Apple A8X vs HiSilicon Kirin 980

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CPU comparison with benchmarks


Apple A8X CPU1 vs CPU2 HiSilicon Kirin 980
Apple A8X HiSilicon Kirin 980

CPU comparison

In this CPU comparison, we compare the Apple A8X and the HiSilicon Kirin 980 and use benchmarks to check which processor is faster.

We compare the Apple A8X 3 core processor released in Q3/2014 with the HiSilicon Kirin 980 which has 8 CPU cores and was introduced in Q4/2018.
Apple A series (22) Family HiSilicon Kirin (29)
Apple A8/A8X (2) CPU group HiSilicon Kirin 980 (2)
8 Generation 7
A8 Architecture Cortex-A76 / Cortex-A55
Mobile Segment Mobile
Apple A6X Predecessor --
Apple A9X Successor --

CPU Cores and Base Frequency

The Apple A8X is a 3 core processor with a clock frequency of 1.50 GHz. The processor can compute 3 threads at the same time. The HiSilicon Kirin 980 clocks with 2.60 GHz, has 8 CPU cores and can calculate 8 threads in parallel.

Apple A8X Characteristic HiSilicon Kirin 980
3 Cores 8
3 Threads 8
normal Core architecture hybrid (Prime / big.LITTLE)
No Hyperthreading No
No Overclocking ? No
1.50 GHz
3x Typhoon
A-Core 2.60 GHz
2x Cortex-A76
-- B-Core 1.92 GHz
2x Cortex-A76
-- C-Core 1.80 GHz
4x Cortex-A55

Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning

Processors with the support of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) can process many calculations, especially audio, image and video processing, much faster than classic processors. Algorithms for ML improve their performance the more data they have collected via software. ML tasks can be processed up to 10,000 times faster than with a classic processor.

Apple A8X Characteristic HiSilicon Kirin 980
-- AI hardware --
-- AI specifications --

Internal Graphics

Graphics (iGPU) integrated into the processor not only enable image output without having to rely on a dedicated graphics solution, but can also efficiently accelerate video playback.

Apple A8X GPU ARM Mali-G76 MP10
0.45 GHz GPU frequency 0.72 GHz
-- GPU (Turbo) --
5 GPU Generation Bifrost 3
20 nm Technology 7 nm
1 Max. displays 2
32 Compute units 10
256 Shader 160
No Hardware Raytracing No
No Frame Generation No
2 GB Max. GPU Memory 4 GB
-- DirectX Version 12

Hardware codec support

A photo or video codec that is accelerated in hardware can greatly accelerate the working speed of a processor and extend the battery life of notebooks or smartphones when playing videos.

Apple A8X GPU ARM Mali-G76 MP10
No Codec h265 / HEVC (8 bit) Decode / Encode
No Codec h265 / HEVC (10 bit) Decode / Encode
Decode Codec h264 Decode / Encode
No Codec VP9 Decode / Encode
No Codec VP8 Decode / Encode
No Codec AV1 No
Decode Codec AVC Decode / Encode
Decode Codec VC-1 Decode / Encode
Decode / Encode Codec JPEG Decode / Encode

Memory & PCIe

Up to 2 GB of memory in a maximum of 1 memory channels is supported by the Apple A8X, while the HiSilicon Kirin 980 supports a maximum of 8 GB of memory with a maximum memory bandwidth of -- enabled.

Apple A8X Characteristic HiSilicon Kirin 980
LPDDR3-1600 Memory LPDDR4X-2133
2 GB Max. Memory 8 GB
1 (Single Channel) Memory channels 4 (Quad Channel)
12.8 GB/s Max. Bandwidth --
No ECC No
2.00 MB L2 Cache --
4.00 MB L3 Cache 2.00 MB
-- PCIe version --
-- PCIe lanes --
-- PCIe Bandwidth --

Thermal Management

The Apple A8X has a TDP of 8 W. The TDP of the HiSilicon Kirin 980 is 6 W. System integrators use the TDP of the processor as a guide when dimensioning the cooling solution.

Apple A8X Characteristic HiSilicon Kirin 980
8 W TDP (PL1 / PBP) 6 W
-- TDP (PL2) --
-- TDP up --
-- TDP down --
-- Tjunction max. --

Technical details

The Apple A8X has 6.00 MB cache and is manufactured in 20 nm. The cache of HiSilicon Kirin 980 is at 2.00 MB. The processor is manufactured in 7 nm.

