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MediaTek has not released a high-end chipset for years now. The MediaTek Helio X30 was perhaps there the last attempt which featured 10 cores split across three clusters. The company has done well in the lower end of the market featuring in many phones under £200.
This year they shook things up a bit with the launch of the MediaTek MediaTek Helio G90T which arguably outperforms the Qualcomm Snapdragon 730G.
They were also the first to announced a 5G flagship chipset while also being the first to announce a chipset based on the Cortex A77. However, this was mostly marketing and no specific details were announced.
Today, MediaTek unveiled the Dimensity 1000 with a full specification of the chipset and it looks like it could comfortably go head to head with the Samsung Exynos 990, Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 and Huawei Kirin 990 5G.
While I have already compared the flagship chipsets, people will inevitably want to compare the new MediaTek Dimensity 1000 vs the current best MediaTek has, the Helio G90T.
Price of phones
First of all, these are not comparable chipsets, one is a flagship the other for upper mid-range phones. So the price points will be very different.
No phones have been announced with the MediaTek Dimensity 1000 yet, but for some context, the Redmi Note 8 Pro which has the Helio G90T costs just £220 on Amazon.co.uk.
The current cheapest flagship phone is the Realme X2 Pro which is about £380 via Amazon.es and this lacks 5G.
The current cheapest 5G flagship phone (in the UK) is the Samsung Galaxy A90 5G at £669 from Carphone Warehouse.
I would expect Xiaomi and MediaTek will team up to launch one of the most affordable flagship 5G devices on the market, but it is still going to cost a fair bit more than phones based on the Helio G90T.
Manufacturing Process
The biggest downfall of the Helio G90T is the fact it uses quite an old and large 12nm fabrication process, which should make it less energy efficient. It doesn’t seem to have held it back with the Redmi Note 8 Pro though.
The MediaTek Dimensity 1000 brings the company in line with competing brands and uses the 7nm fabrication process.
CPU

The MediaTek Dimensity 1000 is a beast and should outperform the Helio G90T by a country mile. It has 8-cores featuring:
- 4x Cortex A77 @ 2.6GHz
- 4x Cortex A55 @ 2.0GHz
The Helio G90T also has 8-cores spread over 2 clusters, but this has a 2×6 design and uses older tech with:
- 2x Cortex A76 @ 2.05GHz
- 6x Cortex A55 @ 2.0GHz
GPU
Again, the MediaTek Dimensity 1000 will dominate, this features a superior Mali G77 GPU and considerably more cores with a total of 11 available to it. We don’t know the frequencies of this yet though.
While the Helio G90T outperformed the Snapdragon 730G in many benchmarks, it has no chance with a flagship. This features a Mali G76 with just 4-cores that are running at 800MHz.
Artificial Intelligence NPU/APU/AI
The specifics of the AI processor are unknown but MediaTek has announced that the Dimensity 1000 will have a 3rd generation APU. The Helio G90T has a dual APU capable of 1TOPs total perf .
Imaging / ISP
Again, the Dimensity 1000 comes with flagship specs and now has camera support for a single 80MP sensor and dual 32MP + 16MP.
The Helio G90T has 1x 64MP and 2x 24+16MP
Modem

