What you need to know
- Rumors suggest Samsung is struggling with its Exynos 2500 SoC and that it could severely impact the launch of the supposed "Galaxy Z Flip FE."
- The South Korean report states the "production plan" for the SoC remains uncertain and Samsung might be forced to launch the Flip FE "several months" after the Flip 7.
- Exynos 2500 rumors surfaced early last year with tipsters speculating on its power upgrades and potential AMD GPU usage.
Rumors claim Samsung is encountering resistance with one of its Exynos SoCs, which could hinder its cheaper Flip.
According to a report by The Bell (Korean), Samsung is supposedly unsure if its next clamshell foldable will rock the Exynos 2500 (via SamMobile). More specifically, the report claims the chip was seen as the chip of choice for the "Galaxy Z Flip FE" that's been rumored for a while now.
Originally, the report states the chip was supposed to enter mass production in 2024, but that never happened. The publication's alleged industry source claims, "The situation changed abruptly in the second half of the year for various reasons." It adds that Samsung's LSI and Foundry Divisions encountered severe problems with the chip, which reportedly "ruined" it.
At the time moment, the "production plan" for the Exynos 2500 is still uncertain, according to its source. This has supposedly provoked Samsung into delaying the release of the Galaxy Z Flip FE "several months after" its expected launch of the flagship Galaxy Z Flip 7.
The post claims the Exynos 2500 was also looked at as a contender for the flagship Flip 7, but that might not happen. Instead, Samsung may have to lean on Qualcomm for its next clamshell.
We've heard rumors about an Exynos 2500 since early last year. Reports suggested Samsung was looking to kick its performance up a notch with a 10-core structure continuation. However, the upgrades could arrive via a single Cortex X-5 CPU with speeds that could vary between 3.2 and 3.3GHz. Rumors also stated the chip could feature three Cortex-A730 cores, clocking inn anywhere from 2.3 to 2.5GHz.
The chip is supposedly going to be built off Samsung's 3nm process alongside AMD's RDNA-based Xclipse 950 GPU. Meanwhile, analysts continue to speculate on the Galaxy Z Flip FE's existence, stating it is on deck for 2025 — though this Exynos rumor might've pushed it back in the year.
The Bell's report states that while Samsung is allegedly struggling with its Exynos 2500, the company is still pushing ahead with the 2600 SoC. We heard something similar earlier this month with one report claiming Samsung is "urgent" about producing the Exynos 2600. The Korean OEM is rumored to have created a task force to oversee its production and performance as it looks to not slip back any further behind the competition.
Another report eight days later claimed Samsung started mass producing the chip. It'll be a while before we see the Exynos 2600 as it's suspected to debut in the Galaxy S26 series.
