HiSilicon Kirin 980 vs HiSilicon Kirin 659

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CPU comparison with benchmarks

-VS-

CPU lineage

HiSilicon Kirin 980 or HiSilicon Kirin 980 – which processor offers superior performance? In this comparison, we examine disparities and assess which of these two CPUs outperforms the other. We delve into technical specifications and benchmark outcomes.
The HiSilicon Kirin 980 features 8 processor cores and has the capability to manage 8 threads concurrently.
It was released in Q4/2018 and belongs to the 7 generation of the HiSilicon Kirin series.
The HiSilicon Kirin 659 features 8 processor cores and has the capability to manage 8 threads concurrently.
It was released in Q2/2016 and belongs to the 4 generation of the HiSilicon Kirin series.
Mobile Segment Mobile
HiSilicon Kirin 980 Name HiSilicon Kirin 659
HiSilicon Kirin Family HiSilicon Kirin
7 Generation 4
HiSilicon Kirin 980 Group HiSilicon Kirin 650
 
 

CPU Cores and Base Frequency

The HiSilicon Kirin 980 has 8 CPU cores and can calculate 8 threads in parallel.
The clock frequency of the A-Core is 2.6 GHz.
The number of CPU cores greatly affects the speed of the processor and is an important performance indicator.
The HiSilicon Kirin 659 has 8 CPU cores and can calculate 8 threads in parallel.
The clock frequency of the A-Core is 2.36 GHz.
Processors with hybrid (big.LITTLE) architecture strike a balance between performance and power efficiency, making them ideal for mobile devices.
4x Cortex-A55 Cores C None
1.8 GHz C-Core Frequency None
1.92 GHz B-Core Frequency 1.7 GHz
2.6 GHz A-Core Frequency 2.36 GHz
2x Cortex-A76 Cores B 4x Cortex-A53
2x Cortex-A76 Cores A 4x Cortex-A53
No Overclocking No
hybrid (Prime / big.LITTLE) Core architecture hybrid (big.LITTLE)
8 Threads 8
No Hyperthreading No
8 CPU Cores 8
 
 

Internal Graphics

The HiSilicon Kirin 980 has integrated graphics, called iGPU for short.
Specifically, the HiSilicon Kirin 980 uses the ARM Mali-G76 MP10, which has 160 texture shaders
and 10 execution units.
The iGPU uses the system's main memory as graphics memory and sits on the processor's die.
The HiSilicon Kirin 659 has integrated graphics, called iGPU for short.
Specifically, the HiSilicon Kirin 659 uses the ARM Mali-T830 MP2, which has 32 texture shaders
and 2 execution units.
0.72 GHz GPU frequency 0.9 GHz
Q3/2018 Release date Q4/2015
12 Direct X 11
ARM Mali-G76 MP10 GPU name ARM Mali-T830 MP2
7 nm Technology 28 nm
-- Max. displays --
160 Shaders 32
4.0 GB Max. GPU Memory 0 bytes
10 Execution units 2
Bifrost 3 Generation Midgard 4
-- GPU (Turbo) --
 
 

Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning

-- AI specifications --
-- AI hardware --
 
 

Hardware codec support

A photo or video codec that is accelerated in hardware can greatly accelerate the working speed of a processor and extend the battery life of notebooks or smartphones when playing videos.
Decode / Encode AVC No
Decode / Encode VC-1 No
Decode / Encode VP9 No
Decode / Encode h265 / HEVC (10 bit) Decode
Decode / Encode h264 Decode / Encode
Decode / Encode VP8 Decode / Encode
Decode / Encode h265 / HEVC (8 bit) Decode / Encode
Decode / Encode JPEG Decode / Encode
No AV1 No
 
 

Memory & PCIe

4 Memory channels 2
8.0 GB Max. Memory 0 bytes
pci PCIe pci
No AES-NI No
No ECC No
-- Bandwidth --
LPDDR4X-2133 Memory type LPDDR3-933
 
 

Thermal Management

The processor has a thermal design power (TDP) of 6 W watts.
TDP indicates the cooling solution needed to effectively manage the processor's heat. It generally provides an approximate indication of the actual power consumption of the CPU itself.
-- Tjunction max --
6 W TDP (PL1 / PBP) None
 
 

Technical details

The HiSilicon Kirin 980 is manufactured using a 7 nm process.
A smaller manufacturing process indicates a more contemporary and energy-efficient CPU.
In total, this processor boasts a generous 2.0 MB cache.
A substantial cache can significantly enhance the processor's performance, particularly in scenarios like gaming.
The HiSilicon Kirin 659 is manufactured using a 16 nm process.
Q4/2018 Release date Q2/2016
-- Part Number --
0 bytes L2-Cache 0 bytes
None Virtualization None
ISA extensions
Chiplet Chip design Chiplet
Cortex-A76 / Cortex-A55 Architecture Cortex-A53 / Cortex-A53
7 nm Technology 16 nm
Socket
Android Operating systems Android
-- Release price --
Technical data sheet Documents Technical data sheet
ARMv8-A64 (64 bit) Instruction set (ISA) ARMv8-A64 (64 bit)
2.0 MB L3-Cache 0 bytes