Snapdragon or Hummingbird

[Socrats]

Title says it all. Which processor do you think is better etc.

 

[shalemail]

Tegra 2
END OF LINE

 

[Socrats]

I'll have to say hummingbird.

 

[gallandof]

humming bird is better in terms of graphics, but i think the snapdragon manages the 1ghz better.

 

[Shocky]

Hummingbird, better GPU and in real word tests CPU is on par with snapdragon.

Snapdragon does great in synthetic benchmarks, so your into benchmarking snapdragon all the way.

Tegra 2
END OF LINE

Nope, Orion.

Which also uses the Dual core 1GHz Cortex-A9 CPU but with faster GPU. Quad core Mali 400 GPU which they claim is 5x faster than the PowerVR chip in hummingbird.

 

[Socrats]

haha the A4 chip is faster then tegra

 

[Doomstang]

Hummingbird processors seem to be more powerful at equal mhz/ghz as the snapdragons...but really, how can you NOT vote for the Snapdragon when it has a name like that?!

 

[Guamguy]

Snapdragon 8250 might have a slightly faster CPU core (Scorpion) but Hummingbird has a much better GPU.

Snapdragon 8255 is both faster than the 8250 in both CPU and GPU, The former is due to its use of DDR2 memory and the latter due to the Adreno 205. The 8250 uses DDR1.

Cortex A8 based processors use DDR2, but they got a 10 stage pipeline while the Scorpion has 12. A8 uses a 64 bit bus while Scorpion uses a 64/128 bit bus.

Hummingbird itself has tricks up its sleeve designed to make touchscreens more accurate and responsive.

In terms of system architecture, the Snapdragon has an integrated modem, meaning the RF modem is built into the chip itself. The modem can do both GSM and CDMA, as welll as EV-DO, UMTS, HSPA and HSPA+.

To support LTE, you get the 86xx variant like the 8655. This is the LTE capable version of the 8255.

Hummingbird doesn't use an integrated architecture. The modem chip is separate and placed outside of the main SOC. That's why the A4, which is based on the Hummingbird, switched to a Qualcomm broadband chip to add CDMA support. Take the chip out, and you get a modemless system that can be used like an iPod Touch. That's how the iPod Touch itself becomes possible as well as Wifi only iPads. And no surprise, there are Samsung Galaxy PMPs without any phone wireless.

While it does give flexibility, having a decoupled solution also means an increase in the usage of PCB real estate. Thus the Snapdragon allows for more compact PCBs and systems. Also there is no lag between the CPU and the modem since both are within the chip.

HTC is extremely wedded to Qualcomm. It is almost impossible for them to try other chips. However, the Snapdragon doesn't support China Mobile's TD standards. This is the only instance where HTC uses Texas Instruments OMAP6 chips (like Motorola Droids) for exclusive China Mobile models only.

The Scorpion core itself is non standard to the ARM family, as Scorpion is not an A8 per se but a reverse engineered piece. It's sort of like AMD Athlon core vs. Intel's cores. Everyone else uses a strictly Cortex A8 and now, A9. That may also be a factor to why the Nexus S switched to a Hummingbird, since the Nexus S has to be a referential platform as well.

 

[Socrats]

Snapdragon 8250 might have a slightly faster CPU core (Scorpion) but Hummingbird has a much better GPU.

Snapdragon 8255 is both faster than the 8250 in both CPU and GPU, The former is due to its use of DDR2 memory and the latter due to the Adreno 205. The 8250 uses DDR1.

Cortex A8 based processors use DDR2, but they got a 10 stage pipeline while the Scorpion has 12. A8 uses a 64 bit bus while Scorpion uses a 64/128 bit bus.

Hummingbird itself has tricks up its sleeve designed to make touchscreens more accurate and responsive.

In terms of system architecture, the Snapdragon has an integrated modem, meaning the RF modem is built into the chip itself. The modem can do both GSM and CDMA, as welll as EV-DO, UMTS, HSPA and HSPA+.

To support LTE, you get the 86xx variant like the 8655. This is the LTE capable version of the 8255.

Hummingbird doesn't use an integrated architecture. The modem chip is separate and placed outside of the main SOC. That's why the A4, which is based on the Hummingbird, switched to a Qualcomm broadband chip to add CDMA support. Take the chip out, and you get a modemless system that can be used like an iPod Touch. That's how the iPod Touch itself becomes possible as well as Wifi only iPads. And no surprise, there are Samsung Galaxy PMPs without any phone wireless.

While it does give flexibility, having a decoupled solution also means an increase in the usage of PCB real estate. Thus the Snapdragon allows for more compact PCBs and systems. Also there is no lag between the CPU and the modem since both are within the chip.

HTC is extremely wedded to Qualcomm. It is almost impossible for them to try other chips. However, the Snapdragon doesn't support China Mobile's TD standards. This is the only instance where HTC uses Texas Instruments OMAP6 chips (like Motorola Droids) for exclusive China Mobile models only.

The Scorpion core itself is non standard to the ARM family, as Scorpion is not an A8 per se but a reverse engineered piece. It's sort of like AMD Athlon core vs. Intel's cores. Everyone else uses a strictly Cortex A8 and now, A9. That may also be a factor to why the Nexus S switched to a Hummingbird, since the Nexus S has to be a referential platform as well.

