Every new year witnesses a recurring event in the smartphone industry that stirs up a lot of buzz in the tech community, which is the launch of new processors by major manufacturers like Qualcomm, Apple, Samsung, and Google. Typically, these launches are accompanied by exciting claims about the superior performance of these chips, supported by impressive numbers from performance testing applications like AnTuTu and Geekbench, which dominate the scene when it comes to this matter. These tests provide scores that give a general overview of the phone’s status and the maximum performance it can achieve.
But the question that arises is: do these tests reflect the actual performance of the phones? Can they be relied upon as a benchmark to judge the performance of phones? The answer to this question is important especially after the rise of artificial intelligence in modern smartphones. So let’s delve into the mechanics of the mentioned tools specifically, and the factors that influence phone performance and how they interact with performance test results.
Performance Evaluation Tests for PhonesÂ
The Difference Between AnTuTu and Geekbench
Platforms like “AnTuTu” and “Geekbench” are among the most popular tools used to measure the performance of smartphones, relied upon by both reviewers and regular users to evaluate their devices through simulating different usage scenarios. Each test of the two focuses on specific aspects and operates in a certain way, as for AnTuTu, it is a comprehensive tool that tests more than one component of the phone such as the processor, GPU, RAM, user interface, and storage, then provides a final score that reflects the overall performance of the device, making it useful for users who want to know how their phone handles heavy tasks like gaming and multitasking, and due to its ease of use, it is the best option for many.
On the other hand, Geekbench test focuses specifically on the CPU and GPU, and also simulates realistic tasks such as photo editing and web browsing to evaluate the device’s performance under various loads. Geekbench provides two different numerical ratings; the first to measure the performance of single-core of the phone (reflects the phone’s performance in dealing with single tasks), and the second to measure multi-core performance (the phone’s performance in handling different programs or tasks at the same time), making it a valuable choice for those who want to know the processing power of their phone in detail.
As can be inferred from the previous paragraphs, the main difference between the two tools lies in the scope of performance testing for each of them, in addition to the final evaluation. The Geekbench tool primarily focuses on the processor and its efficiency in handling various tasks, whether it requires a single core or multiple cores, and since it simulates realistic usage scenarios like photo editing and internet browsing, its results are more related to the phone’s performance in normal daily usage, although this does not justify absolute reliance on it as we will see later on.
On the contrary, AnTuTu takes a more comprehensive approach in performance testing, as it goes beyond just testing the processor and measures the performance of the components we talked about above. Its tests may not be related to daily usage as it tests 3D graphics and simulates heavy games, which means it pushes the phone to its maximum capabilities, hence it is no wonder that gamers and users seeking high performance prefer it over Geekbench and other similar tools.
Should AnTuTu and Geekbench Be Relied Upon?
Now we come to the most important question in this article, and the brief answer to it is as follows: If you are going to rely on AnTuTu and Geekbench tests – and others – as a preliminary indicator only to determine the phone’s performance, then the answer is yes. However, if you intend to rely on them entirely to determine the phone’s performance with actual usage, it is not recommended, and let us clarify more in the following paragraphs.
As you know, phones rely on relatively small batteries, which pose a significant challenge to manufacturers of the processing chips used in these phones. This challenge lies in achieving high performance while maintaining an acceptable battery life, and here the solution that most companies adopt is designing processors with diverse cores, where some cores are dedicated to high performance and others to power efficiency, allowing the phone to smartly distribute tasks between these cores depending on performance and power requirements.
However, there is another challenge which is managing the heat generated by the processor. Unlike computer devices that can rely on sophisticated cooling systems, smartphones lack this feature due to size and design restrictions. Manufacturers realize that high phone temperature not only leads to an uncomfortable user experience but can also negatively affect the processor performance and battery life in the long run. Therefore, they are compelled to set limits on the maximum performance that the processor can achieve in order to maintain reasonable temperatures.
Here lies another main problem with performance tests like AnTuTu and Geekbench. These tests rely on unrealistic simulation scenarios and do not reflect typical phone uses, as they push the phone to work at its maximum capacity for a short period, a scenario that rarely occurs in regular daily usage. In fact, most phones operate at much lower performance levels most of the time to maintain a balance between performance, battery life, and temperature.
