Samsung Exynos 2200 with RDNA 2 GPU in standard

The editors have run test devices from the Samsung Galaxy S22 + and Galaxy S22 Ultra since today. Even before the start of the usual series of tests, the benchmarks provide a first impression of the performance of the new Exynos 2200 with RDNA 2 GPU. One thing is already certain: the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1’s GPU is much faster.

The European Galaxy S22 family has the Exynos 2200, while countries like the US will get the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1. The article for the January presentation gives all the details about the Exynos 2200. Here is a brief summary of the features.

Ray tracing and VRS for smartphones

As well as custom builds for game consoles like PlayStation 5 (test) or Xbox Series X | S, AMD is now also represented in smartphones with RDNA architecture 2. However, the new graphics unit is not allowed to call itself Radeon, instead it is called “Samsung Xclipse 920 GPU”. The GPU delivers features familiar from the desktop, including hardware-accelerated ray tracing and variable rate shading (VRS). Samsung has not been able to show concrete application examples of smartphone display either for ray tracing or VRS – the related applications are simply still missing. The benchmarks used so far do not provide any special tests for these new GPU functionality. According to Samsung, the GPU’s performance should be 17 percent higher on average compared to the Exynos 2100’s Mali-G78 MP14.

Xclipse 920 GPU with RDNA 2 in standard

In the first benchmark, GFXBench Aztec Ruins with an off-screen resolution of 1440p with Vulkan API, the Xclipse 920 on the Galaxy S22 Ultra achieves exactly the 17 percent that Samsung announced on the Exynos 2100 with Mali-G78 MP14. The Galaxy S22+, which is identical in terms of SoC, doesn’t quite come close to that value and ends up at 14 percent. Depending on the standard, the two new smartphones exchange positions with slight differences.

Adreno 730 delivers much more performance

However, the focus should be less on the Exynos 2100 and more on the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1, which is 44 percent ahead of the Samsung SoC with 49 instead of 34 fps. The editors were able to test the latest Snapdragon chip at the end of last year in a Qualcomm reference design, which is structurally nearly identical to a regular smartphone and runs with the normal SoC specs.

The Exynos 2200 runs by the same standard with a reduced off-screen resolution of 1080p and detail reduction with 25 to 26 percent more progress compared to its predecessor. However, Qualcomm once again shows the strengths of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 under Vulkan and again scores a 44 percent difference over Samsung.

OpenGL ES fits the Exynos 2200 a little better

OpenGL ES 3.1 is slightly better for the Xclipse 920 GPU and slightly worse for the first-generation Snapdragon 8 processor with Qualcomm “only” scoring 33 percent better results in the GFXBench Car Chase. The new SoC beats the Exynos 2100 by 13 percent. In GFXBench Manhattan with the same API, however, 43 percent is again on Qualcomm’s credit side.

3DMark also reveals significant differences

In 3DMark, the Exynos 2200 paints a very similar picture and always comes a clear distance behind the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1, which is used on US models of the Galaxy S22 family. But there is one exception. It affects OpenGL ES 3.0, which was not used for testing in GFXBench. The older API fits the Exynos 2200 very well, so the Xclipse 920 GPU is taking the lead for the first time. The Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 trails behind at 4 percent.

GPU Standards Under Constant Load

The editors also looked at behavior under continuous load with two of the three performance presets that can be selected in 3DMark Wild Life’s battery settings. The default is “optimized” and “Balances speed, battery and cooling efficiencyWith ‘high’ there is a preset for ‘.Process data faster when some apps are running slowAccording to Samsung, this mode consumes more battery power and leads to “maybe overheatingAccording to Samsung’s description, the “Maximum” mode is “Best for short-term use with heavy-duty applications“laid and”It drains the battery quickly and tends to generate heat“.

However, as Samsung notes in the same list, this setting has no effect on gaming. Accordingly, there were no deviations in the 20 cycles of 3DMark Wild Life. The performance of both smartphones declines gradually, but drops at about 62 percent of the original performance from around the 13th round. The Exynos 2200 ranks ahead of the Exynos 2100 but behind Google Tensor, behind the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1, and behind the two latest Apple SoCs from the iPhone 12 and iPhone 13 families.

The CPU works with standard ARM cores as expected

The new GPU is accompanied by a new ARM CPU that uses standard cores from the British developer after Samsung shut down custom counterfeiting in Texas. While the previous Exynos 2100 still uses the Cortex-X1, A78 and A55, Cortex-X2 with one core, Cortex-A710 with three cores, and Cortex-A510 with four cores are now in use. Samsung uses practically the same distribution of ARMv9 cores as in Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 1. Samsung is powering the new ARM cores at 2.8 GHz (X2), 2.5 GHz (A710), and 1.8 GHz (A510) and reports a 5 percent increase in performance Compared to the Exynos 2100 processor.

Geekbench gives the Exynos 2200 a 7 to 8 percent lead in single-core performance and up to 9 percent in multi-core performance, with the Galaxy S22+ only getting a 3 percent better value in the multi-core test. Samsung is tuning new cores more slowly than Qualcomm in its Snapdragon 8 Gen 1, which is why the gap can be easily explained, even though the components are nearly identical.

PCMark 3.0 runs a series of real-world tests that surf the web, edit images and video, write text, and analyze data from a variety of file formats using standard Android APIs. In this benchmark, the Exynos 2200 makes a small 3 percent lead over the Galaxy S21 Ultra’s Exynos 2100 (test). However, the measured value of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 again speaks in plain language with a 14 percent lead.

The browser benchmark in JetStream 2 still has to score with reservations, because both in Chrome and in Samsung’s own browser app, the Galaxy S22+ and S22 Ultra lag behind the Galaxy S21 Ultra. More improvements and firmware updates may be needed here. ComputerBase tested two Galaxy S22 models with build number SP1A.210812.016.S908BXXU1AVA7.

Initial conclusion

“This still needs improvementAMD’s first RDNA 2 GPU for smartphones is not yet a competitor to the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1’s Adreno 730. However, it is doubtful that new firmware and driver versions can increase of GPU performance by 40 percent, which will be necessary to catch up.With Qualcomm.The gap to the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 will be considered in isolation and not only particularly nice in terms of SoC, but especially annoying this time around. Is that Samsung is clearly introducing the Galaxy S22 family in certain markets such as the USA The GPU offers a more powerful chip It is not the first time European customers have lost out with the Exynos 2200.

Was this article interesting, helpful, or both? The editors are happy with any ComputerBase Pro support and broken ad blockers. More about ads on ComputerBase.