Benchmarking
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Smartphone chips are about to get better at gaming, Twitter and Netflix
There's been a lot of talk about how phones from certain manufacturers can sense when you're running benchmarking software and will artificially inflate their performance accordingly. It's been a problem for some time now, but the industry appears to be finding its own ways of dealing with the issue. ARM, the outfit that designs the bulk of the smartphone industry's chips, has teamed up with British startup GameBench to make benchmarks not only more honest, but also a lot more understandable.
iPad Air impressive in early benchmark testing
The reviews of the upcoming iPad Air have been glowing -- so glowing in fact that you'd be forgiven for thinking it was merely a case of Apple fan-boys unable to hide their excitement. Sure, the tech guys are excited, but what are the hard numbers? How does the iPad Air stack up in benchmark testing against previous models? It turns out that the iPad Air stacks up incredibly. Primate Labs tested the iPad Air using the cross-platform Geekbench 3 benchmark tool and the results are impressive: The iPad Air is more than 80 percent faster than the fourth-generation iPad and five times faster than the iPad 2. Given that the iPad Air is only a hundred dollars more than the iPad 2, Apple's decision to keep the older iPad around instead of the iPad 4 is odd. Perhaps they''re hoping customers will look at the specs and price difference, and go for the slightly more expensive, but significantly more powerful, iPad Air. The iPad Air hits stores this Friday.
'Epic Citadel' tech demo now on Android
Android users still can't partake in the acclaimed slashing hijinks of Epic Games' mobile showpiece Infinity Blade or its sequel, but they can walk around its medieval setting and watch things, like, render and stuff, now that Epic Citadel is available for free on Google Play and the Amazon Appstore.Originally released on iOS way back in the stone ages (read: September 2010), Epic Citadel serves as both Unreal Engine 3 tech demo and phone hardware benchmarking tool, allowing Android users to not only see how pretty UE3's rivers are, but also how well their devices handle rendering them. Our Galaxy Nexus, for instance, ranked in at the "High Performance" level, churning out an average of 43.9 FPS at 1196 x 720. During testing, framerates peaked just below 60 FPS and momentarily bottomed out around 18 FPS.As with the iOS release, there isn't a tremendous amount to actually do in Epic Citadel, aside from looking at fluttery banners and lens flares, and its on-screen twinstick controls are only recommended for those who enjoy being 100 percent out of control of their movement. Still, it's very pretty. %Gallery-177522%
New Mac mini tear down and benchmarks from Mac Mini Vault
The Mac Mini Vault has already grabbed a new Mac mini and taken it apart. You can read through the site's teardown and analysis right now. The short version is that much of the mini's design is the same. As you can see above, with the new version on the left and the 2011 version on the right. But because of the upgraded processor and memory, the new version is much faster than the last one, with nearly an extra thousand score on Geekbench tests. Mac Mini Vault (one of a few businesses offering Mac mini co-location) has a few more tests coming later on this week, including benchmarking on a few different operating systems running on the new mini, as well as a look at the new Mac mini server model that Apple has added to the lineup. It's great to see the mini getting some love, as it's an affordable and powerful way to run Apple's excellent hardware and OS in all kinds of different ways.
Vellamo benchmark adds CPU and memory tests, here's how it rates the One X and GS III
Qualcomm's Vellamo app has been a part of the furniture in our Android benchmarking suite for a while now, providing a fun little test of browsing and networking speeds on almost any Android device. Version 2.0 adds something extra, however: a section called "Metal" that is all about putting your processor and memory through the wringer. As a quick taster, we ran the new HTML5 and Metal tests on the HTC One X (both global and AT&T) and the Galaxy S III (global and Sprint), settling on the average of three consecutive results. Conspiracy theorists who think that Qualcomm's app favors its own processors will only find further ammunition in the CPU results, however the HTML5 scores actually give the QCOM devices much less of a lead than the old Vellamo did, scoring all four handsets roughly equally. You'll find the table overleaf, along with a publicity video that explains the update.
Early benchmark scores are in for the Sony Xperia T, TX and V
We've already benchmarked the Galaxy Note II and the ZTE Grand X IN at IFA, and as the week wraps up we're circling back to test the mettle of other handsets announced here in Berlin. We ran mobile benchmarks on Sony's new flagship Xperia T, the Xperia TX (the US version of the T) and the LTE-enabled Xperia V. All three devices pack dual-core Snapdragon S4 Krait processors clocked at 1.5GHz, and they're currently running Ice Cream Sandwich -- though a Jelly Bean update is reportedly on the way. Meet us past the break for a first look at how these smartphones stack up.
