This year, the competition between Android phones and iPhones is different. Qualcomm has launched its powerful Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset with custom Oryon cores to take on Apple’s A18 Pro chipset. Both are flagship SoCs so we have run several benchmarks including Geekbench, 3DMark, and AnTuTu to compare them comprehensively. On that note, let’s check out the benchmark scores.
Snapdragon 8 Elite vs A18 Pro: Specs Comparison
| Snapdragon 8 Elite | Apple A18 Pro | |
|---|---|---|
| Process Node | TSMC’s 3nm process (N3E) | TSMC’s 3nm process (N3E) |
| CPU | Octa-core (2+6) 2nd-gen Oryon CPU |
Hexa-core (2+4) Apple custom CPU |
| CPU Cores | 2x 2nd-gen Oryon (4.32GHz) 6x 2nd-gen Oryon (3.53GHz) |
2x Performance cores (4.05GHz) 4x Efficiency cores (2.42GHz) |
| GPU | Adreno 830 GPU | Apple 6-core GPU |
| Memory Support | LPDDR5X, up to 5.3GHz Up to 10.7 Gbps |
LPDDR5X, up to 7500 MT/s |
| Machine Learning and AI | New Hexagon AI Engine On-device multimodal AI support |
16-core Neural Engine; 35 TOPS |
| Modem | Snapdragon X80 5G modem Up to 10 Gbps Peak Download Up to 3.5 Gbps Peak Upload |
Snapdragon X75 5G modem Up to 10 Gbps Peak Download Up to 3.5 Gbps Peak Upload |
| Connectivity | Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6.0 and UWB | Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.3, and UWB |
Snapdragon 8 Elite vs A18 Pro: Geekbench 6 CPU
To test the CPU, we ran Geekbench 6 on Snapdragon 8 Elite and A18 Pro. In single-core tasks, the Snapdragon 8 Elite’s Oryon CPU scored 3,033 whereas the A18 Pro did 10% better, achieving 3,358 points. In multi-core tasks, the eight-core Snapdragon 8 Elite performed better, scoring 9,271 points and the six-core A18 Pro got 8,184 points. In multi-threaded tasks, the Snapdragon 8 Elite leads by 13%, largely due to the two extra cores.
Note that Snapdragon 8 Elite is based on the older Armv8 architecture and has no SME units whereas the A18 Pro is developed on the Armv9 architecture and takes advantage of SME. As a result, it scores slightly better on Geekbench 6.3.
That said, A18 Pro consumes power up to 6.5W whereas Snapdragon 8 Elite pushes the power envelope up to 7.5W to boost the clock speed further. In our testing, surprisingly, the Snapdragon 8 Elite was cooler than the A18 Pro, thanks to Realme GT7 Pro’s large VC chamber. Snapdragon 8 Elite touched 32.8 degrees C after the test, and A18 Pro rose to 35.1 degrees C.
In my assessment, Apple is still the leader in performance per watt as far as the CPU is concerned. However, Qualcomm has come really close to dethroning Apple in the CPU department with its second-gen Oryon cores.
| Geekbench 6 CPU | Snapdragon 8 Elite | A18 Pro |
|---|---|---|
| Single-core | 3,033 | 3,358 |
| Multi-core | 9,271 | 8,184 |
| Temperature | 32.8 degrees C | 35.1 degrees C |
Snapdragon 8 Elite vs A18 Pro: AnTuTu Benchmark
In the AnTuTu benchmark, the Snapdragon 8 Elite delivered impressive performance. It achieved 2,759,190 points whereas the A18 Pro got 1,816,016 points, leading by over 50%. In this test, the stark difference in performance is visible in the GPU department. Snapdragon 8 Elite’s Adreno 830 GPU scored 1,132,574 points, and A18 Pro’s six-core GPU got 728,942 points, resulting in a wide gap of 55%.
It also becomes clear that the Snapdragon 8 Elite enjoys access to much faster memory than the A18 Pro. Not to mention, the Snapdragon 8 Elite’s temperature remained around 36.7 degrees C, while the A18 Pro peaked at 38.3 degrees C.
| AnTuTu Benchmark | Snapdragon 8 Elite | A18 Pro |
|---|---|---|
| AnTuTu Score | 2,759,190 | 1,816,016 |
| CPU | 583,775 | 451,848 |
| GPU | 1,132,574 | 728,942 |
| Memory | 643,562 | 268,756 |
| UX | 399,279 | 366,470 |
| Temperature | 36.7 degrees C | 38.3 degrees C |
Snapdragon 8 Elite vs A18 Pro: 3DMark
In the 3DMark Wild Life Extreme Stress test, the Adreno 830 GPU on the Snapdragon 8 Elite delivers remarkable performance. It gets the best loop score of 6,311 points and the lowest loop score of 5,258 points. Notably, the stability stood around 83.3% which is impressive.
A18 Pro’s six-core GPU, on the other hand, gets the best loop score of 4,574 points and the lowest loop score of 3,096 points, with a poor stability of 67.7%. As you can notice, the Snapdragon 8 Elite’s lowest score is even higher than the A18 Pro’s highest score. It means that the Adreno 830 GPU is far superior in graphics performance. Not only that, the temperature also remains nearly the same on both the devices.
| 3DMark Wild Life Extreme Stress Test | Snapdragon 8 Elite | A18 Pro |
|---|---|---|
| Best loop score | 6,311 | 4,574 |
| Lowest loop score | 5,258 | 3,096 |
| Stability | 83.3% | 67.7% |
| Temperature | 42.6 degrees C | 42.3 degrees C |
In the 3DMark Solar Bay test that evaluates the ray-tracing capability, Qualcomm again outranks Apple. Snapdragon 8 Elite gets an overall score of 10,614 points with an average of 40.36 FPS. A18 Pro, on the other hand, achieves 7,985 points with an average of 30.4 FPS. Once again, the Snapdragon 8 Elite runs two degrees cooler than the A18 Pro.
| 3DMark Solar Bay | Snapdragon 8 Elite | A18 Pro |
|---|---|---|
| Overall Score | 10,614 | 7,985 |
| Average FPS | 40.36 FPS | 30.4 FPS |
| Temperature | 43.4 degrees C | 45.7 degrees C |
Snapdragon 8 Elite vs A18 Pro: Geekbench AI
In our testing, the Snapdragon 8 Elite’s Hexagon NPU got poor scores on the Geekbench AI test due to the lack of the QNN framework. Hence, we have not included the scores in our comparison. However, we ran the test on the deprecated NNAPI framework using the CPU and it also didn’t do well. Nevertheless, you can check out the table below to see how both CPUs handle AI workloads.
| Geekbench AI | Snapdragon 8 Elite CPU | A18 Pro CPU |
|---|---|---|
| Single Precision Score | 1,970 | 4,504 |
| Half Precision Score | 2,037 | 7,746 |
| Quantized Score | 2,416 | 6,191 |
The Verdict
To sum up, the second-gen Oryon CPU on Snapdragon 8 Elite is very promising, both in terms of performance and efficiency. It has access to a large pool of cache, and despite being on the older architecture, it comes really close to beating A18 Pro’s CPU.
While the A18 Pro’s CPU core is better on paper, due to the advanced cooling system on Android phones, the Snapdragon 8 Elite can sustain its peak performance for a longer period and stay cooler. It’s basically how well the entire system works together, not just the chipset.
As for the GPU, Qualcomm has knocked it out of the park with the new sliced architecture on the Adreno 830 GPU. Apple seriously needs to beef up its mobile GPU for future A-series chips. All in all, it’s an exciting time for Android users who want a flagship experience, on par with the latest and greatest iPhones.
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