As a result, these tests may give a misleading picture of the actual phone performance in normal conditions. A phone that achieves impressive results in tests may not necessarily be the best in daily use, especially if it sacrifices battery life or suffers from high temperatures. Therefore, it is unfair to judge your phone based on these tests because you may need much less actual performance than your phone’s performance under pressure.
Processor Power Alone Does Not Reflect Phone Performance
As mentioned, AnTuTu and Geekbench tests focus on highlighting the power of the used processor, which some mistakenly believe reflects the overall performance of smartphones in general, and this is completely wrong. The operating system and the interface used have a significant impact on the user experience and the tangible performance of the phone.
A company like Apple, for example, stands out for its ability to achieve a unique harmony between hardware and software. It designs its processors and the operating system for its devices (iOS in the case of the iPhone), which enables it to program a mechanism that communicates the applications and the system with hardware components in a way that makes a significant difference in performance besides the processing power. This harmony partially explains why iPhone devices can achieve smooth and distinctive performance even with technical specifications that may appear lower than their competitors on paper.
In the Android world, we find that companies like Samsung, Huawei, and Google follow a somewhat similar approach. These companies develop their own processors (Exynos, Kirin, and Tensor respectively) and customize the Android system to a great extent through their user interfaces. This approach allows them to achieve a higher level of optimization and performance compared to companies that rely solely on ready-made components and software.
Additionally, we must understand the fact that phones do not operate at their full capacity except in rare instances. Normal daily usage like browsing the internet, using social media apps, and even running most games usually does not require the maximum processing power of the phone. Even if there is a task that requires additional processing power from the phone, such as when editing videos or playing complex games, it usually boosts its performance for a short period only. As mentioned, this approach helps maintain a balance between performance, battery life, and temperature. Therefore, the actual performance that matters to most users is the speed and smoothness of the phone in daily tasks like opening and switching between apps, and its performance with common games. These aspects of performance do not necessarily reflect in AnTuTu and Geekbench test results.
Another factor that significantly affects phone performance is also the quality of the applications themselves. It is essential to realize that even with the most powerful processors, complex and chaotic designed applications can lead to a slow and frustrating user experience.
In recent years, the quality of most applications has greatly improved, with developers focusing on performance and efficient use of phone resources. However, there are still some applications, even from major companies, that suffer from performance issues. For example, apps like Facebook and other “Meta” apps are known to be heavy, leading to slow performance even on high-end devices. This shows that processor power alone is not a guarantee of a smooth user experience, and that “software” quality plays a crucial role in actual performance.
Some Companies Use Tests to Mislead
It is natural in the fiercely competitive world of smartphone manufacturers for claims to emerge about some companies using AnTuTu and Geekbench performance tests to mislead users. Proving the accuracy of these claims is somewhat complicated, but indeed there are companies like OnePlus that have been accused of designing their systems to recognize benchmarking apps and give them “special access” to the phone’s maximum performance. This maximum performance is typically not available to regular apps for reasons related to maintaining battery life and limiting heat.
From a purely technical standpoint, it can be said that this practice is not strictly “cheating” because the results that appear in the tests reflect actual performance that the phone can achieve at some stage. However, it is a form of deception, as in this way the tests portray an inaccurate picture of the phone’s actual performance in normal use. As for the mechanism of this practice, it actually relies on simple techniques. Every app on the Play Store has a unique “package name” that can be seen in the app’s link on the store (after the label =details?id). This package name is constant and does not change with app updates.
Phone manufacturers can program their devices to recognize the unique package names of famous testing apps and activate the maximum performance mode when running them. This leads to achieving impressive results in tests, but they – once again – do not reflect the real performance in daily use.
These practices raise ethical and practical questions. On the one hand, they can be considered a form of deceptive marketing. On the other hand, they can be seen as part of the nature of competition in the extremely competitive smartphone market. The real problem lies in the impact of these practices on consumer purchasing decisions. Many rely on the results of these tests as a primary indicator of phone performance, which may contribute to making less than ideal purchasing decisions.
In conclusion, AnTuTu and Geekbench tests provide useful and general insights into specific aspects of phone performance, but they fail to measure the true overall experience of usage. Excessive reliance on simulation, lack of clear metrics, potential biases, and other factors we discussed and those we did not justify relying on personal experience alone to judge the phone.
