Soon after the launch of the Apple iPad, there came the debate over the potential of the all new A4 processor that powers the tablet device and as its is known to give a solid output of 1Ghz, it was immediately compared to Google Nexus One’s 1Ghz Qualcomm Snapdragon processor. AnandTech took the verbal debate with a more practical approach and created a speed benchmark test for the A4, Snapdragon and the 600MHz ARM Cortex A8 processor, that powers the iPhone 3GS by loading various web pages.
Obviously, the ARM Cortex A8 processors didn’t stand a chance in front of the Snapdragon processor, as the A8 provides a clock speed of only 600Mhz as against the Qualcomm’s 1GHz. The main competition then came down between the iPad and the Nexus One as both devices are powered by 1GHz chips. Recent revelations have shed more light on the mysterious A4 processor, stating that, the processors consists of three layers of circuitry and for a change the RAM of the iPad is inbuilt in the A4.
The Apple iPad demonstrated a 10% increase in its web paging capability than the Nexus One and the A4 processor is believed to provide a 37.6% performance enhancement than the Snapdragon, in terms of efficiency.
Via AnandTech
Right. A test that compares a smartphone with a tablet is a fair one. Completely different build is more important than many think, especially if the huge difference in size allows a larger device to have concessions in cooling and other fields that are strictly enforced in a smartphone’s size.
And why does loading a web-page count as a valid assessment of processing? There are a million variables that can affect this outcome including position, wireless settings or devices, even the build (materials, size, conduction etc).
Apple’s A4 is indeed a fine processor but it’s been compared to one that has been on the market for quite a while. Combine this with Apple’s yearly product cycle and the rapid improvements in other devices’ internals, we’re already getting news of Snapdragon successors.
I agree with steve on this.
so that should be a good article to right about.
You can not compare the two devices. specially using just a web page test. disgraceful really. compare the htc evo with the orignal iphone (2g) and lets see if thats a fair test too?
i’ll compare my asus tablet t101mt with the Ipad now thats a fair test. both are tablets. both are built by asus. it all depends on what OS you run it on too