Next-generation smartphone chipsets, most of which will be featured in new devices this year, will all be made through the new 10nm process which make them capable of producing more power using less energy. MediaTek, one of the world’s biggest chipset companies, announced its Helio X30 10nm chipset last year and was expected to begin shipping out to smartphone manufacturers sometime this month but new rumors suggest that the company plans to cancel 50% of its Helio X30 orders, due to a lack of demand. As MediaTek doesn’t own its own factories, its designs are manufactured by a third-party maker, namely TSMC.
These latest rumors and speculations stem from the company currently only having one client, Meizu, that has committed to make a smartphone featuring MediaTek’s new 10nm chip. Previously, Xiaomi and LeEco were supposedly also working on smartphones using MediaTek’s new chip with Xiaomi even ordering a custom version of the Helio X30 for itself but due to financial issues on LeEco’s part and unknown issues from Xiaomi, both companies have decided to back out.
MediaTek still has hope with its two other major clients, Vivo and OPPO, as the two are expected to ship out over 100 million and 120 million smartphones units, respectively, this year. But with neither of the two committing to using the company’s new 10nm chipset yet, with the new chip so close to rolling out, MediaTek might just be forced to go through with the rumored cancellation of orders until more clients commit to the new 10nm chipset.