How fast the iPhone 3GS’s 3D graphics capabilities? Based on Daniel Pasco’s some OpenGL ES speed test results for plasma on iPhone 3GS and an iPod touch, then John Casasanta, posted a few comparisons in 3D capabilities on iPhone 3G and 3GS. The result is: The 3GS is close to four times faster than the 3G!

As the video shows, in our OpenGL ES testing, the 3GS is generally close to four times faster than the 3G. Results will vary depending on the application but this is remarkable to say the least.

plasma’s pretty heavy on particle animation and fairly CPU intensive. The current build only uses features of OpenGL ES 1.1 and we’re considering taking advantage of some OpenGL ES 2.0 features for a richer experience on the iPhone 3GS.

As Daniel noted in his article, the graphics processing unit (GPU) in the 3GS is a PowerVR SGX, which seems to offer a very significant advantage over the PowerVR MBX Lite found in previous iPhone/iPod touch hardware. The GPU is likely where we’re gaining much of the improved performance in plasma. Increased RAM and cache sizes are also likely accounting for some of the better performance.

iPhone 3GS vs iPhone 3G 3D graphics test from IntoMobile on Vimeo.

[via TapTapTap blog]