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Futuremark Delists Samsung and HTC Android Devices for Cheating 3DMark
MojoKid writes "Benchmarks are serious business. Buying decisions are often made based on how well a product scores, which is why the press and analysts spend so much time putting new gadgets through their paces. However, benchmarks are only meaningful when there's a level playing field, and when companies try to 'game' the business of benchmarking, it's not only a form of cheating, it also bamboozles potential buyers who (rightfully) assume the numbers are supposed mean something. 3D graphics benchmark software developer Futuremark just 'delisted' a bunch of devices from its 3DMark benchmark results database because it suspects foul play is at hand. Of the devices listed, it appears Samsung and HTC in particular are indirectly being accused of cheating 3DMark for mobile devices. Delisted devices are stripped of their rank and scores. Futuremark didn't elaborate on which specific rule(s) these devices broke, but a look at the company's benchmarking policies reveals that hardware makers aren't allowed to make optimizations specific to 3DMark, nor are platforms allowed to detect the launch of the benchmark executable unless it's needed to enable multi-GPU and/or there's a known conflict that would prevent it from running."
The name is irrelevant
Not to Samsung phones! Which was kind of my point.
The combination of DRM key and code identifies to the OS the precise application and whether or not it's allowed to run
And anyone who has jailbroken a phone can easily re-sign an application bundle if they chose, renaming it or doing whatever else they like with it.
Or if you are compiling the benchmark yourself you just change what you like.
Apple need only boost applications according to a mathematical model
Yeah, you see that's called "compiler optimization" and applies to all applications, not just benchmarks.
Again, when you ship with a fast enough processor you don't need to waste time scanning for benchmarks.
Funny how iPhone battery falls 20-30% faster and the phone runs substantially hotter when running 'official' benchmark apps
Funny how I've never noticed that at all in my own testing. And in fact sometimes the system will get hot when playing commercial games.
Oh wait, it's not funny at all - you're an Apple-Hater AC so we know not to believe anything you post.
Apple betrayed by the only thing they can't control, the laws of physics.
That's funny because Apple seems to be the only smartphone maker paying attention to such laws, not building needlessly dense displays that suck power like a kid with a juice box.
"There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
When Apple brought out Retina Display, that was 100% FAN BLOODY TASTIC according to Apple fans. Absolutely the best thing EVAR, and PROOF Apple are "innovative" by making displays finer in resolution than any other smartphone.
Nokia didn't count, since they were ~12ppi lower resolution! SHUT UP!
But now resolution is higher than Retina Display, higher resolution and better pixel count is BAD. Which, yet again, PROVES Apple are BEST EVAR because they don't waste time trying to get uselessly higher resolutions!
7" tablets were too small when the iPad was only 10".
But when the iPad mini comes out at 7", it's the best size for many many tasks!
Phones were too big if they had a 4.3" screen. Until Apple brought out a bigger screen, then they had many uses!
And so on.
A benchmark measures the performance of a machine while under that particular benchmark.
Otherwise, it's pretty useless. No benchmark has been able to be used for comparison purposes for more than a few months after release (and things like this are re-released once a year or more). Even back in the days of Dhrystones and Whetstones and all that crap - at best it benchmarks one particular run of code, and that's it. And in terms of general performance, it can do no better than guess.
Fact is, if anyone buys because of a 10% increase in a certain benchmark they are an idiot, unless the code they want to run *IS* that benchmark (to all intents and purposes). This is why the best "benchmarks" are things like how many FPS you get in the game you want to play. Because then you'll know exactly how many FPS you'll get in the game you want to play...
We haven't had highly-determinstic computer systems in our PC's for many, many, many years. Caches, bus speeds, interactions, multi-processors, etc. all throw benchmarks in the bin. And everyone's use case is different. Personally, I'd prefer 8 2GHz cores to any other configuration you could imagine at the moment, other people will have different ideas.
Benchmarks are a waste of time. It's like having stupid logic questions on a job interview. All that gets you is people good at answering those stupid logic questions, not at the job, or at worst someone who *appears* good at answering those logic questions.
Benchmarks on smartphones? It makes even less sense. I'm more shocked that Samsung think that anyone gives a shit.
That's funny because Apple seems to be the only smartphone maker paying attention to such laws, not building needlessly dense displays that suck power like a kid with a juice box.
I bought the Nexus 5 which comes with premium 5" 1080P screen and is half the price of the bottom end iPhone. There are phones that come with similar screens to the iPhone like the Moto G for instance which is a sixth of the price of the iPhone.
Above 300 PPI, you are just wasting battery life and hurting performance to display pixels the human eye can't even resolve.
This is a myth often repeated by Apple fans, but Apple themselves offer you proof that it is not true. Find some screenshots taken from Retina displays and zoom in on the text. Notice how it is still anti-aliased? If the resolution was high enough to be impossible for the human eye to resolve there would be no need for anti-aliasing. I don't think you can turn it off in iOS but you can make an image on your computer with both and try viewing it on the phone.
The simple fact is that the human eye does not work the way you think it does. It is particularly good at picking out edges and uses spatial and temporal over-sampling to increase the effective resolution. It is an analogue sensor, not digital. I can see the different between a Retina display and a similarly sized 1080p display, even if you claim you can't. Then again I'm one of those super-human freaks who can see a difference between 1080 and 4k, despite needing to get another prescription in the next few months.
const int one = 65536; (Silvermoon, Texture.cs)
SJW, n: "Someone I don't like, and by the way I'm a fuckwit" - AC
Like Apple needs to cheat to compete with... who? Android competes with each other so there is a reason to be the fastest Android, but no one else is making iPhones, if you have the newest iPhone you have the fastest.
my karma will be here long after I'm gone
or go pick up your paycheck from samsung for astroturfing
my karma will be here long after I'm gone