Skip to main content

Next-gen iPhone CPU could be 500x more powerful than the SoC in the original iPhone

Web Hosting & Remote IT Support
  • iPhone chip performance has improved 385x since 2007 launch, according to benchmarks
  • A17 and A18 chips in iPhone 16 models continue Apple’s efficient performance trend
  • Next-gen iPhone could push CPU performance past 500x original iPhone processor

A new investigation from PC Watch has compared the performance of Apple’s smartphone chips over time, and found the iPhone CPU has improved by 384.9x since the original model launched in 2007.

The analysis used Geekbench data to track performance across generations, estimating an average annual improvement rate of around 40%.

Based on that trajectory, the next-generation iPhone 17 Pro, expected later in 2025, could push that figure past the 500x mark.

More performance-focused

The original iPhone, which Steve Jobs launched back in 2007, was powered by a ARM11-based SoC from Samsung. That chip had a rated frequency of 620MHz but it actually ran at just 412MHz.

For the iPhone 3GS, released two years later, Apple went for a Cortex-A8 core Samsung CPU (APL0298C05) marking the beginnings of more performance-focused chip design.

In 2013, Apple launched the iPhone 5s, which was the first smartphone to ship with a 64-bit processor, the Apple A7 (Cyclone). The move nudged Apple ahead of the rest of the mobile industry at the time.

Apple’s design philosophy has long focused on balancing power with efficiency. While Android chipmakers embraced eight- and ten-core designs, Apple has stuck with six-core layouts since 2017, typically featuring two high-performance cores and four efficiency cores.

Despite that, Apple consistently ranks at or near the top in both single-threaded and multi-core performance.

2024’s iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro continued that approach. The standard models use the A17 Bionic chip, built on a 3nm process, and scored over 8100 on PC Watch's Geekbench 6 testing. The Pro models use the A18 Bionic, which achieved scores above 8500 and feature core clocks exceeding 4GHz.

For comparison, the iPhone 13 Pro Max from 2021 scored about 5700 in the same benchmark. That translates to a 50% improvement over three years.

The performance increases achieved by the various generations of iPhone from 2007 onwards is clearly huge, but there are caveats to the methodology used for testing. It’s important to note that the numbers include estimated conversions for the older iPhones which predate modern benchmarks.

You might also like



via Hosting & Support

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Microsoft, Google, and Meta have borrowed EV tech for the next big thing in data centers: 1MW watercooled racks

Web Hosting & Remote IT Support Liquid cooling isn't optional anymore, it's the only way to survive AI's thermal onslaught The jump to 400VDC borrows heavily from electric vehicle supply chains and design logic Google’s TPU supercomputers now run at gigawatt scale with 99.999% uptime As demand for artificial intelligence workloads intensifies, the physical infrastructure of data centers is undergoing rapid and radical transformation. The likes of Google, Microsoft, and Meta are now drawing on technologies initially developed for electric vehicles (EVs), particularly 400VDC systems, to address the dual challenges of high-density power delivery and thermal management. The emerging vision is of data center racks capable of delivering up to 1 megawatt of power, paired with liquid cooling systems engineered to manage the resulting heat. Borrowing EV technology for data center evolution The shift to 400VDC power distribution marks a decisive break from legacy sy...

When might Captain America: Brave New World be available to stream on Disney Plus?

Web Hosting & Remote IT Support Captain America: Brave New World has landed in theaters worldwide and I bet you're already wondering when it might debut on Disney Plus . Indeed, Marvel's latest movie has just taken flight in cinemas as of today (February 14), but, if you're not planning to watch it on the biggest screen possible, you'll want to know when it could come to Disney's primary streaming service. Right now, I can't tell you when it'll be released on one of the world's best streaming services . However, I can use some of its predecessors' Disney Plus launch dates to predict its arrival. Before you continue scrolling, though, read my Captain America: Brave New World review to see if it's worth watching, plus my Captain America: Brave New World hub and Captain America 4 cast and character guide for details on its cast, story, trailers, and more. When do we think Captain America 4 will debut on Disney Plus? You won...