MediaTek Helio X20 (MT6797) vs HiSilicon Kirin 960

Comparisons 11-03-2021

Well, which processor or chip is better? Full compare data of benchmarks MediaTek Helio X20 (MT6797) vs HiSilicon Kirin 960, speed examination of GPUs Mali-T880 MP4 and Mali-G71 MP8.

This performance comparison includes two processors: Helio X20 (MT6797) is deca-core (ARM Cortex-A72) and Kirin 960 is octa-core (ARM Cortex-A72). Both processors went through battery life test and power consumption test. A thorough analysis of all the technical characteristics of the SoCs, to make it easier to understand, is summarized in the table.

From the video comparison, you can get the results of parallel benchmarking in special test applications like PCMark, WebXPRT 3, AnTuTu 8, Octane V2, PassMark, 3DMark, GeekBench 6, 5, GFXBench, Vellamo, Neocore, Mozilla Kraken, Quadrant, and how good the chipsets are in games Garena Free Fire - The Cobra, Real Racing 3, Call of Duty: Mobile, PUBG, Fortnite, Sniper 3D, Mortal Kombat, Minecraft Bedrock etc.

After reading the results these benchmarks and videos, you already be able to figure out which processors is better to buy Helio X20 (MT6797) or Kirin 960 and which chip is better for gaming: CSR Racing 2, Asphalt 9, Madout2, Need for Speed No Limits.

Summary benchmark results

As a percentage of the maximum value based on a sample from the entire base of all processors
CPU Benchmark
Based on Antutu and Geekbench score

Helio X20 (MT6797)

Kirin 960

Battery life test
Power Consumption efficiency (how quickly the processor reduces the battery charge)

Helio X20 (MT6797)

42%

Kirin 960

50%

Gaming performance
Which CPU is better for gaming

Helio X20 (MT6797)

Kirin 960

Antutu v10, 9

Antutu benchmark separately tests the performance of the CPU, GPU, and memory speed

	Helio X20 (MT6797)	Kirin 960
Total score	83288	95769
CPU	23311	26819
GPU	31649	36393
MEM	13320	15324
UX	14981	17247

GeekBench 6, 5.2

This benchmark shows Multi-threaded and Single-threaded processor performance

	Helio X20 (MT6797)	Kirin 960
Single-Core	215	247
Multi-Core	970	1115

Comparison of specifications

CPU and Memory

	Helio X20 (MT6797)	Kirin 960
Frequency	2100 MHz	2400 MHz
Cores	10	8
Bit	64	64
Lithography	20 nm	16 nm
Transistors count
Core configuration	2x2.1 GHz ARM Cortex-A72 4x1.85 GHz ARM Cortex-A53 4x1.4 GHz ARM Cortex-A53	4x2.4 GHz ARM Cortex-A72 4x1.8 GHz ARM Cortex-A53
Power consumption (TDP)	5 W	5 W
Memory type	LPDDR3 (Dual Channel)	LPDDR4x
Max. Memory	4 Gb	4 Gb
Memory Frequency	800	1600
Memory bandwidth	12.8	28.8
Neural Processor (NPU)	No	No
L1 cache		64 KB
L2 cache		4 MB
L3 cache
Instruction set architecture (ISA)	ARMv8-A	ARMv8-A

In this comparison block, you should pay attention to the differences in clock speed and the number of cores. Here Kirin 960 is 12% better than Helio X20 (MT6797) in terms of CPU frequency. Another difference is that Helio X20 (MT6797) has -2 more core than Kirin 960. Also keep in mind that high CPU frequency affects battery life through power consumption.

GPU and Media

GPU	Mali-T880 MP4	Mali-G71 MP8
GPU Frequency	780 MHz	1037 MHz
GFloPS	106	282
# of Cores	4	8
# of Shader Units
Display	2560 x 1600 pixels	2560 x 1600 pixels

The frequency of the GPU does not always directly indicate its performance. To fully evaluate all the capabilities of a graphics chip, you should take into account the number of Shader Units and Cores, as well as how many GFlops it has.

Gaming benchmark

Fortnite Mobile
PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds (PUBG Mobile)	16.4	21.1
Garena Free Fire - The Cobra	29.1	36.9
Call of Duty: Mobile	17.7	23.8
Grand Theft Auto V (GTA 5 Mobile)	13.1	18.5
Minecraft: Pocket Edition	16.7	22.5
Real Racing 3	36.4	46.1
Sniper 3D	46.6	81.2
Need for Speed No Limits	52.4	51.7
Mortal Kombat X	37.8	59
CSR Racing 2	40.7	40.6

The numbers in this table indicate the maximum FPS that was received on the device with the corresponding processor. Depending on the configuration of the gadget and graphics quality settings (Ultra, Medium, Normal), the results may differ quite significantly. We recommend that you better study the results of the Antutu v10, 9 and GeekBench 6, 5.2 becnmarks.

Cameras

Camera resolution	32 MP	20 MP
Image Signal Processor (ISP)
Video Encoding FPS	30	30
Video Encoding resolution	4K, 2K, FullHD	FullHD
Codec support	H.264, H.265	H.264

Networks and Navigation

Modem
Download speed	150 MBit/s.	600 MBit/s.
Upload speed	50 MBit/s.	150 MBit/s.
Navigation	GPS, Galileo, Glonass, Beidou	GPS, Galileo, Glonass, Beidou
NFC support	No	No
5G support	Yes	No

Result:
The number of parameters for which MediaTek Helio X20 (MT6797) is better: 5
The number of parameters for which HiSilicon Kirin 960 is better: 27
You need to understand that you should not blindly trust the software comparison on the table. You can watch benchmark video from beginning to end of parallel testing and listen to what people say who really appreciated the capabilities of both CPUs Helio X20 (MT6797) and Kirin 960, as well as read the test results at the links below.

Helio X20 (MT6797) SoC - all data

• Devices lists
• Benchmarks
• PUBG mobile
• Fortnite Mobile
• GeekBench 6, 5 mobile
• Antutu v10
• 3DMark

• Helio X20 (MT6797) specs and review.

Kirin 960 SoC - all data

• Devices lists
• Benchmarks
• PUBG mobile
• Fortnite Mobile
• GeekBench 6, 5 mobile
• Antutu v10
• 3DMark

• Kirin 960 specs and review.