The Samsung Galaxy S9 is due to be unveiled as early as February 2018. Considering how popular the Galaxy 8 and Galaxy 8 Plus have been this year, the expectations are high for the new flagship device. Samsung’s flagship devices are usually the most powerful Android devices at the time, and considering how rumors suggest that the S9 is going to feature Samsung’s new Exynos chipset, and Qualcomm’s new Snapdragon 845 chipset, people are right to have high expectations.
But, it’s now looking like the Samsung Galaxy S9 is not going to be quite as powerful as we thought. As we take a look at the Galaxy S9 vs iPhone X benchmarks, it’s clear to see that the S9 doesn’t even come close to what the iPhone X has to offer with regards to power.
How do we know this? One of the new phones have arrived on Geekbench. The Samsung device has been given the designation SM-G960F in Geekbench results, and many people believe this device is the unannounced Samsung flagship which is being tested – the Samsung Galaxy S9’s global version. This gives us a sneak peek at what we might expect from the S9 when it’s debuted in February next year.
The Geekbench results show that the Galaxy S9 will benchmark considerably slower than Apple’s A11 Bionic chip which is featured in the iPhone X.
The benchmark results reported by Geekbench show that the Samsung Galaxy S9 scored 2680 on the single-core test, and 7787 on the multi-core test. While those results make it one of the most powerful Android devices that have currently been tested, it’s still a long way behind the iPhone X. In comparison, the iPhone X scored 4197 on the single-core test, and 10051 on the multi-core test. What’s even more impressive is the fact that the iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus scored even higher than both of these devices, thanks to their lower resolution display.
Here are the full set of Galaxy S9 benchmarks:
Galaxy S9 vs iPhone X Benchmarks: Conclusion
On paper at least, the iPhone X is hands down a much more powerful device than the Samsung Galaxy S9. But, these results aren’t a certain indicator of the Galaxy S9’s power. These benchmarks might not even relate to the Galaxy S9, it’s just speculation at this point. It’s also important to remember that the Galaxy S9 hasn’t even been released yet, so even if these results are from the Galaxy S9, there’s every chance that the benchmark results will be improved during the software optimisation which is no-doubt heavily underway right now.
Secondly, while benchmarks give us an indication of processing performance, they are not always a great “real-world” performance indicator. There’s a lot more to a smartphone than it’s CPU and benchmarks.
What Else Do We Know About The Galaxy S9 So Far?
There’s not much we know for sure yet about the Galaxy S9, other than it will be released early in 2018. If Samsung follow their previous footsteps, the unveiling will likely happen in February or March next year.
There’s also a lot of talk about certain features that will added to the S9, such as the addition of a dual lens camera (which will help them compete with the iPhone 7, iPhone 8, and iPhone X, which all have a dual lens camera). Rumors have also suggested that Samsung will include a 3D front-facing camera on the S9 device, again, this will help to keep up with their main rival; Apple.
The fingerprint sensor on the Galaxy S8 is located in an incredible annoying position – on the rear of the device, next to the camera. So, many Galaxy S8 owners are hoping that Samsung fix this in the S9. There are rumors which suggest Samsung may have found a way to embed the fingerprint scanner under the screen, but some prominent insiders have said there is no chance of that. Again, they may choose to opt to remove the fingerprint scanner altogether, and make use of the 3D front facing camera to unlock the device using facial recognition, the same as the iPhone X. We don’t know for sure, but hopefully at the very least, the position of the fingerprint scanner will be located somewhere better than it is on the Galaxy S8!
As far as pricing goes for the Samsung Galaxy S9, it’s reported that the prices will be the same as the Galaxy S8 when it launched. So you will be looking at $750 for the base version. This is a significant amount cheaper than the iPhone X, so if the features and specifications match up, then Apple might have a worthy competitor in the S9.