Apple A8X Characteristic HiSilicon Kirin 980
20 nm Technology 7 nm
Chiplet Chip design Chiplet
Armv8-A (64 bit) Instruction set (ISA) Armv8-A (64 bit)
-- ISA extensions --
-- Socket --
None Virtualization None
No AES-NI No
iOS Operating systems Android
Q3/2014 Release date Q4/2018
-- Release price --
show more data show more data


Rate these processors

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Average performance in benchmarks

⌀ Single core performance in 2 CPU benchmarks
⌀ Multi core performance in 2 CPU benchmarks

Geekbench 5, 64bit (Single-Core)

Geekbench 5 is a cross plattform benchmark that heavily uses the systems memory. A fast memory will push the result a lot. The single-core test only uses one CPU core, the amount of cores or hyperthreading ability doesn't count.
Apple A8X Apple A8X
3C 3T @ 1.50 GHz
386 (57%)
HiSilicon Kirin 980 HiSilicon Kirin 980
8C 8T @ 2.60 GHz
681 (100%)

Geekbench 5, 64bit (Multi-Core)

Geekbench 5 is a cross plattform benchmark that heavily uses the systems memory. A fast memory will push the result a lot. The multi-core test involves all CPU cores and taks a big advantage of hyperthreading.
Apple A8X Apple A8X
3C 3T @ 1.50 GHz
1075 (42%)
HiSilicon Kirin 980 HiSilicon Kirin 980
8C 8T @ 2.60 GHz
2576 (100%)

Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)

Geekbench 6 is a benchmark for modern computers, notebooks and smartphones. What is new is an optimized utilization of newer CPU architectures, e.g. based on the big.LITTLE concept and combining CPU cores of different sizes. The single-core benchmark only evaluates the performance of the fastest CPU core, the number of CPU cores in a processor is irrelevant here.
Apple A8X Apple A8X
3C 3T @ 1.50 GHz
427 (48%)
HiSilicon Kirin 980 HiSilicon Kirin 980
8C 8T @ 2.60 GHz
885 (100%)

Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)

Geekbench 6 is a benchmark for modern computers, notebooks and smartphones. What is new is an optimized utilization of newer CPU architectures, e.g. based on the big.LITTLE concept and combining CPU cores of different sizes. The multi-core benchmark evaluates the performance of all of the processor's CPU cores. Virtual thread improvements such as AMD SMT or Intel's Hyper-Threading have a positive impact on the benchmark result.
Apple A8X Apple A8X
3C 3T @ 1.50 GHz
959 (35%)
HiSilicon Kirin 980 HiSilicon Kirin 980
8C 8T @ 2.60 GHz
2778 (100%)

iGPU - FP32 Performance (Single-precision GFLOPS)

The theoretical computing performance of the internal graphics unit of the processor with simple accuracy (32 bit) in GFLOPS. GFLOPS indicates how many billion floating point operations the iGPU can perform per second.
Apple A8X Apple A8X
Apple A8X @ 0.45 GHz
230 (44%)
HiSilicon Kirin 980 HiSilicon Kirin 980
ARM Mali-G76 MP10 @ 0.72 GHz
520 (100%)

AnTuTu 8 Benchmark

The AnTuTu 8 Benchmark measures the performance of a SoC. AnTuTu benchmarks the CPU, GPU, Memory as well as the UX (User Experience) by simulating browser and app usage. AnTuTu can benchmark any ARM CPU that runs under Android or iOS. Devices may not be directly compareable if the benchmark has been performed under different operating systems.

In the AnTuTu 8 benchmark, the single-core performance of a processor is only slightly weighted. The evaluation consists of the multi-core performance of the processor, the speed of the RAM and the performance of the internal graphics.
Apple A8X Apple A8X
3C 3T @ 1.50 GHz
0 (0%)
HiSilicon Kirin 980 HiSilicon Kirin 980
8C 8T @ 2.60 GHz
412594 (100%)

Estimated results for PassMark CPU Mark

Some of the CPUs listed below have been benchmarked by CPU-monkey. However the majority of CPUs have not been tested and the results have been estimated by a CPU-monkey’s secret proprietary formula. As such they do not accurately reflect the actual Passmark CPU mark values and are not endorsed by PassMark Software Pty Ltd.
Apple A8X Apple A8X
3C 3T @ 1.50 GHz
2356 (100%)
HiSilicon Kirin 980 HiSilicon Kirin 980
8C 8T @ 2.60 GHz
0 (0%)

Devices using this processor

Apple A8X HiSilicon Kirin 980
Apple iPad Air 2 Huawei P30
Huawei P30 Pro
Huawei Honor 20
Huawei Honor 20 Pro
Huawei Mate 20
Huawei Mate 20 Pro
Huawei Nova 5T

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