The Dimensity 800 is one of the three chipsets with an integrated 5G modem MediaTek announced in the past few months, the other two being the Dimensity 1000L and the Dimensity 1000. The processor is designed for affordable 5G phones that don’t put a hole in the pocket. However, it is yet to appear in a phone though there are unconfirmed reports that it will surface in a Redmi phone first which may be the Redmi Note 9 Pro for China. So how powerful is the Dimensity 800 and is there a Snapdragon processor that matches it in performance?
Dimensity 800 specs
The Dimensity 800 is a 7nm processor just like the Dimensity 1000 and Dimensity 1000L. It has eight CPU cores arranged in the big.LITTLE configuration. So you get four Cortex A76 cores clocked at 2.0GHz and four Cortex-A55 cores clocked at 2.0GHz too.
For the GPU, it comes with Arm’s Mali-G57 MP4, but MediaTek has failed to disclose the clock speed. However, it is based on the Valhall architecture as the Mali-G77 used in premium chipsets.
Dimensity 800 vs Snapdragon 720G, Snapdragon 730, and Snapdragon 730G
Based on the CPU configuration of the Dimensity 800, we are looking at a chipset that beats the Snapdragon 720G, Snapdragon 730, and Snapdragon 730G in performance and efficiency.
All three Qualcomm chipsets are 8nm processors, unlike the Dimensity 800 which is a 7nm chip. MediaTek’s chipset also has the upper hand in terms of raw performance as it features four Cortex-A76 performance-based cores as against the aforementioned Qualcomm processors which have just two performance cores.
Dimensity 800 vs Snapdragon 765 and Snapdragon 765G
The Snapdragon chipsets that seem to match the Dimensity 800 in terms of performance are the Snapdragon 765 and Snapdragon 765G.
Just like the Dimensity 800, these two processors are 7nm chipsets and also have integrated 5G modems. However, their CPU configuration is a bit different. Rather than a 4+4 CPU core arrangement, the Snapdragon 765 and Snapdragon 765G use a 1+1+6 core arrangement. Technically, it is a 2+6 core arrangement as there are two Kryo 475 (based on Cortex-A76) cores and six Kryo 475 silver (based on Cortex-A55) cores. However, one of the Kryo 475 cores is clocked higher than the other.
- Snapdragon 765 – 1x 2.3GHz Kryo 475 Prime + 1x 2.2GHz Kryo 475 Gold + 6x 1.8GHz Kryo 475 Silver
- Snapdragon 765G – 1x 2.4GHz Kryo 475 Prime + 1x 2.2GHz Kryo 475 Gold + 6x 1.8GHz Kryo 475 Silver
The Snapdragon 765 duo both have higher clocked performance cores compared to those of the Dimensity 800 but let us not forget that the MediaTek chipset still has more performance cores and its efficiency cores are also clocked higher. It will be difficult to say which chipset is better overall until the are benchmark results comparing them together.
With respect to GPU, we might see the Dimensity 800 offer a close performance to the Snapdragon 765 and Snapdragon 765G Adreno 620’s GPU but we don’t expect it to be better. The Mali-G57 is built on the same architecture as the Mali-G77 inside the Dimensity 1000L and we already know the Mali-G77 is a more powerful GPU than the Adreno 620 thanks to this Master Lu comparison of the OPPO Reno3 5G and the Reno3 Pro 5G.
Conclusion
The Dimensity 800 is a pretty impressive chipset on paper and we look forward to seeing it in a commercially-available smartphone soon so we can experience its real-world performance. The chipset should be a game-changer as it is expected to bring 5G to devices priced under $300 which is the budget for a significant percentage of phone buyers.
It is also important to commend MediaTek’s new mid-range offerings but there are still several folks who have reservations about their processors. Hopefully, that changes as time goes on.
UP NEXT: Chip Battle: Snapdragon 730G vs Snapdragon 720G
