When you think about the processor battle, you probably think about Intel and AMD in the computer space. But there's another battle raging between Qualcomm and MediaTek that's just as important.
While most people tend to think of Qualcomm as the company behind some of the best flagship chips on the market, MediaTek actually managed to ship more mobile chips than Qualcomm in 2020, which is quite impressive.
MediaTek vs. Qualcomm in 2020
According to a report from Omdia (subscription required), MediaTek actually grew a ridiculous 48 percent Year-over-Year (YoY) in 2020 to reach a total of 352 million units shipped. On the other side of the battle, Qualcomm dropped 18 percent YoY, bringing its total shipments to 319 million units.
While that Qualcomm number isn't small by any means, seeing a decrease in YoY shipments is never a positive thing for a company.
A big reason for MediaTek's growth is because companies and Xiaomi and Huawei were unable to use Qualcomm chips because of restrictions placed on them by the Trump administration. As they needed to continue their smartphone businesses, they had to seek chips from a different supplier, which fell to MediaTek.
What Does This Mean?
For you, as a consumer, it probably doesn't mean any more than the battle between Intel and AMD. At the end of the day, competition makes everyone better, and if mobile chipset makers are engaged in a tight battle, we'll end up with better chips for our phones.