Intel, Acer, Qualcomm join Futuremark's 3DMark for Android development program
Benchmarking outfit Futuremark has announced that Intel, Qualcomm, Acer and SingTel-Optus are joining the development program for the company's 3DMark for Android. The quartet is in good company, joining a list of industry heavyweights that includes AMD, Microsoft and NVIDIA, amongst others. While the Helsinki-based outfit hasn't mentioned a specific release date for its latest analysis application, it's on course to arrive "later this year." For us, that simply isn't soon enough -- but then again we don't get out much.
US 3G and 4G networks face off once more, Verizon just squeaks out win over AT&T
Competition for the US cellular speed crown is certainly fiercer than it was last year, when Verizon's 4G LTE let it walk over the competition unimpeded. With AT&T's LTE in the running, though, have the ranks changed? No, but only just barely: as PCMag discovered in its annual countrywide testing, Verizon mostly trumped its fellow telecom giant in upload speeds and reliability. AT&T could once more claim to be best in a category with the fastest downloads, although it's counterbalanced by having a considerably smaller LTE network. For everyone outside of T-Mobile and its still very respectable HSPA+ network, it's better luck next year. We'll be most intrigued then, quite frankly -- in addition to 2013 giving us a genuinely functional Sprint LTE network, that's when we could see a blistering-fast T-Mobile LTE-Advanced produce an upset victory.
Angelbird's Wings PCIe-based SSD preview and benchmarks
Storage enthusiasts (yeah, there is such a thing -- what of it?) would probably tell you that PCIe-based SSDs are a dime a dozen these days. But in all seriousness, the prices we're seeing are proof that a few more competitors wouldn't hurt. A few weeks back, Austria's own Angelbird started to ship a solution that we first heard about during 2010, and we were fortunate enough to pop a Wings PCIe SSD RAID card into our Mac Pro for testing. For years, we've been booting this up and running every single application off of its stock HDD -- a 640GB Hitachi HDE721064SLA360 (7200RPM) -- as we surmise many of you desktop owners might be. Anxious to see if these are the Wings your existing tower needs to soar? Head on past the break for our impressions. %Gallery-134642%
BAPCo calls 'liar, liar' on AMD, Intel still its golden prince
Benchmarks can be a bit of a back and forth schoolyard screaming match -- there's plenty of yelling, but not always much brute force to back it up -- so let's take this case of 'he said / she said' with an even coarser grain of salt. BAPCo, a non-profit whose members include major tech industry heavyweights, slapped back at AMD today for publicly dissing the SYSmark 2012 benchmark it had an 80 percent hand in creating and for claming the group forced them out of the club. The chip maker had similar beef back in 2007 over Intel's benchmark-friendlier chips, and this appears to be the final straw that broke its GPU's back. On Monday, VIA and NVIDIA also joined the ranks of the recently defected, but refrained from any superfluous PR finger-wagging. Wherever the truth may lie, for sure someone's got a case of the green-eyed monster, and it's definitely not us. We're looking at you, AMD. [Thanks, Muhammad; image courtesy BAPCo]
AMD resigns from BAPCo consortium, denounces SYSmark 2012 benchmark
It's not uncommon for a company to make a public endorsement from time to time, but AMD today drafted a press release to announce that it's not endorsing a product -- BAPCo's SYSmark 2012 benchmark -- going so far as to drop out of the non-profit org to drive its point home. AMD claims that it attempted to work with BAPCo to focus testing on real-world usage, rather than traditional benchmarks that don't necessarily represent how we use computers today. Nigel Dessau, AMD's CMO, explains the decision on AMD's blog: "Unfortunately, our good intentions were met with an outcome that we believe does a disservice to the industry and our customers. We weren't able to effect positive change within BAPCo, and the resulting benchmark continues to distort workload performance and offers even less transparency to end users. Once again, BAPCo chose to ignore the opportunity to promote openness and transparency." The biggest issue appears to be that SYSmark highlights processor speed while ignoring GPU power -- a significant flaw, considering GPUs now play a large role in overall system performance.
