Handsets

Droid 3 Wanders Into GLBenchmark Packing TI’s OMAP4

22

Benchmarks are a funny thing. While I sometimes enjoy them as a rough gauge on how well processors do against competition, I never completely rely on them as Bible truth. For all you benchmark-whores out there who have been dying to see how the Texas Instruments’ new OMAP4 would stack up against the competition, Motorola’s Droid 3 popped up in an GLBenchmark today and managed to do quite well for itself. Also note that the Droid 3 was originally speculated as coming shipped with a Tegra 2 processor but these recent benchmarks seem to put that rumor down.

You’ll notice in the first test that it performed a little under the Optimus 3D in the Egypt test but that can be attributed to the higher resolution qHD display found on the Droid 3 (the more pixels, the harder for the CPU has to work).

In the second “Pro” test the OMAP4 actually outperformed Nvidia’s Tegra 2 chip found inside the Droid X2 and Atrix but just under dual-core Snapdragon devices like the Sensation and Evo 3D. Interesting.

Again, while this definitely has me scratching my chin, I would need to see a few more benchmarks (read: Angry Birds) before making any sort of judgement call on which processor is “better.” Also, this does have me curious as to how Samsung’s upcoming dual-core Exynos processor will fair against the competition.

[Via Anandtech]

 

Chris Chavez
I've been obsessed with consumer technology for about as long as I can remember, be it video games, photography, or mobile devices. If you can plug it in, I have to own it. Preparing for the day when Android finally becomes self-aware and I get to welcome our new robot overlords.

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22 Comments

  1. Well….all I know is I was a fan of the OMAP from the Droid 1 and Droid X. I wasnt too sold on Tegra 2 based on stuff I read last year about battery life vs. the other dual cores.

    Nice to see some other dual cores to do some somewhat real comparisons with Tegra 2.

    1. Tegra 2 isn’t this chips competition from manufacturers, it’s actually going to compete against Tegra 3 Kal-El. The times the dual core omap and the quad core Tegra come out will be close together (end of this year).

      PS: kal-el = Tegra 2 performance times 5

      1. Strongly disagree.  There’s no ETA for Kal-El.  I’ve heard end of summer, end of 2011 etc.  There’s also no conformation of any devices sporting the SoC–and no the Moto Targa phantom phone doesn’t count.  These products (MSM82620, OMAP4430 & Exynos) are competing with Tegra 2 now, and IMO they’re all better SoCs.  

        1. I agree with this.  All these chips are fine, but for whatever reason Motorola switched gears and went with the OMAP instead of the Tegra 2 for the Droid 3 and Bionic.

      2. Isnt Kal El quad core? There is a quad core OMAP in the works too. And they will probably be both out around the same time then too. There will probably be quad core chips from Samsung, Qualcomm too around that time.

        I know Tegra 2 is older than these upcoming dual core chips, but I think this is competing directly with the Tegra 2 and other dual core chips thats coming out.

  2. Nvidia hasn’t ever been in the forefront of dual core processors. ive always wanted Qualcomm over Nvidia but even texas instruments takes the cake over the Tegra… kudos to Nvidia for trying a new market but they truly shine in graphics.

    1. > Nvidia hasn’t ever been in the forefront of dual core processors.

      Nvidia had the first dual core processor.

      1. Not bad for being 1.5 years old.

    2. Nvidia had Tegra 2 on the market at least 6 months before Qualcomm, TI and Samsung. If you think the Atrix was the first Tegra 2 device, then you’ll have to look into it some more.

      You’ll see why Tegra 3 is actually coming out exactly one year after Tegra 2 first appeared on the market, and why it’s again the first to have a quad core CPU, and way before everyone else, too.

      1. Here’s something for you to remember Lucian:

        Good-Cheap-Fast

        Pick any of the TWO

        Good and cheap won’t be fast

        Good and fast wont be cheap

        Fast and cheap won’t be good (the Nvidia Mobile SoC formula)

        The Tegra 2 costs 66 percent less to manufacture than the A5–astounding considering the amount of A5 chips being produced.  So how did this happen?  They neglected to use Neon extensions and opted for a crap video decoder.  I don’t know the cost of Qualcomm’s, TI’s, and Samsung’s new dual-core SoCs, but I bet they’re more expensive to produce than the Tegra 2.  So while you go around boasting about how awesome Tegra 3 will be remember that there will be better SoCs soon to follow.  First doesn’t mean anything in my book.

  3. I don’t care what anyone says, this will be my new phone. And 512MB of ram is fine enough, especially when it’s DDR2 ram (and I plead that you Google what that is before moaning on how low the ram is).

    1. I know what that is, and most new super phones are coming out with a full gig of DDR2 ram. It’s comparatively not enough.

      1. just because theyve got 1gb doesnt mean they need it.    its only not enough if u want braggin rights and want to say “ive got the most ram, ive got the fastest processor” etc.   but for everyday use its obviously perfectly fine since its near the top of the benchmark charts.   

        no doubt the next lot of phones will have 2gb and everyone will say 1gb sucks.lol.   the phone market is getting more and more like the pc market. they just increase the numbers so people have a reason to upgrade, when in reality theres little real world gain.

      2. The only thing that’s ever held me back on any Android phone I’ve ever bought, including the G1 and the original Droid, was the RAM.  Whatever is “fine enough”, I want double.  Anything else and you’re just asking to be left behind eventually.

  4. Why has nothing ever been said about the iPhone being so low on these charts? Interesting.

    1. Part of it being so low is the resolution of the screen…I dont know what else might be the cause.

  5. I’ve been waiting for this phone for 7 months. However now the release date is set to come out the same day as the tiered Verizon plans… Fucking fuck. All that time wasted and I’ll end up having to get the DX2 just to stick with the unlimited plan.. for the same price.

    I would honestly switch carriers over this except I do require the coverage Verizon has. For the areas I go to for work it’s the only option if I want the ability to use the device.

    1. You have a 90 day return policy after you get the phone. Buy the Droid X2 today, sign the contract, the return it for the Droid 3 on July 7. Screw Verizon right back.

      1. It was changed to two weeks about a month or two ago.

    2. No worries, you can renew with the same unlimited plan even after July 7 as long as you are a customer before July 7.

  6. Look at the iPhone with all of its gee-bees.

  7. who cares, motorola no thanks

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