Lastly, the Dimensity 1000 supports 5G Sub-6 in both SA and NSA, and is capable of download speeds of up to 4600Mbps thanks to 2x carrier aggregation, as well as upload speeds of up to 2500Mbps. There is no word on its 4G capabilities yet, but it will be more than enough.
The Helio G90T is 4G only.
Overall, it looks set to be a successful year for MediaTek and I can’t wait to review one a phone featuring the Dimensity 1000 and see how it benchmarks against the other chipsets.
Chipset Comparison Table
SoC | MediaTek Dimensity 1000 | MediaTek Helio G90/(Helio G90T) | Huawei Kirin 990 5G | Exynos 990 | Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
CPU | 4x Cortex A77 @ 2.6GHz | 2x Cortex A76 @ 2.0GHz(2.05GHz) | 2x Cortex-A76 @ 2.86GHz | 2x Exynos M5 @ ? GHz | 1x Cortex A77 @ 2.84GHz 1x512KB pL2 |
4x Cortex A55 @ 2.0GHz | 6x Cortex A55 @ 2.0GHz | 2x Cortex-A76 @ 2.36GHz | 2x Cortex A76 @ ? GHz | 3x Cortex A77 @ 2.42GHz 3x256KB pL2 | |
4x Cortex-A55 @ 1.95GHz | 4x Cortex A55 @ ? GHz | 4x Cortex A55@ 1.80GHz 4x128KB pL2 4MB sL3 @ ?MHz | |||
GPU | Mali-G77MP? @ ? MHz | Mali G76 MP4 @ 720MHz(800MHz) | Mali-G76 MP16 | Mali G77MP11 @ ? MHz | Adreno 650 @ ? MHz +25% perf +50% ALUs +50% pixel/clock +0% texels/clock |
APU / NPU / AI Proc. / Neural IP | "3rd gen APU" | 2x APU | 2+1 NPU with real time cloud AI | Dual NPU + DSP >10 TOPs | Hexagon 698 15 TOPS AI |
+1TOPs total perf | (Total CPU+GPU+HVX+Tensor) | ||||
Memory | ? | LPDDR4X @ 2133MHz | LPDDR4X @ 2133MHz | LPDDR5 @ 2750MHz | 4x 16-bit CH @ 2133MHz LPDDR4X / 33.4GB/s or @ 2750MHz LPDDR5 / 44.0GB/s 3MB system level cache |
ISP/Camera | 80MP | 1x 48MP (64MP) | ISP 5.0 | Single: 108MP | Dual 14-bit Spectra 480 ISP |
32MP + 16MP | 2x 24+16MP | Dual: 24.8MP+24.8MP | 1x 200MP or 64MP with ZSL or 2x 25MP with ZSL 4K video & 64MP burst capture | ||
Encode/ | 2160p60 | 2160p30 H.264 & HEVC | 4K @ 30fps - capture 4K @ 60fps playback | 8K30 & 4K120 encode & decode H.265/HEVC, H.264, VP9 | 8K30 / 4K120 10-bit H.265 Dolby Vision, HDR10+, HDR10, HLG 720p960 infinite recording |
Decode | |||||
Integrated Modem | 5G Sub-6 | Category 12/13 | 5G 2.3Gbps | Exynos Modem External | none (Paired with external X55 only) |
DL = 4600Mbps | DL = 600Mbps | (LTE Category 24/22) DL = 3000 Mbps | (LTE Category 24/22) DL = 2500 Mbps 7x20MHz CA, 1024-QAM | ||
Up to 2CC CA | 3x20MHz CA, 256-QAM, 4x4 MIMO | (5G NR Sub-6) DL = 5100 Mbps | UL = 316 Mbps 3x20MHz CA, 256-QAM | ||
UL = 2500Mbps | UL = 150Mbps | (5G NR mmWave) DL = 7350 Mbps | (5G NR Sub-6 + mmWave) DL = 7000 Mbps UL = 3000 Mbps | ||
2x20MHz CA,64-QAM | |||||
Mfc. Process | N7 | 12FFC | 7nm EUV | 7nm LPP (EUV) | TSMC 7nm (N7P) |


I am James, a UK-based tech enthusiast and the Editor and Owner of Mighty Gadget, which I’ve proudly run since 2007. Passionate about all things technology, my expertise spans from computers and networking to mobile, wearables, and smart home devices.
As a fitness fanatic who loves running and cycling, I also have a keen interest in fitness-related technology, and I take every opportunity to cover this niche on my blog. My diverse interests allow me to bring a unique perspective to tech blogging, merging lifestyle, fitness, and the latest tech trends.
In my academic pursuits, I earned a BSc in Information Systems Design from UCLAN, before advancing my learning with a Master’s Degree in Computing. This advanced study also included Cisco CCNA accreditation, further demonstrating my commitment to understanding and staying ahead of the technology curve.
I’m proud to share that Vuelio has consistently ranked Mighty Gadget as one of the top technology blogs in the UK. With my dedication to technology and drive to share my insights, I aim to continue providing my readers with engaging and informative content.