Skip to main content

The Galaxy S24 could crush the iPhone 15 in a really big way

You may think it’s a bit early to start dreaming of the Galaxy S24, but the rumor mill would happily disagree with you. New details about the S24 recently surfaced online, and if they’re true, the phone could have a surprisingly big advantage over the iPhone 15.

Per a report from the Chinese social network Weibo, the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chipset is expected to have a 50% faster GPU compared to the one on the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 — the chip inside the Galaxy S23, Galaxy S23 Plus, and Galaxy S23 Ultra.

Why this is big news for the Galaxy S24

The back of the Galaxy S23 Ultra and iPhone 14 Pro.
Andy Boxall/Digital Trends

Okay, but what does any of that have to do with the Galaxy S24 and iPhone 15?

The GPU on the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 is already significantly faster than the GPU found on Apple’s A16 Bionic chip — what powers the iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Pro. The Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 is almost certainly what’ll power the Galaxy S24.

We expect Apple to make GPU improvements with the A17 Bionic chip we’ll likely get in the iPhone 15, but if Qualcomm has really achieved a 50% year-over-year performance boost, Apple will need to make significant upgrades this year. It’s not impossible for the company to step up its GPU game in a big way, but Qualcomm may be stretching its lead further than what Apple can keep up with.

This could be huge for Samsung

Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chip
Qualcomm

It’s also possible that the Galaxy S24’s GPU could be even faster than the 50% performance boost being reported. As part of its growing relationship with Qualcomm, all Galaxy S23 models feature a customized Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 for Galaxy chip. One of the benefits of that customized chip is a faster CPU clock speed — 3.36GHz vs. the 3.2GHz you get on other Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 phones.

Assuming this report on the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 is accurate, and assuming Samsung gets another “For Galaxy” chip next year, it’s not hard to imagine the Galaxy S24 dominating the iPhone 15 in the GPU department.

We still have plenty of time to wait before the Galaxy S24’s expected release in February of next year, but if this is how S24 rumors are kicking off, we aren’t complaining.

Editors' Recommendations

Joe Maring
Section Editor, Mobile
Joe Maring is the Section Editor for Digital Trends' Mobile team, leading the site's coverage for all things smartphones…
Samsung has a new (and cheaper) way to buy the Galaxy S23
Holding the Samsung Galaxy S23 with the display turned on.

While the Galaxy S24 is Samsung's latest and greatest phone, it’s a mostly iterative upgrade from the Galaxy S23. If you want to save money, you may have been thinking about purchasing a Galaxy S23 instead. Now, you can save even more because Samsung is adding the Galaxy S23 series to its Certified Re-Newed program.

With Samsung’s Certified Re-Newed program, Samsung extends the usable life of its most popular devices by refurbishing them. Phones sold through the Certified Re-Newed program undergo extensive testing, use genuine parts, and are assembled by Samsung engineers.

Read more
Why you should buy the iPhone 15 Pro instead of the iPhone 15 Pro Max
Natural Titanium iPhone 15 Pro with Chopper and BD-1 droids around it.

Apple releases multiple iPhones every year, offering folks choice in terms of size and features. In 2024, the iPhone 15 lineup includes four distinct models.

The regular iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus are great for those who don’t need a telephoto lens and don’t care about the Action button or the 1TB of storage. But anyone who wants a more “pro” experience has the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max.

Read more
iPhone SE 4: news, rumored price, release date, and more
The Apple iPhone SE (2022) and Apple iPhone SE (2020) together.

While the spotlight always seems to be on Apple’s mainline iPhones, the iPhone SE is a great pick for those who are on a budget. If you want an iPhone that doesn't break the bank, the SE is the way to go.

The original iPhone SE came out in 2016, and then Apple revamped it in 2020 and 2022 by giving it some more modern hardware. The iPhone SE tends to get updated every two or so years rather than annually like the traditional iPhone. This means  that we should see a new iPhone SE 4 this year, but it’s not so cut-and-dried with this particular model.

Read more