I found that whole post very informative. I just learned a few things. I'll make sure to follow you on twitter. My name is @Socrates

 

[Guamguy]

Thanks for the kind words.

A little thing I forgot to mention. If these things matter. Warning, just geek stuff.

More stages on the pipeline means the core itself is more overclockable. No surprise the HTC Vision (Desire Z, G2, Shift EVO, Merge), powered by the Qualcomm 7230 Snapdragon, can reach up to 1.8GHz overclocked. The fastest the Hummingbird is overclocked is around 1.4Ghz.

 

[jroc]

Hummingbird..

 

[IOWA]

Depends on the usage. As Guamguy mentioned, the Qualcomm chips have the radio's built into the SOC. So for PHONES, it's all about that latest snapdragon chip.

 

[Shocky]

Snapdragon 8255 is both faster than the 8250 in both CPU and GPU, The former is due to its use of DDR2 memory and the latter due to the Adreno 205. The 8250 uses DDR1.

That's not correct, the PowerVR is still faster, try something like nenamark or even Smartbench 2010, Galaxy S still scores higher than Adreno 205 and remember the Galaxy S has v-sync enabled.

If you still don't beleive me, beleive the developers of Dungeon Defenders, theres a reason the Desire HD is classed as mid range and Galaxy S as high end.

But yes the CPU in the latest version does seem to be a little faster.

 

[Usta]

That's not correct, the PowerVR is still faster, try something like nenamark or even Smartbench 2010, Galaxy S still scores higher than Adreno 205 and remember the Galaxy S has v-sync enabled.

If you still don't beleive me, beleive the developers of Dungeon Defenders, theres a reason the Desire HD is classed as mid range and Galaxy S as high end.

But yes the CPU in the latest version does seem to be a little faster.

Guamguy compares Snapdragon 2nd generation (8255) with the 1st generation (8250), and here he is correct to point out the increased power (also in GPU) in the 2nd gen Snapdragons.

Compared to Hummingbird, I agree that if we take only GPU benchmarks, PowerVR wins against Adreno (205).

 

[Shocky]

Guamguy compares Snapdragon 2nd generation (8255) with the 1st generation (8250), and here he is correct to point out the increased power (also in GPU) in the 2nd gen Snapdragons.

Compared to Hummingbird, I agree that if we take only GPU benchmarks, PowerVR wins against Adreno (205).

Yep, your right, comprehension failuire on my part.

 

[dan330]

good information...

 

[Medion]

Guamguy summed it up pretty nice, so here's the cliffnotes.

-Snapdragon uses the Scorpion MP Core, while Hummingbird is an ARM Cortex A8. In real world applications, Snapdragon is 5-10% faster clock for clock. So, Snapdragon is faster if both are at 1ghz, but not so fast that anyone will notice or care. Also, Hummingbird is 45nm, while the original Snapdragon is 65nm. Smaller process means less heat and less battery consumption. The newer Snapdragons are 45nm, as are all newer A9-based CPUs (except Tegra 2, which is 40nm).

-Hummingbird uses the Power VR SGX540 GPU. Original Snapdragon uses the Adreno 200, while the newer ones use the 205. Back when I did my Quadrant comparisons on VARIOUS phones, the scores averaged out to:

Adreno 200 = 320
Adreno 205 = 575
PowerVR SGX540 = 850

So, that should give you a rough numerical difference between each chipset.

The only thing that Guamguy was really off about was:

This is the only instance where HTC uses Texas Instruments OMAP6 chips (like Motorola Droids) for exclusive China Mobile models only.

Current Motorola droids use the OMAP3 series, while OMAP4 is coming out in the 2nd half of this year. I don't know why, but GG always refers to them as the OMAP6 series. He's probably referring to the 2nd digit (IE, OMAP 3630). The new chipsets are the OMAP 4430 and 4440. The droid used the 3430, the Droid 2 and X used the 3630, and the Droid 2 Global used the 3640.

 

[Socrats]

Lol I love this site. I learned a lot from everyone who posted.

 

[yhbae]

Here's an article that compares Hummingbird vs Adreno 205:

Benchmarking Hummingbird vs Qualcomm 2nd Gen Snapdragon (and Power GSX540 vs Adreno 205) - which is faster? - Smartphone Benchmarks (SmartBench 2010/Quadrant) Forum

The article really compares Hummingbird vs MSM8255 both from CPU and GPU perspective, using benchmarks. Also digs in a bit on Quadrant vs Smartbench on what they really report and how to interpret their results.

 

[MassacrMan]

I used a Captivate for 6 months and now own an HTC Inspire 4G, I'd honestly have to take the second-generation Snapdragon over the Hummingbird from my experience so far.

 

[Shocky]

I used a Captivate for 6 months and now own an HTC Inspire 4G, I'd honestly have to take the second-generation Snapdragon over the Hummingbird from my experience so far.

Do you not play games?

 

[saps]

Benchmarks are just that. Fire up dungeon defenders thats a nice real test for any phone.

 

[MassacrMan]

Do you not play games?

No I do, I play angry birds and Backbreaker and a lot. Both games ran very smoothly on both phones.

 

[Socrats]

Benchmarks are just that. Fire up dungeon defenders thats a nice real test for any phone.

haha yea it is lol