If the recent spate of leaks about Samsung's next phablet are true, the Galaxy Note 20 will feature a powerful new processor.

Samsung is developing an upgraded Exynos 992 chipset for its next handset, rather than the Snapdragon 865, 865 Plus, and Exynos 990 in the Galaxy Note 20, according to a report from ZDNet Korea, Samsung is "likely" to use an Exynos chip in the Note 20 due to uncertainty over the release of Qualcomm's Snapdragon 865 Plus.

A leaked Geekbench 5 performance list last month suggested that the Note 20 would be powered by the Snapdragon 865 Plus, a mobile processor found in the Samsung Galaxy S20 series, which exceeds 3 GHz. [However, according to Chinese technology news site MyDrivers (via Android Authority), a Meizu executive confirmed that the Snapdragon 865 Plus will not be released this year.

Compared to the Snapdragon 865, the 865 Plus has an improved CPU and GPU. Nevertheless, leaker Ice Universe suggests that the Galaxy Note 20 will make great use of the S20 in terms of specs, suggesting that it is quite possible that the next phablet will feature the standard 865.

Samsung has largely switched away from Exynos chips for its flagships, but if we can boost the Exynos 990 through it's 6nm manufacturing process, the company could return to it. As Samsung's ARM-based SOC, a better Exynos could benefit the Note 20's performance in the same way that Apple's A13 Bionic complements the iPhone 11 (and the A14 would complement the iPhone 12).

And if it can't, again, we would be looking at a Snapdragon 865 for the Note 20. Or, if production is ready in time, it will be the Snapdragon 865 Plus. Samsung will probably announce the Galaxy Note 20 along with the Galaxy Fold 2 at the next Unpacked event at the end of summer.