Snapdragon 765G vs 855 vs 855+(Plus): What’s the Difference?

Oneplus Nord just became official a couple of days ago, and now people are wondering if Oneplus is returning to the upper mid-range segment of smartphones. At present, Oneplus Nord is only launching in selected markets like India and some other countries. Now, for the price of 25000 INR, Oneplus does make a case for itself with 30W fast charging, a 90Hz AMOLED panel, and a close to the flagship-level camera, but is it compromising a bit too much on performance? In that exact price range, we get other devices like the Redmi K20 Pro and Realme X3 that come with Snapdragon 855 and Snapdragon 855+. Does the Oneplus Nord justify its price tag of 25,000 with the Snapdragon 765G? Is the Redmi K20 Pro or Realme X3 still a better deal in terms of performance at this price? Let’s find out their differences.

Snapdragon 765G vs 855 vs 855+(Plus)

The 7 series Snapdragon processors from Qualcomm are reserved for the upper mid-range devices, while 8 series Snapdragon processors are mostly for flagship-level performance devices.

CPU:

Snapdragon 855, 855+ (Plus), and 765G processors are built on a 7mm manufacturing process, but the 765G comes with EUV, making it a bit more power efficient. However, in terms of core performance, the story is different.

The Snapdragon 765G comes with one Kryo 475 Cortex-A76 core clocked at 2.4 GHz, one Kryo 475 Cortex A-76 core clocked at 2.2 GHz, and six power-efficient Kryo 475 Cortex-A55 cores clocked at 1.8 GHz. In contrast, with the Snapdragon 855, we get one Kryo 485 Cortex-A76 core clocked at 2.84 GHz, three Kryo 485 Cortex-A76 core clocked at 2.4 GHz, and four power-efficient Kryo 485 Cortex-A55 cores clocked at 1.8 GHz. On the other hand, Snapdragon 855+ (Plus) is the overclocked version of Snapdragon 855 where prime core Kryo 485 Cortex-A76 is assigned to run at 2.96 GHz instead of 2.84 GHz.

So, with more mid-performing Cortex-A76, the Snapdragon 855 will perform better. But the Snapdragon 765G will be more power-efficient.

GPU:

The Snapdragon 765G has the Adreno 620 to handle graphics, and that too is an overclocked version of it since it is a G series processor from Qualcomm, with the G hinting towards gaming. But the overclocked Adreno 620 is still no match for the Adreno 640 that we get with the Snapdragon 855 and 855+ (Plus). It will perform better in every way, from frame rate to rendering.

SoC	CPU	GPU
Snapdragon 765G	1x Kryo 475 Prime (A76) @2.4GHz 1x Kryo 475 Gold (A76) @2.2GHz 6x Kryo 475 Silver (A55) @1.8GHz	Adreno 620
Snapdragon 855	1x Kryo 485 Gold (A76) @2.84GHz 3x Kryo 485 Gold (A76) @2.42GHz 4x Kryo 485 Silver (A55) @1.80GHz	Adreno 640 @ 585MHz
Snapdragon 855+ (Plus)	1x Kryo 485 Gold (A76) @2.96GHz 3x Kryo 485 Gold (A76) @2.42GHz 4x Kryo 485 Silver (A55) @1.80GHz	Adreno 640 @ 672MHz (estimated)

Connectivity:

The Snapdragon 765G does come with 5G built into the processor, while with the Snapdragon, we only get a 4G modem built into the chip. You can integrate an X50 5G modem with the Snapdragon 855 and 855+, but it depends on the smartphone manufacturer. However, with the Snapdragon 765G, you get 5G built-in.

Optics:

In the optics department, all three of them are pretty evenly matched, with support for a single 192MP camera or a dual 22MP setup. The Snapdragon 765G has the Spectra 355, while both the Snapdragon 855 and 855+ come with the Spectra 380. Regarding features and functionality, both are quite evenly matched here, too, as one has a feature that the other does not and vice versa.

Benchmark:

On Antutu, the Snapdragon 855 and 855+ scored 444945 points and 499811 points, respectively. On the other hand, the Snapdragon 765G only gets a score of just 317019 points. This does not mean that the 765G is a slouch. It just means that the Snapdragon 855 and its overclocked version 855+ are more powerful overall than the 765G.

Conclusion

Yes, the Snapdragon 765G is undoubtedly a very capable processor, but it is nowhere near the performance of the 2019 flagship chip, the Snapdragon 855 and 855+. In almost all aspects, the Snapdragon 855 and 855+ are better. So, if you are someone for whom performance is a priority and someone who is confused between the OnePlus Nord and a one-year-old flagship killer device, then going with the flagship killer is the better option. An upper mid-range processor is not powerful enough against just a one-year-old flagship processor.

But if you are looking for an overall device package with excellent software and hardware experience, then the OnePlus Nord makes sense, too. So, in the end, it boils down to your preference for how you use your smartphone.