AMD's Bobcat APU benchmarked: the age of the Atom is at an end
So small, and yet potentially so disruptive. AMD's 1.6GHz Zacate chip, bearing a pair of Bobcat modules, has been taken off the leash today, resulting in a torrent of benchmarks pouring down onto the internet. While perusing the sources below, you might think to yourself that it's not exactly a world beater, sitting somewhere in the middle of the pack on most tests, but compare it to Intel's dual-core Atom D510 -- its most immediate competition in the target sub-$500 laptop price range -- and you'll find a thoroughgoing whooping in progress. The highlight of these new Fusion APUs is that they integrate graphics processing within the CPU chip, and Zacate didn't disappoint on that front either, with marked improvements over anything else available in its class. The resulting chips might still not have quite enough grunt to earn a place in your daily workhorse mobile computer, but their power efficiency and netbook-level pricing goals sure do look delightful. Or dangerous, if you're Intel. Read - AnandTech Read - Tech Report Read - PC Perspective Read - Hot Hardware Read - Legit Reviews
W3C tests HTML5 browser compatibility, crowns IE9 the champ
The World Wide Web Consortium -- you know, the team responsible for certifying and standardizing HTML5 -- has put together its first table of official conformance test results, giving us an idea of how well prepared each of the most popular browsers is for the oncoming web standards revolution. The data show Internet Explorer 9 as the most adroit performer (again), though Chrome, Firefox, Opera, and Safari don't seem to be too far behind in their HTML5 compliance, either. Of course, these checks don't cover the entire spec, which in itself isn't even finalized yet, but they provide us with a glimpse into a brave new world where Microsoft actually cares about coders keen on maximizing interoperability by adhering to web-wide standards. Good stuff. Check out the full results at the source link below. [Thanks, Mehran]
NVIDIA launches sub-$80 GeForce GT 430 for single-slot cooler enthusiasts
The graphics card that doesn't require a fridge-sized cooler is turning into something of a rarity nowadays, but we doubt the market for quiet, efficient, and halfway-decent GPUs is ever going to disappear completely. NVIDIA is fleshing out its Fermi family today with a creature that aspires to such epithets, the 96 CUDA core-equipped GT 430. It's a patently humble GPU, as indicated by its $79.99 typical price, 49W TDP, 5.7-inch board length, and single-slot cooler design. Mind you, while those are typically considered positives, they do limit gaming performance quite significantly, with the GT 430 getting roundly beaten by ATI's (sob!) AMD's similarly priced Radeon HD 5670. So what niche is left for this card? Well, it's an upgrade over integrated graphics and it gets you on the 3D bandwagon, but on the whole we're left scratching our voluminous craniums as to why anyone would dodge AMD's more accomplished hardware for NVIDIA's latest. Hit up the reviews below and form your own opinion, if our one doesn't suit your outfit today. Read - HardOCP Read - AnandTech Read - PC Perspective Read - Hot Hardware Read - Legit Reviews Read - Hexus%Gallery-104721%
ATI CrossFireX versus NVIDIA SLI: performance scaling showdown
We know who the daddy is when it comes to single-card graphics performance, and we've even witnessed NVIDIA and ATI duking it out with multiple cards before, but this here roundup is what you might call comprehensive. Comparing a mind-boggling 23 different configurations, the Tech Report guys set out to determine the best bang for your DirectX 11 buck. Their conclusion won't shock those of you who've been following the recent love affair between reviewers and NVIDIA's GeForce GTX 460: a pair of these eminently affordable cards regularly outpaced the best single-GPU solutions out there. Slightly more intriguing, however, was the discovery that its elder siblings, the GTX 470 and 480, have improved in performance to the point of being markedly ahead of ATI's Radeon HD 5870, with the blame for this shift being put squarely on the shoulders of NVIDIA's driver update team. Hurry up and give the source a read while it's still fresh, we can't imagine ATI letting this be the status quo for too much longer.
Lian Li's T1 Mini-ITX Spider case escapes on May 21
The Lian Li T1 Spider is not meant for the average consumer. Then again, you aren't the average consumer are you? The T1 is an open-air test bench for quickly assembling and disassembling Mini-ITX systems for benchmarking purposes. As such, it's built to handle components like a standard Mini-ITX motherboard on the top, a 5.25-inch slim CDROM, 3.5-inch hard disk, and an ATX PS/2 power supply unit. But man, we think it's a fine looking creature regardless. Available May 21st for an expected ¥13,800 (about $149) in black or ¥15,800 ($170) in fire-ant red.%Gallery-93027%
Windows 7, Mac OS X, and Ubuntu 10.04 meet up for an OpenGL benchmarking session
So these three operating systems walk into a bar one night ... alright, we'll behave. With all the Steamy conversation about gaming on non-Windows desktop platforms going on, we thought you might care to peek at a little OpenGL performance comparison review. As the chief cross-platform API, it's the only way we're going to be seeing the latest games running natively on Mac OS and Linux, but how will that experience compare to the market leader? As it turned out, Windows maintains superiority in this field, with frame rates that were habitually above those on the latest Ubuntu and well ahead of what you might get on Mac OS 10.6.3. It's still early days -- after all, Steam's non-DirectX cupboard is pretty bare right now -- but at this point in time, OpenGL gaming is a crown that Microsoft retains with relative ease. Hit the source for all the line graph evidence, and let's hope things improve for the rest of us in rapid fashion.
