Technical Glossary (1935 terms)

Standardized hardware and benchmark definitions across smartphones, laptops, CPUs, GPUs, SoCs, and tablets.

notification shade — The panel pulled down to view notifications and quick settings. [ SOFTWARE ]
object tracking — Following a moving subject to keep it in sharp focus. [ CAMERA ]
oleophobic coating — An oil-repelling coating that resists fingerprints. [ DISPLAY ]
on-cell touch — A touch layer deposited directly on the display glass rather than a separate sheet. [ DISPLAY ]
on-ear — Headphones that rest on the ears rather than around or inside them. [ AUDIO ]
onboarding — Onboarding is the initial setup and introduction to a device. [ GENERAL ]
one-hand mode — A mode that shifts the interface down for one-handed use. [ SOFTWARE ]
one-hand use — One-hand use is how easily a phone can be operated with one hand. [ GENERAL ]
open world — A game with a large, freely explorable environment. [ GAMING ]
optical zoom ratio — The magnification factor of a camera's optical zoom. [ CAMERA ]
ounce — An ounce is a unit of mass equal to about 28.35 grams. [ GENERAL ]
out-of-order execution — A CPU technique that reorders instructions to use idle execution units. [ CHIPS ]
outdoor visibility — How readable a screen stays in bright sunlight, set by peak brightness and reflectivity. [ DISPLAY ]
outlier — An outlier is a benchmark result that deviates from the norm. [ BENCHMARK ]
over-ear — Headphones that fully enclose the ears with large cups. [ AUDIO ]
overall score — A Overall score is a 0-100 DeviceBenchmark rating for that aspect of a device. [ GENERAL ]
overclocked memory — Memory run faster than its rated speed for extra performance, if stable. [ MEMORY ]
overprovisioning — Reserved SSD space used to manage wear and maintain performance. [ STORAGE ]
oxide TFT — A transistor backplane using oxide semiconductors for high refresh panels. [ DISPLAY ]
page size — The block size in which memory and storage are addressed by the system. [ MEMORY ]
panel — The display module itself, made up of the backlight (where present) and the pixel layer. [ DISPLAY ]
panorama — A wide image stitched together from several overlapping shots. [ CAMERA ]
panoramic — Relating to very wide photos captured by sweeping the camera. [ CAMERA ]
passive isolation — Blocking outside noise physically, without active electronics. [ AUDIO ]
passkey — A passwordless login using a device-held cryptographic key. [ SOFTWARE ]
password manager — Software that stores and fills passwords securely. [ SOFTWARE ]
path tracing — The most accurate form of ray tracing, simulating all light paths. [ GAMING ]
peak power — The maximum power a device or battery can deliver or accept for a short time. [ BATTERY ]
percentage — The remaining charge of a battery expressed from 0% to 100%. [ BATTERY ]
perf mode — A performance mode that favours frame rate over visual quality. [ GAMING ]
performance core — A large, fast CPU core that handles heavy workloads. [ CHIPS ]
performance in apps — Performance in apps is how smoothly everyday applications run. [ GENERAL ]
performance in games — Performance in games is how smoothly games run on a device. [ GENERAL ]
performance score — A Performance score is a 0-100 DeviceBenchmark rating for that aspect of a device. [ GENERAL ]
peripheral — A connected accessory such as a mouse, keyboard, or controller. [ GAMING ]
permission — Authorisation an app requests to access data or hardware. [ SOFTWARE ]
pet detection — Recognising pets to focus on them or apply effects. [ CAMERA ]
phablet — A phablet is a phone large enough to serve as a small tablet. [ GENERAL ]
photo detail — The amount of fine texture and sharpness a photo preserves. [ CAMERA ]
photo mode — A camera setting tuned for taking still photographs. [ CAMERA ]
photo resolution — The pixel dimensions of a captured still photo, such as 12MP. [ CAMERA ]
picture in picture — A small floating video window that keeps playing while you use other apps. [ SOFTWARE ]
ping — Ping is the network round-trip time to a game server, in milliseconds. [ GAMING ]
pipelining — A CPU design that overlaps instruction stages to improve throughput. [ CHIPS ]
pixel arrangement — The physical layout of the red, green, and blue sub-pixels that make up a display's pixels. [ DISPLAY ]
pixel binning — Combining adjacent pixels to improve low-light quality. [ CAMERA ]
pixel shader — A shader that computes the final colour of each pixel. [ GAMING ]
planar driver — A magnetic headphone driver known for detail and fast response. [ AUDIO ]
plastic back — A rear panel made of polymer; light but less premium. [ DURABILITY ]
pogo pin — A spring-loaded contact used for docks and accessories. [ PORTS ]