HiSilicon Kirin 970 vs HiSilicon Kirin 9000 5G

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The HiSilicon Kirin 970 and HiSilicon Kirin 9000 5G are two processors with distinct specifications.

In terms of CPU cores and architecture, the HiSilicon Kirin 970 features a 4x 2.4 GHz Cortex-A73 and 4x 1.8 GHz Cortex-A53 architecture, whereas the HiSilicon Kirin 9000 5G boasts a more advanced configuration of 1x 3.13 GHz Cortex-A77, 3x 2.54 GHz Cortex-A77, and 4x 2.05 GHz Cortex-A55. The Kirin 9000 5G's architecture suggests improved performance and efficiency compared to the Kirin 970.

Both processors have 8 cores and utilize the ARMv8 instruction set. However, the Kirin 9000 5G employs the ARMv8.2-A instruction set, which indicates potential optimizations and enhancements over the Kirin 970's ARMv8-A instruction set.

In terms of fabrication process, the Kirin 970 features a 10 nm lithography, whereas the Kirin 9000 5G has a more advanced 5 nm lithography. The smaller lithography size in the Kirin 9000 5G implies a more power-efficient and potentially faster processor.

The number of transistors in the Kirin 970 is 5500 million, while the Kirin 9000 5G has a significantly higher transistor count of 15300 million. This suggests that the Kirin 9000 5G's design allows for a higher density of transistors, potentially leading to improved performance and capabilities.

Regarding thermal design power (TDP), the Kirin 970 has a TDP of 9 watts, whereas the Kirin 9000 5G has a lower TDP of 6 watts. A lower TDP generally indicates better power efficiency, which can result in a cooler and more energy-efficient device.

Both processors feature neural processing units (NPU) to enhance AI capabilities. The Kirin 970 utilizes the HiSilicon NPU, while the Kirin 9000 5G employs Ascend Lite (2x) + Ascend Tiny (1x) with Huawei's Da Vinci 2.0 architecture. While the specifics of each NPU may differ, both processors boast dedicated AI hardware for improved AI performance in tasks such as photography, voice recognition, and augmented reality.

In summary, the HiSilicon Kirin 9000 5G offers advancements over the Kirin 970 in terms of CPU cores and architecture, lithography, transistor count, TDP, and neural processing. These improvements suggest that the Kirin 9000 5G is a more powerful and efficient processor overall.

CPU cores and architecture

Architecture 4x 2.4 GHz – Cortex-A73
4x 1.8 GHz – Cortex-A53
1x 3.13 GHz – Cortex-A77
3x 2.54 GHz – Cortex-A77
4x 2.05 GHz – Cortex-A55
Number of cores 8 8
Instruction Set ARMv8-A ARMv8.2-A
Lithography 10 nm 5 nm
Number of transistors 5500 million 15300 million
TDP 9 Watt 6 Watt
Neural Processing HiSilicon NPU Ascend Lite (2x) + Ascend Tiny (1x), HUAWEI Da Vinci Architecture 2.0

Memory (RAM)

Max amount up to 8 GB up to 16 GB
Memory type LPDDR4 LPDDR5
Memory frequency 1866 MHz 2750 MHz
Memory-bus 4x16 bit 4x16 bit

Storage

Storage specification UFS 2.1 UFS 3.1

Graphics

GPU name Mali-G72 MP12 Mali-G78 MP24
GPU Architecture Bifrost Valhall
GPU frequency 750 MHz 760 MHz
Execution units 12 24
Shaders 192 384
DirectX 12 12
OpenCL API 2.0 2.1
OpenGL API ES 3.2
Vulkan API 1.0 1.2

Camera, Video, Display

Max screen resolution 2340x1080 3840x2160
Max camera resolution 1x 48MP, 2x 20MP
Max Video Capture 4K@30fps 4K@60fps
Video codec support H.264 (AVC)
H.265 (HEVC)
VP8
VP9
H.264 (AVC)
H.265 (HEVC)
VP8
VP9

Wireless

4G network Yes Yes
5G network Yes Yes
Peak Download Speed 1.2 Gbps 4.6 Gbps
Peak Upload Speed 0.15 Gbps 2.5 Gbps
Wi-Fi 5 (802.11ac) 6 (802.11ax)
Bluetooth 4.2 5.2
Satellite navigation BeiDou
GPS
Galileo
GLONASS
BeiDou
GPS
Galileo
GLONASS
NavIC

Supplemental Information

Launch Date 2017 September 2020 October
Partnumber Hi3670
Vertical Segment Mobiles Mobiles
Positioning Flagship Flagship

AnTuTu 10

Total Score
Kirin 970
318577
Kirin 9000 5G
762886

GeekBench 6 Single-Core

Score
Kirin 970
389
Kirin 9000 5G
1062

GeekBench 6 Multi-Core

Score
Kirin 970
1502
Kirin 9000 5G
3724