Samsung’s Exynos shift looks like a downgrade, but it could be a blessing in disguise

The brand has worked heavily on improving its in-house silicon, but a new report suggests the upcoming Exynos 2700 may be radically different in a key area. 

A potential architectural shift inside Exynos

 
A Sisa Journal report indicates that Samsung may be planning to dramatically change the design of its upcoming flagship silicon. Supposedly, the brand is looking to ditch a high-end stacked design WLP (wafer-level packaging) in favor of a Side-by-Side (SbS) arrangement. According to the report, Samsung will arrange the chip and DRAM horizontally rather than stacking them vertically. Supposedly, Samsung is moving to this design in order to keep profitability. 

WLP played its part 

For years, Samsung chips were plagued by severe heat problems, which eventually earned them a bad reputation. But since the WLP process was introduced, the South Korean tech giant has improved heat management in its processors. When the Exynos 2400 was introduced, Samsung advertised it reduces thermal resistance by 16%. Since 2024, the company has used the WLP process to ensure optimal heat management. In the Exynos 2600 chip, it also adds a Heat Path Block (HPB) technology to further improve thermal management. 

Heat Path Block layout. | Image by Samsung

Another advantage of the WLP process is size. By stacking components vertically, Samsung ensures its chip is exceptionally small, allowing it to experiment with thickness on its flagship lineups.

Despite its numerous benefits, WLP has reportedly become too complex and expensive to manufacture, practically forcing Samsung to adopt a different strategy. But what does the new design mean for users? 

A dive into the unknown? 

If Samsung moves away from WLP, this doesn’t necessarily mean the Exynos 2700 will be less thermally efficient than the previous generation. The company is expected to retain the HPB system introduced with the Exynos 2600.

The Exynos 2400 was the first Samsung SoC with a WLP packaging. | Image by Samsung

The idea behind SbS is to actually expand the heat dissipation area, thus possibly enhancing the cooling efficiency. And with HPB on deck, the upcoming chip might actually surpass its predecessor. 

The Exynos 2700 is being developed without setbacks using the flagship technology competitiveness secured from its predecessor, the Exynos 2600. We expect to further expand our market share by enhancing AI performance.

Shin Seung-cheol, Executive Vice President and Head of System LSI Sales at Samsung Electronics

Expensive doesn’t always mean impressive

At first glance, Samsung’s shift seems worrying. With Exynos’ historical track record, any major change raises doubt. But looking deeper, I’m actually feeling optimistic. 

Will the Galaxy S27+ be more powerful than its predecessor? | Image by PhoneArena

As I see it, the tech giant realistically can’t abandon its in-house silicon efforts. By continuing to develop Exynos, it maintains leverage in negotiations with Qualcomm while preserving a solid option if the external supply rules suddenly change. Without Exynos, that key advantage is inevitably lost. If it can’t step back from the project, then the logical solution is to keep developing it. Taking risks is one of the best ways to ensure progress is happening, and I find myself looking forward to the Galaxy S27 more than I initially expected.