(Update: possibly Exynos 9810) Samsung teases Exynos 9 series chipset for the Galaxy S8

Update, February 20: There is some circumstantial evidence that the next flagship Exynos processor will be called Exynos 9810. Sam Mobile uncovered the information in the LinkedIn profile of an engineer that interned for Samsung in its Bangalore R&D center. Separately, MyDrivers quoted a Korean source claiming that the Exynos 9810 will offer similar performance and power consumption with Snapdragon 835, but Qualcomm’s chip would retain its lead in terms of cellular connectivity.

Original post, February 17: The Samsung Exynos Twitter account just tweeted a teaser that seems to indicate the company is on the verge of releasing the Exynos 9 series of chipsets. Considering the timing of teaser, the new Exynos SoCs are likely set for inclusion in the upcoming Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus.

As always, Samsung’s flagship will be powered by both Qualcomm chips and its homegrown Exynos chips, depending on market. Until now, the general assumption was that it would be the Exynos 8895 inside the S8 family, but the image accompanying the tweet includes the telling line, “discover cloud 9 with Exynos”.

While this doesn’t absolutely guarantee an Exynos 9 in the Galaxy S8, it certainly seems likely. We’re hoping to get a glimpse of the S8 during MWC at the end of the month, where Samsung is expected to show a one-minute trailer and announce the device’s official release date. We’ll be sure to ask more questions about the Exynos 9 at that time too if it isn’t officially unveiled at the show.

The new Exynos chipset currently in production is being fabricated on the 10nm node, allowing for higher performance with lower power consumption. While Samsung hasn’t detailed specifics on its own 10 nm SoCs yet, it has previously stated that its 10nm process offers “up to 30 percent increase in area efficiency with 27 percent higher performance or 30 percent lower energy consumption”. Samsung is also manufacturing Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 835 chipset.