MediaTek unveils Dimensity 700, a 7nm chipset with 5G modem
MediaTek continues its quest to create affordable 5G smartphones â the latest step in that direction is the Dimensity 700, a 7nm chipset similar to the recently-announced Dimensity 720.
The most important component is the 5G modem. It supports carrier aggregation which enables faster connections (up to 2.77 Gbps downlink speeds) and seamless handover between 5G cells. The modem also features Dual SIM, Dual Standby and VoNR (âVoice over New Radioâ offers better audio quality than previous generations).
The modem also boasts global 5G NR band support and MediaTekâs â5G UltraSaveâ power saving technology.
The CPU of the Dimensity 700 is made up of two Cortex-A76 cores running at 2.2 GHz (slightly faster than 720âs big CPU) and six Cortex-A55 cores at 2.0 GHz. The chip can be connected to up to 12 GB of LPDDR4x RAM (2,133 MHz) and UFS 2.2 two-lane storage (up to 1 GB/s transfer speeds).
The new chip can drive 1080p+ displays with 90Hz refresh rate, though its GPU is an ARM Mali-G57 MC2, down from the G57 MC3 found inside the 720. Check out the table below for a more detailed comparison between the two chipsets.
| Dimensity 700 | Dimensity 720 | |
| Process | 7 nm | 7 nm |
| CPU (big cores) | 2x Cortex-A76 at 2.2 GHz | 2x Cortex-A76 at 2.0 GHz |
| CPU (small cores) | 6x Cortex-A55 at 2.0 GHz | 6x Cortex-A55 at 2.0 GHz |
| GPU | Mali G57 MC2 (950 MHz) | Mali G57 MC3 |
| RAM | Up to 12 GB, LPDDR4x 2,133 MHz | Up to 12 GB, LPDDR4x 2,133 MHz |
| Storage | UFS 2.2 (2-lane, up to 1 GB/s) | UFS 2.2 |
| Display | 1080p+, 90 Hz | 1080p+, 90 Hz |
| Modem | 5G, dual SIM, 2.77 Gbps | 5G, dual SIM, 2.77 Gbps |
| Connectivity | Wi-Fi 5, Bluetooth 5.1 | Wi-Fi 5, Bluetooth 5.1 |
| Camera | 64 MP stills, 1080p at 30 fps | 64 MP stills, 4K at 30 fps |
The Dimensity 700 is limited to 1080p resolution for video capture, while the 720 goes up to 4K, which makes it more suitable for mid-rangers. For photos, the new chip can handle cameras up to 64MP and features multi-frame noise reduction and several AI enhancements.
Speaking of AI, multiple voice assistants can run on the chip, including the ones from Google, Amazon, Alibaba, Baidu and Tencent.
MediaTek also added two chipsets meant for Chromebooks to its stable, the MT8195 and MT8192. The MT8195 is the more advanced option, fabbed using TSMCâs 6 nm process and featuring four of the latest Cortex-A78 cores in addition to four A55 cores.
Thereâs also a 5-core Mali-G57 and an APU capable of 4 TOPS, which can be used for voice and image recognition (including ultra low power voice wake-up). Dolby Vision, 7.1 surround sound and AV1 decoding are all supported.
The MT8192 is built on the older 7nm process and uses four A76 cores, which are two generations old now. The APU is slower too, rated at 2.4 TOPS. The GPU is the same, a 5-core Mali-G57, which can drive a 1440p displays at 60 Hz or a 1080p display at 120 Hz. Both chips feature PCIe Gen 3 and UBS 3.2 Gen 1 connectivity.
Chromebooks using the new chips will be out in the second quarter of 2021.