Not just Samsung, almost all Android manufacturers fudge benchmarks

Not just Samsung, almost all Android manufacturers fudge benchmarks

Benchmark scores have traditionally been one of the key factors that help users understand the performance of devices. A new report by AnandTech, though, shows that almost every Android-based manufacturer artificially inflates the performances of their devices to reflect a higher score. The only manufacturers who do not seem to partake in this affair are Google and its subsidiary Motorola. The latest Android-based device that was found optimising its performances during tests was Samsung’s Galaxy Note 3. The phablet, according to Ars Technica, was found to have bumped up its performance by almost 20 percent. This was done using a special, high-powered CPU mode that comes into play when the device is running any popular benchmarking app. AnandTech, while looking at this, came up with a list of 13 prominent Android devices released this year to compare the tests that were tweaked to reflect a higher performance than normal.The list gathered some of the big names this year like the Note 3, the Galaxy S4, the HTC One, the Moto X and the new Nexus 7. The table, aptly titled “I can’t believe I have to make this table”, compared seven major benchmark tests that were conducted and which were cheated in. The list is particularly startling, because almost every manufacturer has been caught cheating on at least one benchmark. Samsung seems to pop up the most, with the Tab 3 having optimised its performance for two tests while the flagship Galaxy S4 has blotched three. The pride of place in the list, though, has to go to the Note 3, which has gamed a whooping six out of the seven tests.

Almost every Android OEM has been caught cheating in benchmark scores (Image credit: AnandTech)

And the company is definitely not alone. LG, HTC and Asus have also tweaked the benchmarked scores of their devices to a certain extent, according to the source. The Nexus devices are untainted because do not have the requisite benchmark fudging software in stock Android. Apple, which does not have any direct competition for its iOS devices, does not make use of optimised scores, either.

What does optimising a benchmark score entail exactly? Cheating devices come with a code written by the manufacturer and integrated with their version of Android that basically catches on when a benchmark app is being used. When detected, the device in question optimises all the cores of its processors to full speed to perform all the data processing required and thus show a score higher than otherwise.

While the device does not fake data per say, the resultant benchmark score is not an exact representation of how it will run in normal situations. Smartphones and tablets normally restrict the speed at which various cores run to save on battery life and prevent overheating. So the next time you feel like talking up your phone's benchmark scores, do check to see whether you may have to eat your words.

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