Apple and Android have been at war for more than a decade. And from the looks of it, the competition isn't going to end anytime soon. However, we often see one overpower the other and vice versa. But this week, Android's victory might make you reconsider your decision to buy an iPhone.
According to data collected by Ookla, Android devices, including those from Samsung, outperformed Apple devices like the iPhone X in download speeds, and by a wide margin.
Ookla, or you may know it by its popular website speedtest.net, compared the Intel XMM 7480 with the Qualcomm X20. The former is found in some Apple iOS devices and the latter is part of the Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 chip found in the latest flagship Android smartphones like the Samsung Galaxy S9 and the OnePlus 6.
According to Bloomberg of speed test data, the Samsung Galaxy S9 had a download speed of 38.9 Mb/s, while the iPhone X showed a speed of 29.7 Mb/s. Also, the iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus garnered speeds of 29.4 Mbps and 28.6 Mbps, respectively.
iPhone download speeds also varied across carriers. While Verizon iPhones averaged 31.5Mbps, Sprint iPhones averaged 25.1Mbps.
On the other hand, Samsung and Pixel devices showed average download speeds of 38.2 Mbps and 34.4 Mbps respectively.
This difference in speeds can act as a significant factor, given that all of these smartphones are at a similar price point.
For people who already own iPhones, there's no need to worry, as the difference in download speeds will only be noticeable when downloading huge files or streaming high-quality video. And it may not even affect their daily browsing.
