Benchmark Suite
Comparing smartphone performance is a little more challenging than comparing PC components, since we have to find benchmarks that work across Windows Phone 8, Android, and iOS. Of the three, Windows Phone 8 has the lowest number of cross-platform testing apps, which makes sense when you consider its marketshare. Not only that, but particular phone models are sometimes incompatible with specific metrics, throwing yet another wrench in the pipe.
| CPU Core & System Tests | Rightware Basemark OS II Full |
|---|---|
| GPU Core & Graphics Tests | Rightware Basemark X 1.1 Full |
| Web Tests | Rightware Browsermark 2.0 |
| Futuremark Peacekeeper 2.0 | |
| Principled Technologies WebXPRT 2013 | |
| Display Measurements | Minimum & Maximum Brightness |
| Black Level | |
| Contrast Ratio | |
| Gamma | |
| Color Temperature | |
| sRGB & AdobeRGB Color Gamut Volume | |
| Battery Tests | Rightware Basemark OS II Full |
| Camera Tests | Rightware Basemark OS II Free |
Further complicating today's performance analysis, we test all of our smartphones at a calibrated 200 nits of screen brightness to ensure comparable battery life and display measurements. Unfortunately, Windows Phone 8 does not have an adjustable screen brightness slider; it is limited to three factory preset settings: low, medium, and high. To provide comparable battery life and display measurements, we had to test at those three brightness levels and use them to extrapolate a 200 nit calibrated result. It's not ideal, but it's the best possible method we have at our disposal.
Test System Specs
Despite these challenges, Tom's Hardware is all about objective measurements and we've done our absolute best to provide the most cross-platform tests for as many platforms and SoCs as possible.
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| Analysis | The first ever smartphone to win our Elite award. | ||||
| SoC | Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 (MSM8974VV) | Apple A7 | N/A | Samsung Exynos 5 Octa (5410) | Nvidia Tegra 4 (T114) |
| CPU Core | Qualcomm Krait 400 (4 Core) @ 2.15 GHz | Apple Cyclone (2 Core) @ 1.3 GHz | N/A | ARM Cortex-A15 (4 Core) @ 1.6 GHz + ARM Cortex-A7 (4 Core) @ 1.2 GHz | ARM Cortex-A15 (4 Core) @ 1.8 GHz |
| GPU Core | Qualcomm Adreno 330 (32 ALU) @ 450 MHz | Imagination PowerVR G6430 (4 Cluster) @ 200 MHz | N/A | Imagination PowerVR SGX544MP3 (3 Core) @ 532 MHz | Nvidia GeForce ULP (72 Core) @ 672 MHz |
| Memory | 2 GB LPDDR3 | 1 GB LPDDR3 | N/A | 2 GB LPDDR3 | 2 GB LPDDR3 |
| Display | 5-inch AMOLED @ 1920x1080 (441 PPI) | 4-inch IPS @ 1136x640 (326 PPI) | N/A | 5.1-inch IPS @ 1800x1080 (412 PPI) | 5-inch IPS @ 1920x1080 (441 PPI) |
| Battery | 2420 mAh (Non-removable) | 1560 mAh (Non-removable) | N/A | 2400 mAh (Non-removable) | 3050 mAh (Non-removable) |
| Storage | 32 GB | 16/32/64 GB | N/A | 16/32/64/128 GB | 16/64 GB |
| Optics | 20 MP 1/2.5-inch, 1.12um, AF, Dual-LED Flash | 8 MP, 1/3-inch, 1.5um, AF, HDR, Dual-LED Flash | N/A | 8 MP, 1.4um, AF, LED Flash | 13 MP, AF, HDR, Dual-LED Flash |
| Connectivity | Wi-Fi 802.11a/b/g/n/ac, Bluetooth 4.0, NFC, microUSB 2.0 | Wi-Fi 802.11a/b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.0, Lightning | N/A | Wi-Fi 802.11a/b/g/n, microUSB 2.0 (MHL) | Wi-Fi 802.11b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.0, microUSB 2.0 |
| Size | 137 x 71 x 9.8 mm, 167 g | 123.8 x 58.6 x 7.6 mm, 112 g | N/A | 139 x 71.9 x 9.1 mm, 143 g | 144 x 73.6 x 8.1 mm, 145 g |
The iPhone 5s represents ARM v8, Meizu's MX3 represents the Exynos 5 Octa, Xiaomi's Mi3 represents the Nvidia Tegra 4, Google's Nexus 5 represents Snapdragon 800 performance on Android, and the HTC 8x represents the previous generation of Windows Phone 8 device performance with a dual-core Snapdragon S4 Plus at 1.5 GHz.
