Samsung’s much-awaited Galaxy S10 flagship is only about a month away. The rumor mill is confident that the Korean company would launch three phones at the Galaxy Unpacked event – a regular Galaxy S10, a larger Galaxy S10 Plus, and a budget-friendly Galaxy S10 E. Just weeks before the official unveiling, the Galaxy S10 Plus benchmark results have been spotted. The benchmarks paint a not-so-great picture of the upcoming flagship.
What do you make of the Galaxy S10 Plus benchmark results?
Folks at Slashleaks have spotted the Geekbench results of the Galaxy S10 Plus. The Geekbench data show Samsung’s upcoming flagship running Qualcomm’s newest Snapdragon 855 SoC would lag behind the 2018 iPhone XS as well as the 2017 iPhone X in terms of performance.
Let’s look at the Galaxy S10 Plus benchmark results. The device appeared on Geekbench with 6GB RAM and Snapdragon 855 processor. It was running the Android 9 Pie software. The handset scored 3,413 points in single-core and 10,256 points in multi-core tests. The Snapdragon 855 promises a 45% performance boost and 20% better graphics performance over its predecessor Snapdragon 845, which powers the Galaxy S9. But it failed to beat the iPhone XS.
Apple’s iPhone XS with its custom A12 Bionic chip and 4GB RAM scored 4,797 points in single-core and 11,264 points in multi-core tests. The 2017 iPhone X running the older A11 processor and just 3GB RAM had managed to score 4,243 points in single-core and 10,433 multi-core points, outperforming the latest Galaxy S10 Plus benchmark results.
It’s a little surprising that the S10 Plus was benchmarked with just 6GB RAM. The Plus version is going to be the most expensive variant of Galaxy S10, so it should have at least 8GB or 10GB RAM. It’s possible that the entry-level S10 Plus would pack 6GB RAM while more expensive versions would pack 8GB or 10GB RAM. Samsung is expected to sell the Snapdragon 855 variant in the US. Other markets would get another variant running its in-house Exynos 9820 processor.
It’s too early to say whether the Galaxy S10 Plus benchmark results spotted above are of a prototype or the consumer version of the device. Given the launch is only about a month away, the results of the consumer version might not be much different. A lot would also depend on how tightly Samsung manages to integrate the software with the processor. The Galaxy S10 is said to run Samsung’s OneUI on top of Android Pie.
The iPhones have an advantage over their Android rivals because Apple designs its processors and software in-house. As a result, it can tightly integrate the hardware and software to deliver maximum performance and energy efficiency. Most Android vendors rely on Google for software and Qualcomm or another chipmaker for the processor, which puts them at a disadvantage.
It’s worth pointing out that despite the Galaxy S10 Plus benchmark results being lower than iPhone XS, users might not experience any difference in real life performance. Benchmarks don’t always tell the real story, and sometimes Android vendors trick benchmarks to inflate their scores. The Snapdragon 855 is still a powerful chip capable of handling any game or task you throw at it.
Rumored Galaxy S10 features and specs
Samsung is all set to unveil the Galaxy S10, S10 Plus, and S10 E at the Galaxy Unpacked event on February 20 in San Francisco. The company has already sent out press invites teasing the number ’10.’ The event will be held at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium in San Francisco at 11 AM Pacific Time. The rumor mill claims Samsung could also show off its first 5G phone – which may have the Galaxy S10 branding – and the foldable Galaxy F at the same event. Samsung has joined hands with Verizon and AT&T to sell its 5G phones in the US market.
According to supply chain leaks, the Galaxy S10 would sport an Infinity-O display with a hole in the top-right corner of the screen to house the selfie camera. It is Samsung’s way to minimize the bezels without opting for an iPhone X-like notch.
Twitter tipster Ice Universe claims the Galaxy S10 Plus would pack a giant 4,000mAh battery while the S10 and S10 E would feature 3,500mAh and 3,100mAh batteries, respectively. The phones would also offer an improved 20W or 27W fast charging, up from 15W in last year’s models.
Recently, online retailer MobileFun revealed that the S10 and S10 Plus would sport an ultrasonic in-display fingerprint sensor, allowing users to unlock the device by placing a finger on the screen. It will be fast, secure, and convenience. But the cheaper Galaxy S10 E is said to launch with a side-mounted fingerprint reader to reduce the manufacturing costs as it will be competing with devices like OnePlus 6T and iPhone XR.
The Plus variant would get a triple camera system on the back and dual selfie cameras. The other two versions are said to sport dual rear lenses and a single camera on the font. According to GalaxyClub, the upcoming phones would bring new camera features such as Bright Night mode – which would be similar to the Night Sight mode on Google Pixel 3 – and Artistic Live Focus – which would reportedly allow users to create digital animations.
