I’m pretty sure you must have heard the name Snapdragon when talking about smartphones. Qualcomm’s Snapdragon chipsets have been the leading smartphone processors for years at this point.
Here we’re going to talk about two of their common processors -the Snapdragon 625 (MSM8953) and 626 (MSM8953 Pro). Both these processors have been widely used in budget smartphones across brands.
On paper, the newer Snapdragon 626 is not that much different from, the older 625. The 626 doesn’t really add much to the already versatile 625. There are minor upgrades though, read on to find out.
Snapdragon 626 vs Snapdragon 625
The following table compares the two processors over several parameters.
| Catagory | Snapdragon 626 | Snapdragon 625 |
|---|---|---|
| Node | 14 nm | 14 nm |
| CPU | Octa-core 64-bit ARM Cortex-A53 up to 2.2GHz | Octa-core 64-bit ARM Cortex – A53 up to 2.0GHz |
| GPU | Adreno 506 GPU: OpenGL ES 3.1, OpenCL 2.0 Full, DirectX 12, GPU Tessellation, Geometry Shading | Adreno 506 GPU: OpenGL ES 3.1, OpenCL 2.0 Full, DirectX 12, GPU Tessellation, Geometry Shading |
| Modem | Qualcomm Snapdragon X9 LTE modem | Qualcomm Snapdragon X9 LTE modem |
| Peak Download/Upload speed | 300 Mbps\150 Mbps | 300 Mbps\150 Mbps |
| DSP | Hexagon 546 DSP | Hexagon 546 DSP |
| Display | Primary Full HD 1080p 60fps UI | Primary Full HD 1080p 60fps UI |
| Audio | Qualcomm Aqstic audio technology.Dolby 5.1 support. | Qualcomm Aqstic audio technology.Dolby 5.1 support. |
| Security | Qualcomm Haven security suite | Qualcomm Haven security suite |
| Memory | Single Channel LPDDR3 up to 933 MHz | Single Channel LPDDR3 up to 933 MHz |
| Camera | Up to 13 MP dual camera, Up to 24 MP single camera, 2x Image Sensor Processor (ISP), enhanced autofocus. | Up to 13 MP dual camera, Up to 24 MP single camera, 2x Image Sensor Processor (ISP), enhanced autofocus. |
| Video | 4K@30fps HEVC capture and playback | 4K@30fps HEVC capture and playback |
| Bluetooth | Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) 4.2 | Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) 4.1 |
| WiFi | Integrated 11ac Wi-Fi + WCN3680B companion chip. 2×2 802.11ac with Mu-MIMO. Peak Speed: 364 Mbps | Integrated 11ac Wi-Fi + WCN3680B companion chip. 2×2 802.11ac with Mu-MIMO. Peak Speed: 364 Mbps |
| Charging | Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0 technology | Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0 technology |
The Snapdragon 626 and 625 were launched eight months apart, and apart from the 200Mhz clock speed boost, the only significant improvement is the inclusion of BLE4.2 in the former.
The slight clock speed boost makes the 626 about 10% faster than the 625. BLE 4.2 offers some benefits, but nothing too significant. The Snapdragon 626 also employs Qualcomm TruSignal antenna boost tech. The 626 is just an overclocked version of the 625 — somewhat justifying the ‘Pro’ moniker.
However, keeping in mind the advanced manufacturing process, power consumption and throttling should be better managed on the SD 625.
I compared my phone (SD 625) to a couple of my friend’s phones (SD 626) on real-world stuff like PUBG and ran some benchmark tests too.
The 626 almost always started throttling earlier than the 625. Keeping in mind that the 626 is basically the 625 overclocked in the same hardware configuration, and the same cooling solutions makes sense.
Also, the manufacturing process is more or less the same for both the processors. As smartphone companies push towards more performance in lesser budgets, we advance the technologies we use to build our phones, consequently getting relatively better, if not identical, performance out of lower or mid-end chips.
If you look closely enough, there isn’t much of a difference between the two. In fact, the clock speed is the only considerable difference. Most phones that use the SD626 still use BLE 4.1 either to keep costs down or simply because it is easier to implement.
Launching the SD626 was more of a marketing stunt pulled off by Qualcomm to put out a belief that there is a ‘new’ processor in the market.
So, when deciding between devices powered by these two processors, don’t really make the processor a defining parameter as you’ll get almost identical performance.
Snapdragon 626 (MSM8953 Pro)
- Node: 14nm
- CPU: Octa-core 64-bit ARM Cortex-A53 up to 2.2GHz
- GPU: Adreno 506 GPU: OpenGL ES 3.1, OpenCL 2.0 Full, DirectX 12, GPU Tessellation, Geometry Shading
- Modem: Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ X9 LTE modem
- Peak Download/Upload Speed: 300 Mbps\150 Mbps
- DSP: Hexagon 546 DSP
- Display: Primary Full HD 1080p 60fps UI
- Audio: Qualcomm Aqstic audio technology.Dolby 5.1 support.
- Security: Qualcomm Haven security suite
- Memory: Single Channel LPDDR3 up to 933 MHz
- Camera: Up to 13 MP dual camera, Up to 24 MP single camera, 2x Image Sensor Processor (ISP), enhanced autofocus.
- Video: 4K@30fps HEVC capture and playback
- Bluetooth: Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) 4.2
- WiFi: Integrated 11ac Wi-Fi + WCN3680B companion chip. 2×2 802.11ac with Mu-MIMO. Peak Speed: 364 Mbps
- Charging: Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0 technology
Snapdragon 625 (MSM8953)
- Node: 14nm
- CPU: Octa-core 64-bit ARM Cortex – A53 up to 2.0GHz
- GPU: Adreno 506 GPU: OpenGL ES 3.1, OpenCL 2.0 Full, DirectX 12, GPU Tessellation, Geometry Shading
- Modem: Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ X9 LTE modem
- Peak Download/Upload Speeds: 300 Mbps/150 Mbps
- DSP: Hexagon 546 DSP
- Display: Primary Full HD 1080p 60fps UI
- Audio: Qualcomm Aqstic audio technology. Dolby 5.1 support.
- Security: Qualcomm Haven security suite
- Memory: Single Channel LPDDR3 up to 933 MHz
- Camera: Up to 13 MP dual camera, Up to 24 MP single camera, 2x Image Sensor Processor (ISP), enhanced autofocus.
- Video: 4K@30fps HEVC capture and playback
- Bluetooth: Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) 4.1
- WiFi: Integrated 11ac Wi-Fi + WCN3680B companion chip. 2×2 802.11ac with Mu-MIMO. Peak Speed: 364 Mbps
- Charging: Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0 technology
