Most of us look at the processor name while buying a new phone, but the technology used to make that processor can matter just as much. MediaTek has now launched its new Dimensity 9600 Pro, and the biggest change is that it is built using TSMC’s latest 2nm process.
This is MediaTek’s first 2nm smartphone chip and it will power upcoming flagship Android phones. Along with the Dimensity 9600 Pro, the company has also introduced the Dimensity 9600M, which is aimed at bringing many of the new flagship features to more smartphones.
So, What’s Special About the 2nm Chip?
You may have seen terms like 4nm, 3nm and now 2nm while reading about smartphone processors. Without getting too technical, moving to a newer manufacturing process can help a chip provide more performance while using less power, although the final result also depends on how the phone maker uses it.
The Dimensity 9600 Pro is built on TSMC’s 2nm process, making it an important jump from the 3nm chips we have seen in recent flagship phones. For users, the more interesting part should be better efficiency during gaming, AI tasks and other heavy use rather than simply having “2nm” written on the specifications page.
CPU Gets Faster Without Using More Power
MediaTek has gone with an all-big-core CPU design again. The Dimensity 9600 Pro uses a 2+3+3 setup, with its two most powerful C2-Ultra cores running at up to 4.55GHz. Three C2-Pro cores can reach 4.35GHz, while another three C2-Pro cores run at up to 3.1GHz.
MediaTek claims up to 17 percent better single-core performance and 15 percent higher multi-core performance compared with the previous generation. More importantly, the company says multi-core power consumption has dropped by as much as 61 percent, which could help phones maintain performance without draining the battery as quickly.
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AI Runs Directly on the Phone
AI is another big part of the Dimensity 9600 Pro. MediaTek has added a dual-NPU design with its NPU 1090 and a second-generation Super Efficient NPU, allowing more AI tasks to run directly on the smartphone instead of always depending on cloud servers.
The chip can handle AI models with up to 30 billion parameters on the device. MediaTek says LLM prefill performance is up by 51 percent, while the efficient NPU uses 40 percent less power for always-on AI. This could be useful for AI assistants, image processing and features that learn how you use your phone.
Gaming Can Go Up to 185fps
MediaTek hasn’t forgotten gaming either. The Dimensity 9600 Pro comes with the new G2-Ultra NX GPU, which the company says offers up to 27 percent higher peak performance while using 24 percent less power at peak performance compared with the previous generation.
Ray tracing performance has also improved by 18 percent, while supported games can run at up to 185fps. Of course, actually reaching that frame rate will depend on the game, display and cooling system used by the phone manufacturer, so not every Dimensity 9600 Pro phone will automatically give the same gaming experience.
Cameras Get Some Serious Upgrades Too
The new chip uses MediaTek’s Imagiq 1290 image processor along with an AI Imaging Fusion Architecture. It combines the ISP and NPU to handle more of the image processing together, which should help with photography as well as video recording.
One interesting addition is support for 4K video at 240fps for native ultra-slow-motion recording. The chip also supports 4K 120fps cinematic log video and 4K 60fps AI True Color Tone. Again, the exact camera features available will depend on what each smartphone brand decides to use.
Dimensity 9600 Pro Key Specifications
| Feature | Details |
|---|---|
| Manufacturing Process | TSMC 2nm |
| CPU Design | 2+3+3 All Big Core |
| Maximum CPU Speed | Up to 4.55GHz |
| GPU | G2-Ultra NX |
| Gaming | Up to 185fps |
| AI | Dual NPU, NPU 1090 |
| On-device AI Models | Up to 30B parameters |
| Memory Support | LPDDR6 |
| Storage Support | UFS 5.0 |
| ISP | Imagiq 1290 |
| Video | Up to 4K 240fps slow motion |
There Is a Dimensity 9600M Too
MediaTek has also announced the Dimensity 9600M alongside the Pro. This chip is meant to bring flagship-level performance and AI features to a wider range of premium smartphones rather than keeping everything limited to the most expensive models.
It also gets MediaTek’s latest Agentic AI Engine, improved NPU, imaging features and HyperEngine gaming technology with support for up to 185fps. However, the 9600M uses TSMC’s 3nm manufacturing process rather than the newer 2nm technology found on the Dimensity 9600 Pro.
When Will We See It in a Phone?
MediaTek says the first smartphones powered by the Dimensity 9600 Pro and Dimensity 9600M will arrive this quarter, so we won’t have to wait too long to see how the chips perform in an actual device.
The move to 2nm is probably the biggest highlight right now, but efficiency will be more important than the number itself. If MediaTek’s performance and power claims translate well into real phones, the Dimensity 9600 Pro could become an important competitor in the next generation of flagship Android smartphones.
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