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Samsung's upcoming Exynos 2600 is shaping up as a serious rival to Qualcomm's latest chips. Recent leaks suggest the Exynos could outpace the soon-to-launch Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 on raw CPU benchmarks — but the picture is nuanced. Here’s what the numbers say and why they matter for Galaxy S26 buyers and performance watchers.
Leaked specs and benchmark highlights
A well-known tipster cited by Android Authority and Digital Chat Station has published early specs and Geekbench scores for Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 5. According to the leak, the chip will be built on TSMC’s N3P process and pair an Adreno 840 GPU with a CPU layout that includes two high-clock prime cores at 3.8GHz and six performance cores at 3.32GHz.
- Fabrication: TSMC N3P
- CPU: 2 prime cores @ 3.8GHz + 6 performance cores @ 3.32GHz
- GPU: Adreno 840
- Geekbench (leaked): ~3,000 single-core / ~10,000 multi-core
By contrast, leaks for Samsung’s Exynos 2600 show roughly ~3,500 single-core and ~11,500 multi-core on Geekbench. That places Exynos 2600 ahead of Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 in these CPU-centric tests, though still behind Qualcomm’s higher-tier Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5, which reportedly scores ~3,800 and ~12,100.
Why the numbers don’t tell the whole story
Benchmarks are useful, but they’re a narrow lens. Geekbench favors burst CPU performance and doesn’t reflect thermal throttling, sustained loads, GPU throughput, ISP improvements, power efficiency, or real-world app behavior. Two chips can trade blows in synthetic tests while offering very different experiences in gaming, camera processing, or battery life.
Manufacturing node and clock figures only hint at efficiency. The Exynos 2600’s higher Geekbench numbers suggest a stronger CPU in short bursts, yet Qualcomm’s chips often excel at optimization across the SoC stack — and Qualcomm is shipping two flagship-grade chips this cycle (the Elite and the Gen 5), complicating direct comparisons.
What this means for Galaxy S26 and buyers
Samsung may use Exynos 2600 in some regions of the Galaxy S26 series while offering Qualcomm silicon elsewhere. If the leaks hold, buyers in Exynos-equipped regions could see slightly better CPU benchmark results. But performance differences that matter day-to-day — like battery life, camera processing speed, and sustained thermal performance — will only be clear once final devices reach reviewers and consumers.
Curious about which variant you’ll get? Regional model announcements and Samsung’s own confirmations are the best sources. Until official benchmarks and hands-on reviews arrive, treat these numbers as an early indicator rather than a verdict.
Source: sammobile
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