The competition between Android phones and iPhones is different this year. Qualcomm has launched its powerful snapdragon 8 elite Chipset with custom Oryon core to compete with Apple a18 pro The chipsets are both flagship SoCs so we’ve run a number of benchmarks including Geekbench, 3DMark and AnTuTu to comprehensively compare them. On that note, let’s look at the benchmark scores.
Snapdragon 8 Elite vs A18 Pro: Specifications 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 generation Orion CPU |
Hexa-Core (2+4) apple custom cpu |
| cpu core | 2x 2nd generation Orion (4.32GHz) 6x 2nd generation Orion (3.53GHz) |
2x Performance Core (4.05GHz) 4x efficiency core (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 Peak download up to 10 Gbps Peak upload up to 3.5 Gbps |
Snapdragon X75 5G Modem Peak download up to 10 Gbps Peak upload up to 3.5 Gbps |
| 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 CPUs
To test the CPU, we ran Geekbench 6 on the Snapdragon 8 Elite and A18 Pro. In single-core tasks, the Snapdragon 8 Elite’s Orion CPU achieved 3,033 points, while the A18 Pro performed 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 is ahead by 13%, mainly due to the two additional cores.
Note that the Snapdragon 8 Elite is based on the older Armv8 architecture and has no SME units while the A18 Pro is developed on the Armv9 architecture and leverages SME. As a result, its score on Geekbench 6.3 is slightly better.
That said, the A18 Pro consumes up to 6.5W of power while the Snapdragon 8 Elite boosts the power envelope to 7.5W to further increase the clock speed. In our testing, surprisingly, the Snapdragon 8 Elite ran cooler than the A18 Pro, thanks to the Realme GT7 Pro’s larger VC chamber. After testing, the temperature of the Snapdragon 8 Elite reached 32.8 degrees Celsius, and the temperature of the A18 Pro reached 35.1 degrees Celsius.
In my assessment, Apple is still the leader in performance per watt as far as CPUs are concerned. However, Qualcomm has actually come close to surpassing Apple in the CPU department with its second-gen Orion core.
| geekbench 6 cpu | snapdragon 8 elite | a18 pro |
|---|---|---|
| single core | 3,033 | 3,358 |
| multi core | 9,271 | 8,184 |
| temperature | from 32.8 degrees | from 35.1 degrees |
Snapdragon 8 Elite vs A18 Pro: AnTuTu Benchmarks
In AnTuTu benchmarks, the Snapdragon 8 Elite delivered impressive performance. It scored 2,759,190 points while the A18 Pro got 1,816,016 points, an increase of over 50%. In this test, there appears to be a huge difference in performance in the GPU department. The Snapdragon 8 Elite’s Adreno 830 GPU scored 1,132,574 points, and the A18 Pro’s six-core GPU scored 728,942 points, resulting in a wide gap of 55%.
It also becomes clear that the Snapdragon 8 Elite has access to much faster memory than the A18 Pro. Not to mention, the Snapdragon 8 Elite’s temperature hovered around 36.7 degrees Celsius, while the A18 Pro peaked at 38.3 degrees Celsius.
| 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 Celsius | from 38.3 degrees |
Snapdragon 8 Elite vs A18 Pro: 3DMark
In the 3DMark Wildlife 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 at around 83.3% which is impressive.
On the other hand, the six-core GPU of the A18 Pro 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 see, the Snapdragon 8 Elite’s lowest score is even higher than the A18 Pro’s highest score. This means that the Adreno 830 GPU is much better in terms of graphics performance. Not only this, the temperature on both the devices also remains almost the same.
| 3DMark Wildlife 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 | from 42.6 degrees | from 42.3 degrees |
In the 3DMark Solar Bay test, which evaluates ray-tracing capabilities, Qualcomm once again bested Apple. The Snapdragon 8 Elite gets an overall score of 10,614 points with an average of 40.36 fps. The A18 Pro, on the other hand, scores 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 Celsius | 45.7 degrees Celsius |
Snapdragon 8 Elite vs A18 Pro: Geekbench AI
In our testing, the Snapdragon 8 Elite’s Hexagon NPU got a poor score on the Geekbench AI test due to the lack of the QNN framework. Therefore, we have not included points in our comparison. However, we ran the test on the obsolete NNAPI framework using the CPU and it did not perform well either. Still, 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 |
| quantified score | 2,416 | 6,191 |
Decision
In short, the second generation Orion CPU on the Snapdragon 8 Elite is very promising in terms of both performance and efficiency. It has access to a larger pool of cache, and despite being on an older architecture, it actually comes close to beating the A18 Pro’s CPU.
While the A18 Pro’s CPU cores are better on paper, the Snapdragon 8 Elite can maintain its peak performance and stay cool for longer periods of time, due to the advanced cooling system on Android phones. It basically depends on how well the entire system works together, not just the chipset.
As far as the GPU is concerned, Qualcomm has knocked it out of the park with the new sliced architecture on the Adreno 830 GPU. Apple seriously needs to step up its mobile GPUs to A-series chips in the future. Overall, it’s an exciting time for Android users who want a flagship experience on par with the latest and greatest iPhones.
