Oops, it looks like the US Galaxy Z Flip 7 will also use Exynos

It seems the Galaxy Z Flip 7 will be powered by the Exynos 2500 chipset in every market, including the USA. Korean media reported earlier that Samsung will equip its next clamshell flagship with the Snapdragon 8 Elite chip in North America, but firmware files for the phone reveal otherwise.

When we exclusively reported that Samsung will be debuting its first Galaxy Z Flip smartphone this year with an Exynos chip, it wasn't clear if the same would be true stateside. But Galaxy Z Flip 7 firmware for the US makes it pretty clear that the processor inside the phone is the Exynos 2500.

Samsung has pretty much always used a Snapdragon chip for its flagship phones in the US. There have been a couple of exceptions where a device exclusively used an Exynos chipset everywhere, and the most recent one is the Galaxy S24 FE, which launched in October 2024.

Samsung may have made this decision because of how hard it is to keep the Snapdragon 8 Elite running cool in thin form factors. The Galaxy S25 Edge, as we noted in our review, manages to keep the processor's temperatures under check, but the thinner chassis makes it harder for heat to escape, and the Edge's battery runs hotter as a result and also offers lower endurance.

However, it remains to be seen if the Exynos 2500 will run any cooler. It's a new chip that has not been seen in action on any device yet, and so its performance and efficiency are a mystery. We guess we will find out when the Flip 7 goes official later this year.