| Device | SoC | CPU | GPU | RAM | Display | Operating System |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apple iPhone 5s | Apple A7 | Apple Cyclone (dual-core) @ 1.3 GHz | Imagination Technologies PowerVR G6430 (four-cluster) @ 200 MHz | 1 GB DDR3 | 4" IPS @ 1136x640 (326 PPI) | Apple iOS 7.1 |
| Google Nexus 5 | Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 (MSM8974AA) | Qualcomm Krait 400 (quad-core) @ 2.26 GHz | Qualcomm Adreno 330 (quad-core) @ 450 MHz | 2 GB DDR3 @ 800 MHz | 4.95" IPS @ 1920x1080 (445 PPI) | Google Android 4.4.4 (GPe w/GEL) |
| Meizu MX3 | Samsung Exynos 5 Octa (5410) | ARM Cortex-A15 (quad-core) @ 1.6 GHz ARM Cortex-A7 (quad-core) @ 1.2 GHz | Imagination Technologies PowerVR SGX544MP3 (triple-core) @ 532 MHz | 2 GB DDR3 | 5" IPS @ 1920x1080 (412 PPI) | Google Android 4.2.1 (FlymeOS 3.1.1) |
| Xiaomi Mi3 | Nvidia Tegra 4 (T114) | ARM Cortex-A15 (quad-core) @ 1.8 GHz | Nvidia GeForce ULP (72-core) @ 672 MHz | 2 GB DDR3 | 5" IPS @ 1920x1080 (441 PPI) | Google Android 4.2.1 (MIUI 4.1.24) |
| HTC 8x | Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Plus | Qualcomm Krait (dual-core) @ 1.5 GHz | Qualcomm Adreno 225 | 2 GB DDR2 | 4.5" AMOLED @ 1280x768 (342 PPI) | Microsoft Windows Phone 8 |
| Nokia Lumia Icon/930 | Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 (MSM8974VV) | Qualcomm Krait 400 (quad-core) @ 2.15 GHz | Qualcomm Adreno 330 @ 450 MHz | 2 GB DDR3 @ 800 MHz | 5" AMOLED @ 1920x1080 (441 PPI) | Microsoft Windows Phone 8 |
- Windows Phone Gets A New Flagship
- Design, Look, And Feel
- Windows Phone 8 And Nokia Software Tour
- Availability, Options, And Accessories
- Camera Features And Example Photos
- Microphones And Video
- Benchmark Suite, Methodology, And Test System Specs
- Results: System And Graphics Tests
- Results: Web And Battery Tests
- Results: Brightness, Black Level, Contrast Ratio, And Gamma
- Will The Icon Convert You From Android Or iOS?
Nokia Lumia Icon & Lumia 930 Review: Windows Phone, Premium : Read more
I'm surprised by the bloat. My 1020 (with Windows Phone 8.1) has 32GB, of which 29 is available, after O2's (slight) footprint.
You did not even mention one of the coolest and most useful features that this phone offers that no other on the market does.
The icon/930 comes with software that adapts every element on screen to the lighting conditions it is exposed to. Whether picture, text, or video it will analyze every pixel displayed and either lighten/darken/change contrast to make it perfectly view-able in any lighting condition.
I saw this feature in person against my own GS4 and an iPhone 5s and it absolutely annihilates the other phones. I took a picture with my own GS4, sent it to the other phones (iphone, nokia) and then compared side by side. In shade the picture was visible. In bright light both the GS4 and iPhone 5S the picture was washed out and darker parts not visible. The 930 software detected the light, analyzed the picture, and dynamically adjusted the picture to make it look the exact same in bright light as it did in the shade.
Hands down the coolest and most useful feature I have seen on a phone in the last couple of years.
Um, because Intel and MS are supposed to be attached at the hip? So, just because Intel isn't in the newest WP product, it's doomed? Surely that means nVidia is also screwed since their Tegra didn't make it into the 930.
Nearly every carrier puts it's logo on all its phones. Verizon is no different here.
The icon/930 comes with software that adapts every element on screen to the lighting conditions it is exposed to. Whether picture, text, or video it will analyze every pixel displayed and either lighten/darken/change contrast to make it perfectly view-able in any lighting condition.
This has been in most Lumia phones, and I'm a fan of it. The auto-brightness setting works very well regardless of the lighting situation you're in. My 925 is perfectly legible in just about any conditions.
(I had been using Lumia 920 before I returned to 808 PureView. I still have it for testing purposes)
Most of that is the OS itself.
My original post was wrong; on my 1020, there's 29 of the 32 available to start with, of which 2.82GB is taken up by the system. Assuming a couple of gigs of apps and data, that still seems a bit better than what you get on the Icon. I suppose the lack of O2 bloat on my phone is because I didn't get it directly from them, though had I done so, it would've been the 64GB version... :|
You are in for a treat then because they have enhanced it and it is even better for the 930.
They had a 920 and 925 on display there as well and while they did a decent job of auto adjusting it was 10x better on the 930. The representative said they reworked the software's algorithms to do a better job.
(I had been using Lumia 920 before I returned to 808 PureView. I still have it for testing purposes)
Most of that is the OS itself.
Android and iOs are like a graveyard of dead icons. If they font adapt, their fingerprint sensor, eye recognition and waterproofing wont be able to protect it.
In the case of this device: Perfectly smooth performance no matter what you do. You can forge the phone all the time and with how many apps you want, this thing will not slow down, compared to Android. Plus the scrolling is butter smooth. Flawless 100% of the time.
It's also easier and in my opinion more fun to use.
Also, like iOS, you can't screw you device installing/running too many apps.