My Gadget Life – Dual Core Vs Single Core, Smartphones & Tablets

Very recently on a job, I was asked a very interesting question – “Is a dual core phone faster than a single core phone as I can’t decide which one to buy?”

Given the onslaught of various versions of Android smart phones in the market today and tablets based on Android OS, with varying hardware specs, I can understand the decision can be a little difficult to firm up.

Regarding dual core 1 GHz Vs single core 1 GHz which is faster, the answer is – “Yes and No”. More RAM (768 MB or 1 GB) is faster than less RAM (512 MB), the answer is – “Yes and No”.

Without adding to the confusion any further let me explain, the speed of a smartphone or a tablet is dependent on the most important factor – Software. Is the software capable of using dual core CPU’s full potential? Yes the dual core CPU can be faster than a single core CPU provided that multi-threaded Apps or Applications (software) can make use of the number of available cores in the CPU to process during application run-time operations.

Secondly, the speed of the software process is also dependent on the hardware architecture, for example LG Optimus 2x uses single channel architecture Vs LG Optimus 3D using dual channel architecture, in other words data transfer speeds within the hardware has 2 superhighways to pass/ exchange data.

Finally, having more RAM does not equate to faster speeds. Yes, RAM is essential for loading an application in the memory to run. For most Android hardware, I have personally experienced that 256MB of RAM is too less and slows the browsing speeds and page rendering. However, 512MB to 1GB is sufficient to run most Android applications. Having more RAM also adds CPU overheads, that is more work for CPU to manage space, read & write etc. Hence, there is an optimum level of “sweet zone” where the Android software and applications can run most efficiently. Therefor, when someone announces a smartphone with 768MB RAM is winner and not the one with 512MB; well that is misleading information, as both smartphones will work just fine as they have the RAM within the “sweet zone” for Android devices.

Internal storage (may vary from 1 GB to 4GB to 8GB, 16GB or 32 GB) is another factor to consider, and is  just a storage space and not RAM. It is similar to adding an inbuilt micro SD memory card.

To some up, use and feel the gadget if it is right for you, read user’s reviews giving due assessment to each user’s experience and level of expertise, don’t get sucked in by clear announcements on some tech websites which may read as, “The clear winner is…”, believe me when they say that, they have no idea how technology works. Android 3.0 Honeycomb is designed specifically for tablets. In my personal experience I found 7 inch tablets easier to hold and manage physically than larger 10 inch tablets. The tablets sits between my laptop and smartphone when I intend to do some social networking, plan to read an e-book or browse some e-magazines in Zinio (one of my favorite magazine reader). The smartphone of course has become an irreplaceable part of my ‘Life on the Go‘, calls/ communications, appointments, calendar, some navigation etc. Laptop has now become a more work oriented platform for heavier tasks in my techno life.

Good luck with your selections of gadgets.