 16MB L3 and 10MB system cache.
This model uses LPDDR5X memory at speeds up to 10,667MT/s and supports UFS 4.1 storage. Its GPU is an Arm Mali-G1 Ultra MC12, capable of driving WQHD+ screens at 180Hz and supporting advanced display configurations.
AI tasks run on the MediaTek NPU 990, supporting generative and agentic AI use cases. Video capabilities include 8K60 10-bit decoding (HEVC, AVC, VP9, AV1), 8K30 10-bit encoding, and 4K 120fps recording with electronic image stabilization.
Connectivity includes 3GPP Release 17 5G with MediaTek’s UltraSave tech, offering 7.4Gbps downlink speeds, Wi-Fi 7, and Bluetooth 6.0.
Performance and Efficiency Gains Highlighted
MediaTek states that the Dimensity 9600 Pro brings a 17% single-core and 15% multi-core CPU performance uplift over previous generation chips, with power consumption reductions reaching 61% at peak multi-core load. AI processing efficiency and speed also see significant gains, including a 40% increase in token generation speed and 51% faster LLM prefill performance via the dedicated NPU 1090.
Graphics improvements claim a 27% higher peak GPU output and a 24% increase in power efficiency, alongside faster hardware ray tracing.
Availability and Outlook
The first phones featuring the Dimensity 9600 Pro and 9600M are expected to launch later in 2026. These chips position MediaTek competitively against Qualcomm’s upcoming Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 Pro, especially given their advanced AI and graphics features, plus new LPDDR6 memory support. These SoC’s will give power to new POCO F10 series.
