The smartphone gaming space has seen an unprecedented spike in the last few years. There was a time when bounce and Tetris were the best-considered games of all time but with time smartphone hardware has evolved and so does the games. Today, the audience has graphics-driven games like Call of Duty Mobile, Apex Legends Mobile, Asphalt 9 Legends, and more.
The bridge between PC or console gaming and mobile gaming is narrowing down. Several features which were only limited to high-end PCs or Consoles made their way to smartphones with advanced technology. One such feature that is the talk of the town these days is ray tracing technology. That’s right, Ray tracing on Mobile has become a reality in 2023.
Companies like Qualcomm and MediaTek have started launching processors that support ray tracing, which is another major step in the smartphone gaming revolution. Recently introduced Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 SoC comes with ray tracing support, and the same is the case with the MediaTek Dimensity 9200 chipset.
However, not many phones are on the market as of now that support ray tracing. If you are someone who is into smartphone gaming and wants to know which of the device support the same, then we have your back. Here we have created a list of all the smartphones that support ray tracing, irrespective of their launch status. But before getting on with the list, we will try to explain what ray tracing is and how it works in simple terms.
What is ray tracing in games?
In simple terms, ray tracing is a technique of graphics rendering that makes reflections, lights, and shadows in a game behave in a way similar to the real world. It works on an algorithm that traces and mimics the actual path of light. This will let the game developers do experiments with light reflection, refraction, and absorption and offer near to real experience to the gamers. Smartphones and processor-producing companies are already offering high-octane devices and chipsets, as ray tracing requires high computation power to work seamlessly. Qualcomm has mentioned that its ray-tracing tech works under 5W. This statement clearly suggests that the brand will not make any compromises in the thermal and efficiency department of the devices.
Impact of ray tracing on smartphone gaming
All the smartphone games that support ray tracing deliver minute details and high-end graphics as compared to the ones working on the non-ray tracing format. As of now, there are no games available that support ray tracing. However, both Qualcomm and MediaTek are closely working with game developers to create games that support the ray tracing algorithm. Qualcomm has already revealed that upcoming games like War Thunder Edge, Jutice Mobile, and a couple more will support ray tracing.
Best smartphones that support ray tracing
Apple iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro
iPhone 15 Pro comes with a new A17 Pro chipset that promises upgrades like ray tracing that Apple claims will make video games run smoother on the device. Games like Capcom’s Resident Evil Village and Resident Evil 4 will be available for the new iPhone 15 Pro Model.
A17 Pro chip with its GPU is the key to the device’s gaming performance. The chip offers mesh shading, which increases graphics performance by optimizing shader processing. The chip will have hardware-accelerated ray tracing that Apple says will allow some games to offer 30 frames per second to create a smoother, less stuttered gaming experience.
iPhone 15 with its A16 Bionic chipset also offers ray tracing capabilities.
Samsung Galaxy S23 series
The recently launched flagship series by Samsung, including three devices – Samsung Galaxy S23, Galaxy S23 Plus, and Galaxy S23 Ultra is all in to support ray tracing. The lineup works on the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 high-end chipset that can handle heavy games, even the ones that will be based on the principles of ray tracing. The series is available in the Indian market at a starting price of Rs 79,999.
iQOO 11 5G
iQOO has emerged as one of the most popular smartphone-producing brands in recent years. The latest flagship offering from the brand, iQOO 11 5G, also comes with ray tracing support. The device runs on the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 that promises to offer one of a kind gaming experience to the users along with ray tracing support. Apart from that, the device ships with features like an LTPO4 AMOLED display, 144Hz refresh rate, Android 13 operating system, Adreno 740 graphics processing unit (GPU), etc.
OnePlus 11 5G
OnePlus has always been a brand that stays a step ahead of other Android smartphone-producing companies. To maintain its level in the market and stay relevant in the smartphone gaming segment, the brand’s latest flagship, OnePlus 11 5G, comes with support for ray tracing. The best is powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 SoC paired with LPDDR5 RAM and USF 4.0 storage in the high-end variant. Other features of the handset include an LTPO3 Fluid AMOLED display, 120Hz refresh rate, highly optimized Oxygen OS 13, 80W fast charging support, and more.
Xiaomi 13
Xiaomi is not a brand that lags behind others when it comes to making their smartphones compatible with new tech. Same is the case with ray tracing support, as the company has already introduced a phone, Xiaomi 13, that is all set to take your gaming to the next level. The Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 processors work in the background of the smartphone, and it also has LPDDR5 type RAM and both UFS 3.1 (for the 128GB variant) and UFS 4.0 storage. Not only this, but the device also gets features like an OLED display with 1900 nits of peak brightness, MIUI 14 OS, stereo speakers, 120Hz refresh rate, 4500mAh battery, and 67W fast charging support.
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