Samsung Galaxy J7 Pro review

Synthetic benchmarks

The Samsung Galaxy J7 Pro, just like the J7 (2017) is running on the Exynos 7870 chipset. While incredibly power-efficient, it's still the same chip as you'd get on last year's J7. We certainly wouldn't have minded getting the higher-grade Exynos 7880, which is utilized in the Galaxy A5 (2017).

While the 7870 chip has a decent octa-core Cortex-A53 processor clocked at 1.6GHz, its Mali-T830MP1 GPU maybe somewhat disappointing. This single-core Mali was perfect for the 720p screen on the J7 (2016), having twice as many pixels on the Pro model will probably be tougher on the GPU.

We kick off our benchmark inspection with some Geekbenching. Unsurprisingly, the Pro scores virtually identical numbers as its (2017) counterpart - decent numbers for the class, but behind phones with the Snapdragon 625 and Samsung's own newer Exynos 7880. The J7 Max (Helio P20) consistently outperforms the Pro in single-core scenarios and loses in multi-core.

GeekBench 4.1 (multi-core)

Higher is better

• Xiaomi Mi A1
  4292
• Xiaomi Mi 5X
  4225
• Moto G5S Plus
  4193
• HTC U11 Life
  4178
• Sony Xperia XA1 Plus
  3783
• Samsung Galaxy J7 (2017)
  3779
• Samsung Galaxy J7 Pro
  3768
• Samsung Galaxy J7 Max
  3509
• Nokia 6 (Global version)
  2841
• LG Q6
  2011

GeekBench 4.1 (single-core)

Higher is better

• Sony Xperia XA1 Plus
  901
• Samsung Galaxy J7 Max
  888
• Xiaomi Mi A1
  877
• Xiaomi Mi 5X
  868
• HTC U11 Life
  865
• Moto G5S Plus
  843
• Samsung Galaxy J7 Pro
  735
• Samsung Galaxy J7 (2017)
  734
• Nokia 6 (Global version)
  665
• LG Q6
  584

GeekBench 4 (multi-core)

Higher is better

• Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (Helio X20)
  4456
• Xiaomi Mi 5X
  4106
• Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017)
  4102
• Samsung Galaxy A5 (2017)
  3958
• Sony Xperia XA1 Plus
  3672
• Samsung Galaxy J7 Pro
  3414
• Samsung Galaxy J7 (2017)
  3388
• Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (S625)
  3011
• Samsung Galaxy J7 Max
  2964
• Nokia 6 (Global version)
  2739
• LG Q6
  1898
• HTC U11 Life
  1570

GeekBench 4 (single-core)

Higher is better

• Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (Helio X20)
  1546
• Sony Xperia XA1 Plus
  865
• Xiaomi Mi 5X
  846
• Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (S625)
  832
• Samsung Galaxy J7 Max
  819
• HTC U11 Life
  810
• Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017)
  776
• Samsung Galaxy A5 (2017)
  764
• Samsung Galaxy J7 Pro
  699
• Samsung Galaxy J7 (2017)
  693
• Nokia 6 (Global version)
  646
• LG Q6
  508

On to graphics-only tests. The Mali-T830MP1 in charge of the graphics department wasn't a big deal last year on a 720p display, so it's even less impressive twelve months later on more than twice as many pixels.

Offscreen or onscreen, the tests prove the GPU inside the J7 Pro is inferior to the competition and outdated. The same Mali, but with three cores and a faster clock speed does far better inside the Exynos 7880 within the Galaxy A5/A7 (2017).

GFX 3.0 Manhattan (1080p offscreen)

Higher is better

• Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (Helio X20)
  15
• Samsung Galaxy A5 (2017)
  15
• HTC U11 Life
  14
• Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017)
  14
• Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (S625)
  9.9
• Samsung Galaxy C7
  9.8
• Xiaomi Mi 5X
  9.8
• Moto G5S Plus
  9.8
• Motorola Moto Z2 Play
  9.8
• Xiaomi Mi A1
  9.8
• Sony Xperia XA1 Plus
  9.6
• Samsung Galaxy J7 Max
  9
• Nokia 6 (Global version)
  7.1
• LG Q6
  5.8
• Samsung Galaxy J7 (2017)
  5.1
• Samsung Galaxy J7 Pro
  5.1

GFX 3.0 Manhattan (onscreen)

Higher is better

• Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (Helio X20)
  15
• Samsung Galaxy A5 (2017)
  15
• Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017)
  15
• HTC U11 Life
  14
• Sony Xperia XA1 Plus
  10
• Moto G5S Plus
  10
• Motorola Moto Z2 Play
  10
• Xiaomi Mi 5X
  9.7
• Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (S625)
  9.7
• Xiaomi Mi A1
  9.7
• Samsung Galaxy C7
  9.6
• Samsung Galaxy J7 Max
  8.9
• Nokia 6 (Global version)
  7
• LG Q6
  5.3
• Samsung Galaxy J7 (2017)
  5.1
• Samsung Galaxy J7 Pro
  5.1

GFX 3.1 Manhattan (1080p offscreen)

Higher is better

• HTC U11 Life
  9.8
• Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (Helio X20)
  9.5
• Samsung Galaxy A5 (2017)
  9.1
• Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017)
  9.1
• Motorola Moto Z2 Play
  6.5
• Xiaomi Mi 5X
  6.4
• Xiaomi Mi A1
  6.4
• Moto G5S Plus
  6.4
• Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (S625)
  6.2
• Samsung Galaxy C7
  6.2
• Sony Xperia XA1 Plus
  6.2
• Samsung Galaxy J7 Max
  5.8
• Nokia 6 (Global version)
  4.6
• LG Q6
  3.8
• Samsung Galaxy J7 (2017)
  3.3
• Samsung Galaxy J7 Pro
  3.3

