Report: MediaTek Helio X30 chipset built using 10nm process

A report from China points to chip manufacturer MediaTek working alongside silicon fab TSMC to create two mobile chipsets that will make use of TSMC’s 10nm process. The two chipset have been identified as the Helio X30 and the Helio X35.

Despite its smaller number, the Helio X30 chipset is the higher-end offering between the two. The X30 is seen as an attempt to find a place beside Qualcomm and Samsung’s Snapdragon and Exynos chipsets. The CPU design on the Helio X30 is quite a piece of work. Its application processor has at least ten cores, with a pair of Cortex-A73 cores maxing out at 2.8GHz when handling all of the intensive processing chores. Four 2.2GHz Cortex-A53 cores will be the backup muscle, while another four low-power Cortex A35 2GHz cores will handle everyday, menial tasks.

The Helio X30 chipset can handle up to 8GB of RAM, and will be paired with a quad-core PowerVR graphics unit. This PowerVR graphics unit is said to be able to support Google’s Daydream VR demands without missing a beat.

Meanwhile, MediaTek is mulling over the possibility of another 10nm SoC range which will see action in devices that hover just below the flagships. MediaTek joins Apple in the hallowed club of TSMC customers that have used the 10nm fabrication process.

Volume production of the Helio X30 and X35 chipsets is expected to kick off by the end of this year or early 2017 at the latest.