One of the most interesting chipset lineups Qualcomm has introduced recently is the Snapdragon 700 series. With the “premium mid-range” market being slowly established, the company needed a chipset that will suit that specific market. And with the announcement of Snapdragon 730 — a 2nd generation chipset — how far does it differ to the SD 710.
READ: Snapdragon 710 vs 712 – Which Midrange Processor Is Better?
Table of Contents
Snapdragon 730 vs Snapdragon 710 Specs Comparison — CPU, GPU, AI
| Specs | Snapdragon 710 | Snapdragon 730 |
| Process (node) | 10nm | 8nm |
| CPU | 8 x Qualcomm Kryo 360 CPU, up to 2.2 GHz | 8 x Qualcomm Kryo 470 CPU, up to 2.3 GHz |
| GPU | Qualcomm® Adreno™ 616 GPU | Qualcomm® Adreno™ 618 GPU |
| RAM | LPDDR4X | LPDDR4X |
| NPU | Single NPU | Single NPU |
| DSP | Hexagon 685 Vector | Hexagon 688 Vector |
| Image Signal Processor (ISP) | Qualcomm Spectra™ 250 image signal processor (Up to 16 MP dual camera, Up to 25 MP single camera)
Single Camera, Multi-frame Noise Reduction(MFNR) up to 48MP, Single Camera up to 192MP |
Qualcomm Spectra™ 350 image signal processor (Up to 22 MP dual camera, Up to 36 MP single camera) Single Camera, Multi-frame Noise Reduction(MFNR) up to 48MP, Single Camera up to 192MP |
| Bluetooth | 5.0 | 5.0 |
| Charging | Qualcomm® Quick Charge™ 4 technology | Qualcomm® Quick Charge™ 4+ technology |
| Modem | Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ X15 LTE modem, up to 800Mbps (DL) / 150Mbps (UL) | Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ X15 LTE modem, up to 800Mbps (DL) / 150Mbps (UL), Wi-FI 6 ready |
| Video Recording | 4k@30fps, FHD @ 120fps | 4K @ 30fps, up to 10-bit color depth, HEVC video capture |
| Display | 4K UHD | up to 4K UHD |
| Security | Fingerprint, Face, Voice | Fingerprint, Iris, Voice, Face |
Performance
Although the clock speed remains to be 2.2Ghz at best, the Snapdragon 730 does it better with a more efficient chipset thanks to its 8nm process node. As Qualcomm puts it, this provides 35% performance gain in 2 performance and 6 efficiency cores compared to the SD 710.
Camera
As for the camera, the usual spec bump is expected from the latest Spectra 350 image signal processor. Where you want to put your attention to is the new feature. SD 730 now supports HEVC video capture — the next generation video codec that captures better video quality at smaller file size.
Modem
In terms of internet connection, not a lot has changed. However, you do get the benefit of having a Wi-Fi 6 ready device. Once the latest Wi-Fi standard hits the mainstream, this should provide better signal reception from the modem that supports it.
Security
Interestingly, Qualcomm included iris as an option for security. Whether or not it’s going to materialize to mid-range phones with Snapdragon 730 is yet to be determined. With rumors that the Galaxy Note 10 ditching the iris scanner for an under-screen fingerprint scanner, we might see mid-range phones adopting iris scanning instead given face unlock has gain popularity already.
If you are planning to get a mid-range phone this year, best to wait for SD 730 phones. Aside from better performance, you are getting exclusive features, like Wi-Fi 6, HEVC video recording, and potentially iris scanning technology.
READ: Snapdragon 730, 730G, 665 launched as high-end midrange gaming and AI CPU