2TB hard drive review roundup: Samsung, Seagate and WD throw down
It's a 2TB world, folks, and if you're looking to select a new drive to archive your upcoming vacation footage, you owe it to yourself to do a little research before pulling the trigger. Currently, 2TB options are on the market from Seagate, Western Digital and Samsung, and while all are in the 3.5-inch SATA form factor, they certainly aren't equal. The benchmarking gurus over at Hot Hardware decided to toss no fewer than ten 2TB drives into the mix, and after running 250 or so tests, they found that WD's RE4 2TB came out on top. 'Course, that just so happens to be the most expensive platter in the bunch, checking in at around $0.16 per gigabyte; the admittedly slower Caviar Green 2TB and Seagate Barracuda LP 2TB both came in at less than half of that. Go on and give that source link a look if you're into bar charts and in-depth analysis of bits and bytes -- and remember, friends don't let friends buy lousy storage.
Apple's A4 SoC faces Qualcomm Snapdragon in knock-down-drag-out benchmarking test
Up until now, a shroud of mystery has surrounded Apple's custom engineered A4 system-on-chip; we know it's clocked at 1GHz, likely tied to Apple's prior acquisition of P.A. Semi and manufactured by Samsung. Outside of that, the only other knowledge we've gained has come not from the mouth of Cupertino, but from the extracting wizards over at iFixit. The A4 contains at least three layers of circuitry layered on top of each other, though it's packaged just like the iPhone processor: microprocessor in one package and two memory modules in the other package. We also learned that the iPad RAM is actually inside of the A4 processor package, and we're expecting to learn even more from those folks in the coming days. All that said, there's still much debate on whether Apple's own silicon can stand up to Qualcomm's heralded 1GHz Snapdragon, the chip powering Google's Nexus One among other things. AnandTech pitted their iPad against the iPhone 3GS (600MHz ARM Cortex A8) and the aforesaid Nexus One (1GHz Snapdragon QSD8250), using a number of website loads as the primary benchmark. Overall, the A4 proved to be around 10 to 30 percent faster, though it's impossible to say what effect the operating system has on things. Have a gander at that source link for more -- we get the feeling the competitions have just begun.
Intel's Core i7-980X Extreme Edition 'Gulftown' review roundup
Six cores. Twelve threads. A new flagship processor in Intel's stable. Here at GDC in San Francisco, the world's most widely recognized chip maker is dishing out its latest desktop CPU, and to say it's a niche device would be greatly understating things. We spoke to a number of Intel bigwigs at tonight's media event, and everyone confessed that the Core i7-980X Extreme Edition was a low quantity, high performance device aimed specifically at gamers and content editors that simply refuse to live anywhere other than on the cutting edge. Intel's planning on selling these in retail, standalone form for $999 (MSRP), while they'll soon be available in a variety of gaming rigs from the likes of Dell, Alienware and whoever else wishes to keep with the times. As for Apple? The company stated that Steve and Company "sort of call their own shots," and that we'd have to dig at Apple if we really wanted to know what their refreshed Mac Pro would hold. We chuckled, nodded in understanding, and then learned that this here slab of silicon is a bit ahead of the software out there, with Intel noting that only games optimized for 12-thread use and benchmarking utilities that did likewise would really demonstrate the performance boost. 'Course, anyone who spends a great deal of time multitasking will appreciate the extra headroom, and power users can always find ways to make use of more horsepower. Oh, and for what it's worth, the company stated that this will be its lead desktop chip for some time to come, and if you're looking for a mobile version in the near future, you can keep dreaming. As for the critics? Just about everyone with a benchmarking license managed to get one of these in-house, and everyone seems to feel (mostly) the same way. There's no denying that this is Intel's speediest consumer chip ever, but you won't find 50 percent boosts just anywhere. Yet. When the software catches up, though, there's no doubt that this chip will make even the other Core i7s look downright sluggish. 50 percent more cores and 50 percent more threads than the prior kings of the line leads to fantastic gains when serious number crunching is involved (audio and video editors, we're staring at you), with some tests showing upticks in the 30 to 50 percent range. As a bonus, the power consumption here is also extremely reasonable, with the shift to 32nm enabling it to even use less power in some circumstances when compared to the Core i7-975 Extreme Edition. Dig into the glut of reviews below if you've got a cool grand with "chip upgrade" written on it -- you'll be glad you did. Read - Hot Hardware Read - AnandTech Read - Techgage Read - Computer Shopper Read - Bit-Tech Read - PC Perspective Read - Neoseeker Read - Hardcoreware Read - TweakTown Read - PC World Read - TechReport Read - Benchmark Reviews Read - Hardware Canucks Read - Overclockers Club Read - Hexus Read - Legit Reviews
