Should Apple Be Worried?

In the phone industry, it has become almost an undeniable fact that Apple silicon is not only superior in performance but also in efficiency compared to its counterparts. I mean, if you think about it, Apple really has one competitor when it comes to mobile chips and its Qualcomm; and they have never even been close to dethroning Apple's chips. It's almost a little embarrassing when you visit a site like GeekBench and find that Apple is mentioned about 30 times before you see a chip from Qualcomm.

This is one of the reasons why iOS has historically been superior to Android in terms of optimization and smoothness: Apple makes its own chips, its own phones, and forces its app developers to build their apps in ways that compliment its own architecture.

However, Apple seems to have lost its lead since Qualcomm dropped its latest Snapdragon 8 Elite chip. After way too many years, Qualcomm is finally outperforming Apple silicon and doing it efficiently as well. Where iPhones used to be the kings of battery life, now, Android sits on the throne.

The Chip That's Making Problems

The Snapdragon 8 Elite is Qualcomm's very own custom CPU, built on its Oryon framework. It is an 8-core, 3nm chipset that focuses on power, efficiency, and AI.

"Oh well, Apple is more secure than any Android!" Sure, maybe ten years ago. Now though, this new Snapdragon forces Androids to ramp up their security frameworks more than ever.

But the real question is: does it matter?

Does It?

What's the point of phone chips being bloatedly powerful if there is no use case for it? It is similar to Apple implementing their M chips on their iPads: there's absolutely no need. It's disingenuous to boast about your performance charts when your customer can't really benefit from it.

Regardless, does the average consumer even care or put into account performance these days? Most people simply just look for an iPhone, a budget phone, or their favorite Android. I don't even remember the last time someone asked if a phone performs well.

The truth seems to be that—like other industries—advancements in phone technology has officially flatlined as long as the contemporary software and formfactor practices are maintained.

So... Why Is Apple on Top Then?

All the big guys, including Apple and Samsung, are gradually losing market share, despite being the most powerful phones on the market. Consumers don't buy these phones because of performance but more so because of the brand image. Public perception is probably Apple and Samsung's sole selling factor at this point, not genuine advancement in technology.

Thus, with prices increasing and advancements diminishing, the average consumer will only buy what pleases their pocket, not what performs better on paper. Think about it, what is the heaviest activity you do on your phone? Texting? Consuming content? Editing a picture?

Let's face it. People want value not performance.