Qualcomm Snapdragon 678 vs HiSilicon Kirin 980

Comparisons   11-03-2021
   So, which chip or processor is better? Detailed comparison data of benchmarks Qualcomm Snapdragon 678 vs HiSilicon Kirin 980, speed examination of GPUs Adreno 612 and Mali-G76 MP18.
   This performance comparison involves two processors: Snapdragon 678 is octa-core (Kryo 460) and Kirin 980 is octa-core (ARM Cortex-A76). Both processors went throughpower consumption test and battery life test. A step-by-step analysis of all the specifications of the SoCs, so that it can be easier to read, is made by the table.
   From the video comparison, you can get the results of parallel benchmarking in software tests like Neocore, GeekBench 6, 5, PassMark, PCMark, Octane V2, WebXPRT 3, Vellamo, Mozilla Kraken, GFXBench, 3DMark, Quadrant, AnTuTu, and how good the chipsets are in games Call of Duty: Mobile, Fortnite, PUBG, Real Racing 3, Mortal Kombat, Sniper 3D, Garena Free Fire - The Cobra, Minecraft Bedrock etc.
   After looking at the data these benchmarks and videos, you already be able to understand which CPU is better to buy Snapdragon 678 or Kirin 980 and which chip is better for gaming: CSR Racing 2, Asphalt 9, Need for Speed No Limits, Madout2.

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

Snapdragon 678

15%

Kirin 980

25%

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

Snapdragon 678

64%

Kirin 980

71%

Gaming performance
Which CPU is better for gaming

Snapdragon 678

12%

Kirin 980

22%

Antutu v10, 9

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

	Snapdragon 678	Kirin 980
Total score	216174	354810
CPU	60533	99354
GPU	82148	134833
MEM	34589	56759
UX	38911	63863

GeekBench 6, 5.2

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

	Snapdragon 678	Kirin 980
Single-Core	348	765
Multi-Core	1207	2602

Comparison of specifications

CPU and Memory

	Snapdragon 678	Kirin 980
Frequency	2000 MHz	2600 MHz
Cores	8	8
Bit	64	64
Lithography	11 nm	7 nm
Transistors count
Core configuration	8x2.0 GHz Kryo 460	2x2.6 GHz ARM Cortex-A76 2x2.0 GHz ARM Cortex-A76 4x1.8 GHz ARM Cortex-A55
Power consumption (TDP)	6 W	6 W
Memory type	LPDDR4x (Dual Channel)	LPDDR4x
Max. Memory	8 Gb	8 Gb
Memory Frequency	1866	1600
Memory bandwidth	14.9	31.78
Neural Processor (NPU)	No	No
L1 cache	16 KB	512 KB
L2 cache	256 KB	512 KB
L3 cache		4 MB
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 980 is 23% better than Snapdragon 678 in terms of CPU frequency. Also keep in mind that high CPU frequency affects battery life through power consumption.

GPU and Media

GPU	Adreno 612	Mali-G76 MP18
GPU Frequency	700 MHz	950 MHz
GFloPS	398	581.14
# of Cores		18
# of Shader Units	256
Display	1080 x 2520 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	20.4	27.3
PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds (PUBG Mobile)	41.2	54.2
Garena Free Fire - The Cobra	46.6	58.2
Call of Duty: Mobile	36.8	40.1
Grand Theft Auto V (GTA 5 Mobile)	35.7	46.2
Minecraft: Pocket Edition	50.8	74.3
Real Racing 3	81.6	87.3
Sniper 3D	60.6	93.1
Need for Speed No Limits	83.9	93.1
Mortal Kombat X	74.6	66.9
CSR Racing 2	65.2	69.8

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	25 MP	32 MP
Dual Camera resolution	16 MP
Image Signal Processor (ISP)	Qualcomm Spectra 160
Video Encoding FPS	30	60
Video Encoding resolution	4K (Ultra HD), 2K, FullHD	4K, 2K, FullHD
Codec support	H.264/AVC, H.265/HEVC	H.264, H.265/HEVC

Networks and Navigation

Modem	Qualcomm Snapdragon X12 LTE modem	21
Download speed	600 MBit/s.	1400 MBit/s.
Upload speed	150 MBit/s.	900 MBit/s.
Navigation	Galileo, GLONASS, SBAS, GPS, Beidou, QZSS	GPS, Galileo, Glonass, Beidou
NFC support	No	No
5G support	Yes	No

Result:
The number of parameters for which Qualcomm Snapdragon 678 is better: 7
The number of parameters for which HiSilicon Kirin 980 is better: 31
You need to know that you should not sightlessly trust the automatic comparison of the table. It is better to just watch the full benchmark video of parallel comparison and hear what those who really appreciated the capabilities of both chips think, and also read the test results on the links under the article.

Snapdragon 678 SoC - all data

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

• Snapdragon 678 specs and review.

Kirin 980 SoC - all data

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

• Kirin 980 specs and review.