In our recent review of the Poco X6 Pro, we praised the power and performance of the gaming phone’s impressive CPU: MediaTek’s octa-core Dimensity 8300 Ultra. Now, that CPU already looks to be old news, as the future of mobile phone CPUs is demonstrated by the new Dimensity 9300, shown off in exciting fashion at Barcelona’s Mobile World Conference 2024, where our lead hardware journalist is in attendance getting first-hand experience.
Part of the core appeal of the shiny, new Dimensity 9300 is its AI-centric design and approach. Keeping up to date with the direction of travel of the best gaming phone tech (most prominently on display with the recent Samsung S24), the Dimensity 9300 is supported by an integrated hardware-based Generative AI Engine. This allows the chip to perform impressive text-to-image and text-to-video actions, as Connor got to experience with a hands-on demo.
Taking prompts such as ‘a border collie eating a piece of cheese on a silver platter with a top hat’ and ‘a border collie playing a mobile game’ (yes, Connor does have an adorable border collie himself, named Floyd), the output is rapid, and Connor explains that “it creates an image before your eyes based on any wacky prompt you throw out.” Less nifty is the text-to-video functionality, which Connor reports “takes around 50 seconds, and what you end up with is more like a GIF, but it’s still pretty impressive.”
Headline developments aside, the Dimensity 9300 is, of course, a gaming powerhouse, too, with ray tracing for an “almost console-level gaming experience,” says Connor. Additionally, “it also allows for incredible photography, as seen with the macro camera of the vivo X100 Pro.”
There’s an endless list of other stunningly impressive developments in the chipset, and it boasts some major upgrades in power efficiency, memory and storage, and display. These spec bumps are what you’d expect, but it’s welcome nonetheless and gives a hint at what the next generation of flagship chipsets will look and feel like. As Connor concludes, “ If this chipset is the one powering the future, it’s going to be a very exciting time.”
For more hardware coverage, you can read our Poco X6 Pro review, or see our list of the best Samsung phones. Or, see our picks for the best mobile games.