According to reports from Forbes and The Verge, Samsung has claimed “first dibs” on Qualcomm’s supply batch of flagship-level Snapdragon 835 processors – at least until their own flagship Galaxy S8 launches. The Korean electronics giant’s move to secure the earliest prints of the next top-tier SoC means that their competitors will have to rely on the older Snapdragon 821 for their upcoming flagship releases and refreshes for the first half of 2017.
“The Snapdragon 835 won’t be available in large quantities until after the Galaxy S8 launches,” a source told the Forbes correspondent.
The information comes from industry insider sources in Asia, adding that no Android smartphone will be featuring the new Snapdragon 835 processor until way after the Galaxy S8’s launch, supposedly on April 14. That release date also coincides with the recent news of the Galaxy S8 not appearing at the upcoming MWC 2017 in late February.
The report also leaks that due to Samsung’s maneuvering, LG’s upcoming G6 flagship will only be sporting the last-gen Snapdragon 821 instead of the expected 835.
Related:Â Qualcomm Announces the Next-Gen Snapdragon 835 Chipset, Quick Charge 4.0
Given that Samsung is helping Qualcomm build the new Snapdragon 835, this new development might not come as a surprise to insiders and savvy smartphone enthusiasts. Since no benchmarks of the upcoming SD 835 have been spotted or leaked yet, there’s no indication of how significant the performance gains are with the new chipset. It remains to be seen whether Samsung’s ploy will be a game-changer for the industry, at least for the early half of this year.
