HiSilicon Kirin 980 vs HiSilicon Kirin 985 5G

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The HiSilicon Kirin 980 and the HiSilicon Kirin 985 5G are two processors designed by HiSilicon Technologies Co., Ltd. While both processors share some similarities, they also have notable differences in their specifications.

Starting with the HiSilicon Kirin 980, it features an architecture comprised of two Cortex-A76 cores clocked at 2.6 GHz, two Cortex-A76 cores clocked at 1.92 GHz, and four Cortex-A55 cores clocked at 1.8 GHz. With a total of eight cores, this processor offers a variety of computing power for different tasks. The instruction set supported is ARMv8-A, and it boasts a 7 nm lithography, making it power-efficient. Additionally, the HiSilicon Kirin 980 incorporates the HiSilicon Dual Neural Processing Unit (NPU) for enhanced artificial intelligence capabilities.

On the other hand, the HiSilicon Kirin 985 5G features a slightly different architecture. It consists of one Cortex-A76 core clocked at 2.58 GHz, three Cortex-A76 cores clocked at 2.4 GHz, and four Cortex-A55 cores clocked at 1.84 GHz. Similar to the Kirin 980, it has eight cores in total, allowing for multitasking and efficient performance. The instruction set has been upgraded to ARMv8.2-A, which may provide some performance improvements. Like the Kirin 980, the Kirin 985 5G also employs a 7 nm lithography process for power efficiency. In terms of neural processing, it incorporates the Ascend D110 Lite and Ascend D100 Tiny, utilizing the HUAWEI Da Vinci Architecture.

Both processors have a thermal design power (TDP) of 6 Watts, indicating their power efficiency. This is crucial as it allows for longer battery life and reduced heat generation in devices. Furthermore, the 7 nm lithography allows for better energy efficiency as it minimizes power leakage.

In summary, the HiSilicon Kirin 980 and the HiSilicon Kirin 985 5G are both powerful processors with similar TDP and lithography specifications. However, the Kirin 980 employs the HiSilicon Dual NPU, while the Kirin 985 5G incorporates the Ascend D110 Lite and Ascend D100 Tiny with the HUAWEI Da Vinci Architecture for enhanced neural processing capabilities. These processors cater to devices with various computing needs and can offer efficient performance paired with power-saving benefits.

CPU cores and architecture

Architecture 2x 2.6 GHz – Cortex-A76
2x 1.92 GHz – Cortex-A76
4x 1.8 GHz – Cortex-A55
1x 2.58 GHz – Cortex-A76
3x 2.4 GHz – Cortex-A76
4x 1.84 GHz – Cortex-A55
Number of cores 8 8
Instruction Set ARMv8-A ARMv8.2-A
Lithography 7 nm 7 nm
Number of transistors 6900 million
TDP 6 Watt 6 Watt
Neural Processing HiSilicon Dual NPU Ascend D110 Lite + Ascend D100 Tiny, HUAWEI Da Vinci Architecture

Memory (RAM)

Max amount up to 8 GB up to 12 GB
Memory type LPDDR4X LPDDR4X
Memory frequency 2133 MHz 2133 MHz
Memory-bus 4x16 bit 4x16 bit

Storage

Storage specification UFS 2.1 UFS 3.0

Graphics

GPU name Mali-G76 MP10 Mali-G77 MP8
GPU Architecture Bifrost Valhall
GPU frequency 720 MHz 700 MHz
Execution units 10 8
Shaders 160 128
DirectX 12 12
OpenCL API 2.1 2.1
OpenGL API ES 3.2 ES 3.2
Vulkan API 1.2 1.2

Camera, Video, Display

Max screen resolution 3120x1440 3120x1440
Max camera resolution 1x 48MP, 2x 32MP 1x 48MP, 2x 20MP
Max Video Capture 4K@30fps 4K@30fp
Video codec support AV1
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 1.4 Gbps 1.4 Gbps
Peak Upload Speed 0.2 Gbps 0.2 Gbps
Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax) 5 (802.11ac)
Bluetooth 5.0 5.0
Satellite navigation BeiDou
GPS
Galileo
GLONASS
BeiDou
GPS
Galileo
GLONASS

Supplemental Information

Launch Date 2018 Quarter 4 2020 Quarter 2
Partnumber Hi6290
Vertical Segment Mobiles Mobiles
Positioning Flagship Mid-end

AnTuTu 10

Total Score
Kirin 980
484026
Kirin 985 5G
467882

GeekBench 6 Single-Core

Score
Kirin 980
698
Kirin 985 5G
699

GeekBench 6 Multi-Core

Score
Kirin 980
2482
Kirin 985 5G
2593