Samsung Galaxy S 4 Benchmarks Nearly Twice as Fast as iPhone 5 - MacRumors
Skip to Content

Samsung Galaxy S 4 Benchmarks Nearly Twice as Fast as iPhone 5

by

Following last week's introduction of the Samsung Galaxy S4, Primate Labs has analyzed Geekbench 2 scores for the phone, comparing it to a number of other smartphones including the iPhone 5.

The analysis shows the new Samsung flagship is significantly faster than competing phones including the HTC One, and its predecessor, the Samsung Galaxy S3. However, the S3 also benchmarked faster than the iPhone 5.

Skitched 20130318 145500From John Poole's analysis:

The Samsung Galaxy S 4 is twice as fast as the Samsung Galaxy S 3. Given that the Samsung Galaxy S 3 is less than a year old, that's a remarkable achievement. I am amazed at how quickly smartphone technology is improving.

The Samsung Galaxy S 4 is also twice as fast as the Apple iPhone 5. Apple has improved performance dramatically in the past (there was 2.5x increase in performance from the iPhone 4S to the iPhone 5). Will they be able to make a similar improvement for the next iPhone?

Though the iPhone does benchmark somewhat slower than its competitors, Apple's close integration of software and hardware leads to significant performance gains that Android phones can't easily replicate.

Top Rated Comments

Risco Avatar
171 months ago
Android is a far less optimised system, it needs the faster CPU to give the same fluid user experience that iOS gives. Don't read too much in to it folks.
Score: 80 Votes (Like | Disagree)
chaos86 Avatar
171 months ago
Android is a far less optimised system, it needs the faster CPU to give the same fluid user experience that iOS gives. Don't read too much in to it folks.
As a developer, I can back this up. I made a web game that ran smoothly on an iPhone 4, averaging about 30fps, great on an iPhone 5 at 60fps, and like crap on the FOUR core Galaxy S3, at about 20fps.

Don't even get me started on the fact that I had to support Android all the way back to 2.3.3, and the Android Browser which has been modified by the various hardware makers (HTC, Samsung, etc) to break a few web standards we needed. I can't wait for the day when the whole world is on a late version of Chrome.
Score: 62 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Santabean2000 Avatar
171 months ago
That's impressive. On paper.
Score: 49 Votes (Like | Disagree)
MasterHowl Avatar
171 months ago
Bet it still lags when you scroll down a Wikipedia page...
Score: 41 Votes (Like | Disagree)
171 months ago
Wait a minute. Samsung Galaxy phone model from this year is faster than Apple's iPhone from last year?

WOW!
Score: 38 Votes (Like | Disagree)
171 months ago
Amazing

We want innovation not iteration !
And yet you're amazed by an iterative release
Score: 33 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

M5 Vision Pro Thumb 2

Apple Has Given Up on the Vision Pro After M5 Refresh Flop

Wednesday April 29, 2026 11:31 am PDT by
Apple has all but given up on the Vision Pro after the M5 model failed to revitalize interest in the device, MacRumors has learned. Apple updated the Vision Pro with a faster M5 chip and a more comfortable band in October 2025, but there were no other hardware changes, and consumers still weren't interested. The Vision Pro has been criticized for its high price tag and its uncomfortable...
app store monthly sub commitment

Apple Introduces App Store Monthly Subscriptions With 12-Month Commitment

Monday April 27, 2026 12:52 pm PDT by
Apple today announced the launch of a new subscription option for App Store developers: monthly subscriptions with a 12-month commitment. The new option allows developers to offer subscribers discounted pricing typically associated with an annual subscription but paid on a monthly basis to keep payments more affordable. This new payment option allows you to offer subscribers more affordable...
Four iPhone 18 Pro Colors Mock Feature

iPhone 18 Pro to Launch in September With These 10 New Features

Tuesday April 28, 2026 9:35 am PDT by
While the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max are not launching until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. It was initially reported that the iPhone 18 Pro models would have fully under-screen Face ID, with only a front camera visible in the top-left corner of the screen. However, the latest rumors indicate that only one Face ID component will be moved under the...