Qualcomm today shared benchmark results for the Snapdragon 888 SoC that will be used in flagship Android phones coming out in 2021, and it's not able to keep pace with the A14 chip in the iPhone 12 models, nor the A13 in the iPhone 11.
AnandTech compared Qualcomm's benchmarks to benchmarks of Apple's devices, with the iPhone winning out in Geekbench 5 and GFXBench tests.
The Snapdragon 888 chip earned a single-core score of 1,135 and a multi-core score of 3,794, while the iPhone 12 Pro with A14 chip earned a single-core score of 1,603 and a multi-core score of 4,187.
In the GFXBench test, which measures GPU performance, Samsung scored an 86 (in frames per second), compared to the iPhone 12 Pro's 102.24. Sustained performance is unknown as of yet and will depend on the chip's power consumption, but AnandTech believes the Snapdragon 888 could ultimately win out over the iPhone if power consumption is competitive.
While the Snapdragon 888 doesn't look like it'll match the peak performance scores of the A13 or A14 SoCs used in Apple's iPhones, sustained performance will depend quite a bit on the power consumption of the chip. If this lands in at between 4 and 4.5W, then the majority of flagship Android phones in 2021 will likely be able to sustain this peak performance figure and allow Qualcomm to regain the mobile performance crown from Apple. Otherwise if the chip has to significantly throttle, then 888 will probably fall short of retaking the crown. But even if that's the case, for Android users it shouldn't matter too much: the generational leap over 2020 phones would still be immense, and by far one of the largest GPU performance leaps Qualcomm has been able to achieve to date.
The Snapdragon 888 chip isn't quite performing at the level of the A13 or A14 chips from Apple, but it is a significant improvement over prior-generation Snapdragon chips used in current flagship Android smartphones. CPU performance is up 25 percent and GPU performance is up 35 percent.
AnandTech says that as these benchmarks were provided by Qualcomm and not independently obtained, we have to trust that Qualcomm's numbers are accurate, but the site expects the figures to be "accurate and reproduced in commercial devices."
Friday December 12, 2025 10:56 am PST by Joe Rossignol
Macworld's Filipe Espósito today revealed a handful of features that Apple is allegedly planning for iOS 26.4, iOS 27, and even iOS 28.
The report said the features are referenced within the code for a leaked internal build of iOS 26 that is not meant to be seen by the public. However, it appears that Espósito and/or his sources managed to gain access to it, providing us with a sneak peek...
Monday December 15, 2025 2:05 pm PST by Juli Clover
Last week, details about unreleased Apple devices and future iOS features were shared by Macworld. This week, we learned where the information came from, plus we have more findings from the leak.
As it turns out, an Apple prototype device running an early build of iOS 26 was sold, and the person who bought it shared the software. The OS has a version number of 23A5234w, and the first...
The first foldable iPhone will feature a series of design and hardware firsts for Apple, according to details shared by the Weibo leaker known as Digital Chat Station.
According to a new post, via machine translation, Apple is developing what the leaker describes as a "wide foldable" device, a term used to refer to a horizontally oriented, book-style foldable with a large internal display....
Friday December 12, 2025 10:10 am PST by Juli Clover
Apple today released iOS 26.2, the second major update to the iOS 26 operating system that came out in September, iOS 26.2 comes a little over a month after iOS 26.1 launched. iOS 26.2 is compatible with the iPhone 11 series and later, as well as the second-generation iPhone SE.
The new software can be downloaded on eligible iPhones over-the-air by going to Settings >...
Monday December 15, 2025 3:05 pm PST by Juli Clover
Software from an iPhone prototype running an early build of iOS 26 leaked last week, giving us a glimpse at future Apple devices and iOS features. We recapped device codenames in our prior article, and now we have a list of some of the most notable feature flags that were found in the software code.
In some cases, it's obvious what the feature flags are referring to, while some are more...
Thursday December 11, 2025 8:49 am PST by Joe Rossignol
Apple seeded the second iOS 26.2 Release Candidate to developers earlier this week, meaning the update will be released to the general public very soon.
Apple confirmed iOS 26.2 would be released in December, but it did not provide a specific date. We expect the update to be released by early next week.
iOS 26.2 includes a handful of new features and changes on the iPhone, such as a new...
Friday December 12, 2025 10:08 am PST by Juli Clover
Apple today released macOS Tahoe 26.2, the second major update to the macOS Tahoe operating system that came out in September. macOS Tahoe 26.2 comes five weeks after Apple released macOS Tahoe 26.1.
Mac users can download the macOS Tahoe update by using the Software Update section of System Settings.
macOS Tahoe 26.2 includes Edge Light, a feature that illuminates your face with soft...
Thursday December 11, 2025 11:28 am PST by Juli Clover
Apple today released new firmware designed for the AirPods Pro 3 and the prior-generation AirPods Pro 2. The AirPods Pro 3 firmware is 8B30, up from 8B25, while the AirPods Pro 2 firmware is 8B28, up from 8B21.
There's no word on what's include in the updated firmware, but the AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods Pro 3 are getting expanded support for Live Translation in the European Union in iOS...
Chips are becoming monsters these days. Imagine battery technology starts to take bigger leaps and take more advantage of the chip efficiencies. Week long batter life anyone?
I am curious what are the real-world benefits to the average iPhone user for a faster CPU? I am still using XS Max and really have not seen an advantage to upgrade in my case. That doesn't mean one exists and perhaps I am missing it.
lol you have asnwered your question, advantage is that you are still using your XS Max because at that time it was powerful enough and it runs smooth even today and will run great extra couple of years!
The import thing is..... it's Catching up! And that's awesome! Because Apple is screwing up a lot lately and my latest Android phones are rock solid I also don't like the direction of the Mac with ARM. So GO INTEL.
I bought the cheapest M1 MacBook air, it doesn't run everything but Logix X pro rocks on it! Everything opens fast, its battery lasts forever and no fan! It's amazing. I still use my Intel macs but its a great direction that Apple is going in!
I am curious what are the real-world benefits to the average iPhone user for a faster CPU? I am still using XS Max and really have not seen an advantage to upgrade in my case. That doesn't mean one exists and perhaps I am missing it.
Longevity. These processors are impressive and certain Apps definitely benefit from the horsepower, but I think it’s more for future proofing. I think it’s why Apple supports their devices so long.
