Entry-level smartphone SoC solutions are likely to see their shipments continue declining, with prospect of being driven out of the market, as chipset suppliers are shifting their focus to the mid-tier to high-end solutions to meet smartphone vendors' strategy of launching new models with high price/performance ratios, according to industry sources.

SoC solution providers, particularly Qualcomm and MediaTek, are launching AI-enabled chips to lure orders from smartphone vendors so as to maintain the ASPs of their mobile solutions and to sustain continued profit growth, said the sources.

With the acknowledgement of the strategy adopted by smartphone vendors and its failure of boosting sales of its high-end Helio X-series SoCs, MediaTek has shifted its product roadmap in no time by releasing its first AI-enabled Helio P60 mobile solution in February 2018, indicated the sources.

MediaTek is expected to report strong sales performance for the second quarter of 2018, buoyed by the adoption of the Helio P60 chipsets by China's smartphone vendors including Oppo, Vivo and Xiaomi, said the sources.

To cash in on the prevailing trend and to keep its competitiveness, MediaTek launched its new AI-capable chip, the Helio P22, in May.

The Helio P22 has reportedly received well response from the smartphone market as the new SoC brings in advanced 12nm process, more AI applications and dual-camera support - all of which can further enhance the price/performance ratios of mid-tier smartphone models, said the sources.

Mediatek is expected to perform even better in the second half of 2018 on influx of new orders for the Helio P20 chipsets, note the sources.

Qualcomm's Snapdragon 710 platform, which launched in May and came with features including a multi-core AI engine and neural network processing capabilities, is also designed to lift the performance of the mid-segment smartphones, and thus will rival MediaTek's counterpart products such as the Helio P60 and Helio P22, indicated the sources.

China's smartphone vendors including Xiaomi, Oppo and Vivo have reportedly decided to adopt the Snapdragon 710 for their new models to be launched in the second half of 2018.

For this, Qualcomm is likely to continue to target the premium smartphone segment with its Snapdragon 800-series SoCs, while making inroads into the entry-level and mid-tier segments with its Snapdragon 700- and 600-series products, commented the sources.