MediaTek Dimensity 9400: Eight Big Cores and a Significant Leap in Graphics

The Dimensity 9400 retains the All Big Core architecture: there are still no small Cortex-A5xx cores in its CPU. All eight cores belong to performance-oriented Arm families, with the main upgrade being the Cortex-X925. The transition to TSMC N3E and the new Immortalis-G925 elevate the 9400 to the level of Snapdragon 8 Elite in overall performance.

The chip was released on October 9, 2024, and appears in Vivo X200, X200 Pro, X200 Pro Mini, OPPO Find X8, Find X8 Pro, and iQOO Neo10 Pro. There are enough production devices to evaluate the chip based on real smartphones rather than engineering samples.

Cortex-X925 - The Main Change from Dimensity 9300

The Dimensity 9300 used four Cortex-X4 and four Cortex-A720 cores. In the 9400, one Cortex-X4 is replaced with a new Cortex-X925 clocked up to 3.62 GHz:

• 1× Cortex-X925 up to 3.62 GHz;
• 3× Cortex-X4;
• 4× Cortex-A720.

It is the Cortex-X925 that brings the main boost in single-threaded performance. MediaTek also increased the L2 and L3 cache sizes and moved from TSMC N4P to the more advanced N3E.

The All Big Core scheme remains the same. Even the smaller cluster consists of Cortex-A720 cores, so there are no traditional energy-efficient Cortex-A5xx cores here. This configuration ensures high multi-threaded performance but is more dependent on cooling and power limits.

The Hidden Context of the Lineup

The Dimensity 9400 does not feature a completely new CPU architecture. The new element here is the Cortex-X925; Cortex-X4 and Cortex-A720 have carried over from the previous generation of Arm.

Dimensity 9400+ is not a new generation of architecture, but an accelerated version of the 9400. The CPU configuration and graphics core are the same in both.

Performance in Real Smartphones

The results from smartphones using the Dimensity 9400 vary significantly. In Geekbench 6, production devices with this chip score approximately 2000-2750 in Single-Core and 7500-8600 in Multi-Core.

OPPO Find X8 Pro scores about 2600 in single-thread tests and 7500 in multi-thread tests, while some Vivo X200 Pro devices reach around 2750 and 8500 points.

One Geekbench result poorly represents the Dimensity 9400 as a whole. The difference between smartphones with the same chip can exceed 10%.

The variation persists in AnTuTu:

The gap between devices with the same Dimensity 9400 reaches about 200,000 points.

In individual rankings, the Vivo X200 Pro also outperformed smartphones on the Snapdragon 8 Elite. The difference varies by device, but in overall performance, the Dimensity 9400 is already comparable to the Snapdragon 8 Elite.

Immortalis-G925 - The Main Update of the Generation

The Dimensity 9400 features a 12-core Immortalis-G925 graphics unit.

MediaTek claims up to a 41% increase in peak graphical performance compared to the Dimensity 9300, up to a 40% improvement in ray tracing, and up to 44% better energy efficiency.

In 3DMark Steel Nomad Light, devices with Dimensity 9400 showed scores around 2700 points, while the Apple A18 Pro scored approximately 2200.

For gaming, peak numbers are important, but so is performance per watt. In Genshin Impact, the Vivo X200 Pro demonstrated power consumption of about 4.4 W while maintaining a high frame rate.

The most noticeable improvement compared to the Dimensity 9300 came in the graphics department.

Cooling Affects Sustained Performance

All Big Core provides high peak performance, but under heavy CPU load, power consumption quickly rises. In certain short tests, the Dimensity 9400 exceeded 18 W.

This is a brief peak rather than typical continuous consumption. But it indicates why cooling is especially important here. A large chassis and powerful vapor chamber allow for prolonged high frequencies, whereas compact models hit thermal limits sooner.

Therefore, for assessing the Dimensity 9400, extended tests of specific smartphones are more critical than one short result from Geekbench or AnTuTu.

AI, Camera, and Memory

The NPU 890 is designed for local generative models and other AI workloads. Specific features are defined by the smartphone manufacturer.

The ISP Imagiq 1090 supports 8K Dolby Vision HDR, HDR video with zoom, and quick switching between cameras. The quality of shooting still depends on the sensors, optics, and processing.

The Dimensity 9400 supports LPDDR5X memory with speeds up to 10,667 Mbps. High bandwidth is particularly beneficial for GPU and local AI workloads.

Dimensity 9400 or 9400+: How Big is the Difference?

The Dimensity 9400+ uses the same configuration:

• 1× Cortex-X925;
• 3× Cortex-X4;
• 4× Cortex-A720;
• Immortalis-G925.

The main change is the frequency of the Cortex-X925, which has been raised from 3.62 to 3.73 GHz.

In CPU tests, this typically provides a few percentage points of additional performance. Therefore, price, cooling, battery, and the specific smartphone's cameras are more important than the "plus" suffix in the SoC name.

Conclusion

The Dimensity 9400 completely closes the noticeable gap between MediaTek and Qualcomm flagships. The Cortex-X925 boosted single-threaded performance, the eight big cores maintained high multi-core performance, and the Immortalis-G925 provided a particularly noticeable boost in gaming.

The Snapdragon 8 Elite remains faster in some CPU tests, but the gap is no longer sufficient to regard Qualcomm's solution as a separate class. In graphics, the Dimensity 9400 competes directly with the Snapdragon 8 Elite and occasionally comes out ahead in certain tests.

The main nuance of the Dimensity 9400 is its dependence on the cooling and power limits of specific smartphones. With good cooling, the chip maintains high levels of CPU and GPU performance; under strict thermal constraints, it quickly throttles frequencies.