GFX 3.1 Manhattan (onscreen)

Higher is better

• HTC U11 Life
  9.5
• Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (Helio X20)
  9.4
• Samsung Galaxy A5 (2017)
  9
• Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017)
  9
• Motorola Moto Z2 Play
  6.9
• Moto G5S Plus
  6.8
• Sony Xperia XA1 Plus
  6.7
• Xiaomi Mi 5X
  6.3
• Xiaomi Mi A1
  6.3
• Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (S625)
  6.2
• Samsung Galaxy J7 Max
  6.2
• Samsung Galaxy C7
  6.1
• Nokia 6 (Global version)
  4.5
• LG Q6
  3.5
• Samsung Galaxy J7 (2017)
  3.3
• Samsung Galaxy J7 Pro
  3.3

GFX 3.1 Car scene (1080p offscreen)

Higher is better

• Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (Helio X20)
  5.4
• HTC U11 Life
  5.3
• Samsung Galaxy A5 (2017)
  5.2
• Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017)
  5.2
• Samsung Galaxy J7 Max
  4
• Sony Xperia XA1 Plus
  3.7
• Xiaomi Mi 5X
  3.5
• Motorola Moto Z2 Play
  3.5
• Xiaomi Mi A1
  3.5
• Moto G5S Plus
  3.4
• Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (S625)
  3.4
• Samsung Galaxy C7
  3.4
• Nokia 6 (Global version)
  2.5
• LG Q6
  2.1
• Samsung Galaxy J7 (2017)
  1.9
• Samsung Galaxy J7 Pro
  1.9

GFX 3.1 Car scene (onscreen)

Higher is better

• Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (Helio X20)
  5.4
• HTC U11 Life
  5.3
• Samsung Galaxy A5 (2017)
  5.2
• Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017)
  5.2
• Sony Xperia XA1 Plus
  4
• Samsung Galaxy J7 Max
  4
• Moto G5S Plus
  3.8
• Motorola Moto Z2 Play
  3.8
• Xiaomi Mi 5X
  3.5
• Xiaomi Mi A1
  3.5
• Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (S625)
  3.4
• Samsung Galaxy C7
  3.4
• Nokia 6 (Global version)
  2.5
• Samsung Galaxy J7 (2017)
  1.9
• LG Q6
  1.9
• Samsung Galaxy J7 Pro
  1.9

The J7 Pro takes some more beating in Basemark X, where it shares the last spot in this group with its close relative J7 (2017).

Basemark X

Higher is better

• Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017)
  14619
• HTC U11 Life
  14367
• Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (Helio X20)
  13666
• Moto G5S Plus
  10488
• Xiaomi Mi A1
  10472
• Motorola Moto Z2 Play
  10455
• Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (S625)
  10446
• Samsung Galaxy C7
  10445
• Xiaomi Mi 5X
  10403
• Sony Xperia XA1 Plus
  9543
• Samsung Galaxy J7 Max
  9034
• Nokia 6 (Global version)
  7516
• LG Q6
  6179
• Samsung Galaxy J7 Pro
  5497
• Samsung Galaxy J7 (2017)
  5489

With all components thrown into the mix, we look at Antutu and Basemark 2.0 for a gauge of overall performance. As you could guess after reading thus far, the J7 Pro is no pro and only manages to stay ahead of Snapdragon 430 devices like the Nokia 6 and LG Q6.

AnTuTu 6

Higher is better

• Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (Helio X20)
  85162
• HTC U11 Life
  72845
• Motorola Moto Z2 Play
  68322
• Moto G5S Plus
  64554
• Xiaomi Mi 5X
  63548
• Samsung Galaxy C7
  62818
• Xiaomi Mi A1
  61762
• Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (S625)
  61616
• Samsung Galaxy A5 (2017)
  61020
• Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017)
  60767
• Samsung Galaxy J7 Max
  57996
• Sony Xperia XA1 Plus
  55657
• Samsung Galaxy J7 Pro
  47920
• Nokia 6 (Global version)
  47495
• Samsung Galaxy J7 (2017)
  46822
• LG Q6
  37276

Basemark OS 2.0

Higher is better

• Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (Helio X20)
  1728
• Samsung Galaxy A5 (2017)
  1417
• HTC U11 Life
  1400
• Xiaomi Mi A1
  1262
• Xiaomi Mi 5X
  1246
• Samsung Galaxy C7
  1222
• Motorola Moto Z2 Play
  1213
• Sony Xperia XA1 Plus
  1198
• Moto G5S Plus
  1176
• Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (S625)
  1050
• Samsung Galaxy J7 Pro
  1038
• Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017)
  497
• Samsung Galaxy J7 Max
  379
• Samsung Galaxy J7 (2017)
  349
• LG Q6
  275

We didn't expect much from the Galaxy J7 Pro in the benchmark sessions after having already spent time with the J7 (2017). The focus wasn't on performance with this one - looks and power-efficiency is the Pro's game, and those things it does well. Not so much with performance.

The good news is, the dated chip was designed quite well. Despite the low scores, we can confirm that the Galaxy J7 Pro packs enough punch for gaming and while occasional hiccups do happen, especially in 3D games, they won't stop anyone from enjoying a good gaming session. Arcade games run better, of course. But throughout the UI, lag is almost non-existent.

Finally, thanks to the high-end 14nm manufacturing process, the Exynos 7870 runs cool and you won't experience the so-called hot spots during long gaming sessions.