The iPhone 7 is a Big Deal for Gamers

Another year, another iPhone release. As a self-professed iPhone addict, I’m always one to get a hold of Apple’s latest handsets on release day. Each year, the iPhone chip performance makes huge advancements over the previous generation. Not necessarily because Apple uses the most powerful chips available, but its tight integration between hardware and software allows for incredible performance boosts with every new release. With the iPhone 7, Apple is making some big promises for gamers.

Apple uses an in-house designed Ax-series chip in all its iOS devices. With the iPhone 7, Apple has developed an all new quad-core A10 Fusion chip, which uses an all-new architecture and allows two of the cores to execute “high-performance” tasks, while the other two are “high-efficiency” and perform their duties at 20% of the power that the other pair does. This had led Apple to boast ‘console level gaming’ on their latest flagship device. But what does this mean for the average mobile gamer?

Project-Scorpio

First, let’s look at how powerful the iPhone 7 really is. The latest handset is twice as fast as any Android phone you can buy, with a Geekbench score of 3,450 and 5,630 for its respective cores. Running at 2.33GHz, the Fusion chip score is a staggering 126% higher than the iPhone 6 from just two years ago. In fact, it is even faster than any MacBook Air ever made, including the 2015 model which runs an Intel Core i7.

For games, the iPhone 7 has been designed with gameplay in mind. The 64-bit Fusion chip is 50% graphically faster than the A9 chip from the iPhone 6s. Faster video playback and chip efficiency will see games such as Pokémon GO and Infinity Blade run at a higher performance with better stability. This will allow developers to take mobile gaming to the next level with an amazing degree of frame rate at their disposal. Apple previewed F1 2016 onstage at the launch, which is set to give gamers their first true feel for console-level gaming on an iPhone. iphone-7-plus-back-side-1024x531

In addition to incredible performance, Apple further engineered their haptic feedback engine to allow integration into gaming. This will allow a deeper engagement into games by supporting treble effects and subtle haptic feedback responses, creating a mobile equivalent to a vibrating controller on a console. The all new stereo speakers will also allow for a more immersive gaming experience.

The iPhone 7 with its new A10 Fusion chip takes gamers one step closer to achieving gaming integrity. No longer are mobile games put to shame by Xbox and PS4. Night Terrors, an upcoming crowdfunded iOS game, is said to be visually comparable to many console titles out today. With the growing popularity of gaming on the small screen, Apple’s focus on mobile gaming parity with the iPhone 7 is an exciting step forward for gamers.