Hot take: Flagship chipsets are no longer necessary

25 October 2020
As we approached the limit of Moore's Law, it became apparent that any further advancement would come at a cost

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  • S
  • Sin
  • 3Hq
  • 11 Feb 2023

I don't see it the same way
Basically phone need better cooling systems simple as that

Mobile processor are still underpowered and modern software android versions are heavyer so they need more powerful chipset and more ram system resources hogging as well unfortunately

What we need is built-in active fan's for cooling too become standard for high end smartphones

Also we still don't have desktop class SSD grade SSD storage drives in smartphones
This upgrade of having a SSD boot drive for os too run off can't come soon enough

Also making a smartphone a little thicker so instead of having a 6000mah one could have a 7000mah or 8000mah battery

There is many benefits still on the table
Flagship are still miles better just means don't cheap out on cooling

    • k
    • kan
    • RxX
    • 01 Jun 2021

    right to a certain extent. But still small amount of users complaining sd 870 not as powerful as sd 888. And the cheap sd888 redmi k40 pro, sd870 Poco F3 are getting loads of praise

      • S
      • Sakr
      • gF5
      • 25 May 2021

      aReefer, 27 Oct 2020I'm going to come out and undermine my own comment in ... moreI totally agree here.

      I'm this type of person who buys a flagship and keeps it till the oem ends support to it. I still use an iphone 7 plus till now and it's pretty fast. I will stick to it till iOS 15. Battery life is average (max capacity 82%, never replaced the battery). Sure, all android midrangers are good and promising, but all I care about is sustainability and longevity since I won't afford buying a new phone every 2 years

        • ?
        • Anonymous
        • vxN
        • 27 Dec 2020

        I totally agree with the author on each point. There is no point having a powerful SOC in a phone that chews up battery life in a few hours under intensive use, they are mutually exclusive, a dead battery equals a temporarily bricked phone. Your phone could save your life one day, but only if it turns on! Personally, I find battery life, build, screen and camera performance are priorities, everything else is nice to have. Increasing demand put on a battery by a SOC also means the more frequently charge cycles occur, the useful life of the battery is compromised and hence also the handset, unless you’re happy to replace the battery and ditch the ip rating.

          [deleted post]maybe cause he's european, and that's why he couldn't care less
          and you call him ''pathetic'' when you're the one who doesn't know anything about the phones you say you own. i think there were like 3 flagships you said you own. sure you do

            • A
            • Andrew James
            • vcB
            • 03 Nov 2020

            Small mistake, the iPad Pro runs the A12z, not the A13z :)

              AnonD-765630, 27 Oct 2020Regardless of if you need power for games and apps what abo... morein other words, google did a mistake.
              but people still praise because it is google.

                • A
                • Arsani
                • fn%
                • 28 Oct 2020

                I agree with the author. When the ipad pro with A12z bionic was released its chip beat a lot of laptops. Now the A14 in the new iPhones is same power as A12z. This power is only needed for demanding gaming otherwise it is overkill. Midrange chips are more than enough and conserve battery life.

                  • A
                  • Anonymous
                  • f}I
                  • 28 Oct 2020

                  I think we are in peak

                    Anonymous, 28 Oct 2020Imagine spending 2x the price of a console and the same pri... moreYou're not gonna get a high end PC for £900, you're talking a few thousand for a high end PC.

                      émulation and games need more power

                        • ?
                        • Anonymous
                        • YWi
                        • 28 Oct 2020

                        Poco F1, which i fortunately own, was a poster boy for future phone sells, and a huge marketing ploy. I bought it at $300 when it was released in my country. But no way the phone at that price was profitable for xiaomi. I would agree that, Snapdragon 700 series phones are perfect for everyday use for 80% of the people.

                          • ?
                          • Anonymous
                          • Lxf
                          • 28 Oct 2020

                          Imagine spending 2x the price of a console and the same price as a highend PC to play cheap freemium games...

                            Not really. Weren't for the huge flagship prices around $800 or more, people would still be buying the best available. My S8+ is just $400-500. Adjusted for inflation and etc. but without drastically increased margins, flagship phones today should be around $600-700

                              • J
                              • J
                              • d@v
                              • 27 Oct 2020

                              "It's the major reason why Android has rarely had compact flagship smartphones."

                              Yeah, but Android rarely has ANY compact smartphones these days. Nokia's (not just Nokia's to be fair) non-flagship offerings are just huge. I bought a Sirocco because it was one of the smaller phones on the market (just 140mm). Hardware specs weren't that interesting to me...

                                • ?
                                • Anonymous
                                • YWi
                                • 27 Oct 2020

                                Poco F1, which i fortunately own, was a poster boy for future phone sells, and a huge marketing ploy. I bought it at $300 when it was released in my country. But no way the phone at that price was profitable for xiaomi. I would agree that, Snapdragon 700 series phones are perfect for everyday use for 80% of the people.

                                  • D
                                  • AnonD-765630
                                  • 0jM
                                  • 27 Oct 2020

                                  DragonNF, 25 Oct 2020Nice idea... let me take my playstation in my pocket with ... moreRegardless of if you need power for games and apps what about image Processing and speed of image handling?
                                  I would argue more people use phones for photos than anything else and having power to work that fast and give high results is better served on high end chips.

                                    • D
                                    • AnonD-765630
                                    • 0jM
                                    • 27 Oct 2020

                                    Anonymous, 25 Oct 2020except flagship phones actually get updates, both officiall... moreMy Mi 10 Pro flagship had hardly any updates. 😔
                                    My mate has October security patch on his Mi 9 T and I am stuck on August

                                      • ?
                                      • Anonymous
                                      • Ni0
                                      • 27 Oct 2020

                                      Android Authority, 27 Oct 2020There is no phone called the Samsung Note FE. Just cut it ... moreThe guy is a patent trrrrrrolllll on this site.
                                      Always bashing Samsung and Exynos yet never gave up his s10 and bought a new S20 fe.
                                      Claims to own iPhone 11 as well defending Apple mercilessly.
                                      Now is on a Xiaomi bashing spreed for their ads.
                                      The guy has been banned several times, which is why keep changing names from Lillllphhone, MrDddding, MrDonngg, and Now Mr Hong.

                                        [deleted post]Because you don't need the latest, that dosen't mean you have to force others to do what you do. Let others upgrade if they want to.