Exynos 2600 is quickly becoming a reality for the Galaxy S26 series

Despite earlier rumors that the Galaxy S26 series may also go Snapdragon only, recent reports have suggested that things are headed in the right direction for Samsung to use the Exynos 2600 in next year's flagship lineup.

If Samsung Foundry is able to achieve the necessary yield for this 2nm chip, it would be able to provide enough supply for the Galaxy S26 series. A new report indicates that with yields improving considerably, there's a good chance now that Samsung may use the Exynos 2600 for the lineup.

One of the reasons why Samsung couldn't use the Exynos 2500 for the Galaxy S25 series, and had to opt for the Snapdragon 8 Elite, is that the 3nm yields were quite poor. This meant that the foundry couldn't supply the volumes needed by the mobile division.

Korean media is now reporting that Samsung's 2nm process yields have increased and reached the 40-50% range. Typically when a process yield hits 60% it's evaluated to be enough for mass production. With Samsung expected to mass produce the Exynos 2600 by November 2025, that leaves ample time for yields to be improved further, potentially reaching this target or even going beyond it.

On the other hand, TSMC's 2nm yields have reportedly crossed 60% already. TSMC is where Qualcomm is now getting its Snapdragon chips made, it handled the fabrication for the current top-of-the-line chip, the Snapdragon 8 Elite as well.

It remains to be seen, though, if Samsung keeps up the Exynos/Snapdragon split for the Galaxy S26 that we've seen on previous models. A recent report suggested that the Exynos-powered Galaxy S26 may only be released in Europe while other markets will get the Snapdragon variant, which is something Samsung has already done with the Galaxy S22 series.