Qualcomm recently announced the Snapdragon 636 Mobile Platform and many upcoming midrange devices will be running on the same. It is quite similar to the Snapdragon 660 but has a few minor changes in form of GPU, CPU Clock speeds, and the RAM Frequency. This processor may get very popular due to the fact that it may not cost as high for the OEMs as the SD 660 because the CPU has a lower frequency. I’m expecting a lot of phones from brands like Xiaomi, Motorola, Lenovo, LG, and Nokia that will be powered by this processor.
It is significantly more powerful than the Snapdragon 630 and 625 due to the extremely powerful Kryo 260 Cores. The Kryo 260 cores are in fact semi-custom Cortex-A73 cores that pack a lot more power than the ARM Cortex-A72 cores of processors like Snapdragon 650, 652, and 653. Also, it is manufactured using the power efficient 14nm technique. So, we can conclude that its Performance is better than that of Snapdragon 630, 625, 653, 652, and the 650. In fact, it is so good that I couldn’t find a single disadvantage for writing down below.
- High Performance
- Battery Efficient
- Fast Modem
- Great for Gaming
- None
Specification
Specification
Name | Snapdragon 636 |
Brand | Qualcomm |
No. of Cores | 8 |
Core Configuration | 8x Kryo 260 @ 1.8 GHz |
Fabrication Technique | 14nm |
Graphics Processor | Adreno 509 |
RAM | Dual-Channel LPDDR4 |
Max RAM | 8GB |
RAM Frequency | 1333 MHz |
Fast Charging | Yes, Quick Charge 4 |
DSP | Hexagon 680 |
Max Resolution | Full HD+ (18:9) |
Modem | X12 LTE |
Max Download Speed | 600 Mbps |
VoLTE Support | Yes |
ISP | Spectra 160 |
Max Camera | 24MP |
Bluetooth Version | 5 |
AI Support | Yes via Snapdragon Neural Processing Engine |
Qualcomm announced this chip on October 17th 2017. It is an Octa-Core Processor with 8x Kryo 260 cores that can have a maximum clock frequency of 1.8 GHz. The Kryo 260 Cores deliver 40% higher performance than the ARM Cortex-A53 Cores of Snapdragon 630. Qualcomm has used the 14nm Fabrication technique to manufacture this chip and it has the new Adreno 509 GPU. Areno 509 delivers better gaming performance than the previous generation Adreno 508 and 506.
It has a Dual-Channel LPDDR4 RAM and a device powered by this processor can have maximum RAM of 8 Gigabytes. Snapdragon 636 supports Qualcomm QuickCharge 4 Technology which according to Qualcomm delivers up to five hours of battery life with just 5 minutes of charging. It supports Full HD+ Display Resolution for phones with an aspect ratio of 18:9. The Qualcomm’s X12 LTE Modem can deliver download speeds up to 600 Mbps and upload speeds up to 150 Mbps with VoLTE support. It has the Qualcomm’s Hexagon 680 Digital Signal Processor and the Spectra 160 Image Sensor Processor.
It also supports the latest Bluetooth 5 and the maximum camera can be of 24MP. Developers can optimize their apps using the Snapdragon Neural Processing Engine that supports Caffe and TensorFlow. For more detailed specification, visit the Qualcomm‘s official website.
Snapdragon 636 Benchmark
Snapdragon 636 Benchmark
As of now, no OEM has launched a device running on this processor. This article will be updated as soon as we perform the benchmark tests. But given the type of CPU cores and GPU used, we can predict a range in which the score will probably lie on.
Antutu Benchmark
As, it uses the same Kryo 260 cores as Snapdragon 660 but at a lower frequency, I estimate the Antutu score of this chip will be between 100,000 and 120,000.
GeekBench Score
The GeekBench Single-Core score is estimated to be around 1,500 while the Multi-Core score will be around 5,000.
Comparisons
Comparisons
Here are a few comparisons with other popular Snapdragon products.
vs Snapdragon 625 and 630
SD 636 has a much faster CPU, GPU, RAM, Modem and many other better features. It is way ahead of Snapdragon 625 and 630.
- Snapdragon 636
vs Snapdragon 425 and 435
These processors belongs to the Snapdragon 400 tier and their performance isn’t even as good as 625 or 630. To know more, check out this comparison: Snapdragon 435 vs 625.
- Snapdragon 636
vs Snapdragon 650 and 652
The Snapdragon 636 is more power efficient and has a faster CPU, Modem, and RAM as compared to 650 and 652.
- Snapdragon 636
vs Snapdragon 660
Both the processors have a similar specification but the Snapdragon 660 runs at a slightly higher CPU frequency and has a better GPU.
- Snapdragon 660
vs Snapdragon 821 and 835
Both SD 835 and 821 are flagships chips and they can outperform 636 in each and every aspect. Snapdragon 835 has the best CPU, GPU, and is manufactured using the best fabrication technique available as of now.
- Snapdragon 835
Snapdragon 636 Review
Snapdragon 636 Review
As of now, no brand has annoucned a amartphone running on this processor. So, I’ve only one option is to give my opinion on the basis of specification and the performance of Snapdragon 660 (as both chips are quite similar).
Daily-Life Performance
The high-performance Kryo 260 cores can perform any intensive task you throw at it. The phone will run incredibly fast and you will not observe any lags whatsoever. Trust me, in general use, you will not be able to differentiate between its performance to that of a flagship device.
Gaming Performance
The Adreno 509 is the successor of Adreno 508 and 506. Both its predecessors were excellent GPUs which were powerful enough to run every high-demanding game at 1080p at a high frame rate. So, obviously, I’ve similar expectations from the Adreno 509.
Power Efficiency
The 14nm Fabrication technology is extremely power efficient. This translates into better battery life and performance. Also, your smartphone will be less likely to heat while performing heavy tasks. There are many powerful processors like Snapdragon 810, 652, and 653 that suffer from this problem but SD 636 is not just powerful, it is extremely power efficient as well.
Other SOC Features
There are many other features that we cannot ignore. The Dual-Channel LPDDR4 RAM and the X12 LTE Modem is a great addition. Also, its great to see that it supports new technologies like the Bluetooth 5 and the Qualcomm Quick Charge 4. Another great feature is Snapdragon Neural Processing Engine for enhancing the performance of applications with Artificial Intelligence.
Ratings
Snapdragon 636
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Performance
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Gaming
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Power Efficiency
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Other SOC Features
Final Suggestions
Final Suggestions
Snapdragon 636 is the perfect chip that I would wish to power a midrange phone. And very soon, we will start to see the launch of phones running on this chipset. As a smartphone lover, it is good to see flagship grade performance and efficiency in midrange devices. Every time before suggesting a product, I tell the customers to go with their priorities. But here in this case, if you’re buying a phone powered with this processors and rest of the phone’s features are good enough, then choose it blindly.
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