Apple A15 Bionic (4-GPU) vs Intel Core i9-12900TE

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CPU comparison with benchmarks

-VS-

CPU lineage

Apple A15 Bionic (4-GPU) or Apple A15 Bionic (4-GPU) – which processor offers superior performance? In this comparison, we examine disparities and assess which of these two CPUs outperforms the other. We delve into technical specifications and benchmark outcomes.
The Apple A15 Bionic (4-GPU) features 6 processor cores and has the capability to manage 6 threads concurrently.
It was released in Q3/2021 and belongs to the 15 generation of the Apple A series series.
The Intel Core i9-12900TE features 16 processor cores and has the capability to manage 24 threads concurrently.
It was released in Q1/2022 and belongs to the 12 generation of the Intel Core i9 series.
To use the Intel Core i9-12900TE, you'll need a motherboard with a LGA 1700 socket.
Apple A15 Group Intel Core i 12000
15 Generation 12
Mobile Segment Desktop / Server
Apple A15 Bionic (4-GPU) Name Intel Core i9-12900TE
Apple A series Family Intel Core i9
 
 

CPU Cores and Base Frequency

The Apple A15 Bionic (4-GPU) has 6 CPU cores and can calculate 6 threads in parallel.
The clock frequency of the A-Core is 3.23 GHz.
The number of CPU cores greatly affects the speed of the processor and is an important performance indicator.
Processors with hybrid (big.LITTLE) architecture strike a balance between performance and power efficiency, making them ideal for mobile devices.
The Intel Core i9-12900TE has 16 CPU cores and can calculate 24 threads in parallel.
The clock frequency of the A-Core is 1.1 GHz.
6 Threads 24
2.02 GHz B-Core Frequency 1.0 GHz
6 CPU Cores 16
hybrid (big.LITTLE) Core architecture hybrid (big.LITTLE)
2x Avalanche Cores A 8x Golden Cove
No Hyperthreading Yes
3.23 GHz A-Core Frequency 1.1 GHz
None None 4.8 GHz
No Overclocking No
4x Blizzard Cores B 8x Gracemont
None None 3.6 GHz
 
 

Internal Graphics

The Apple A15 Bionic (4-GPU) has integrated graphics, called iGPU for short.
Specifically, the Apple A15 Bionic (4-GPU) uses the Apple A15 (4 GPU Cores), which has 1024 texture shaders
and 128 execution units.
The iGPU uses the system's main memory as graphics memory and sits on the processor's die.
The Intel Core i9-12900TE has integrated graphics, called iGPU for short.
Specifically, the Intel Core i9-12900TE uses the Intel UHD Graphics 770, which has 256 texture shaders
and 32 execution units.
1024 Shaders 256
Q3/2021 Release date Q4/2021
5 nm Technology 10 nm
-- Direct X 12
8.0 GB Max. GPU Memory 64.0 GB
-- Max. displays --
128 Execution units 32
0.6 GHz GPU frequency 0.3 GHz
12 Generation 11
-- GPU (Turbo) 1.55 GHz
Apple A15 (4 GPU Cores) GPU name Intel UHD Graphics 770
 
 

Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning

16 Neural cores @ 15.8 TOPS AI specifications --
Apple Neural Engine AI hardware --
 
 

Hardware codec support

A photo or video codec that is accelerated in hardware can greatly accelerate the working speed of a processor and extend the battery life of notebooks or smartphones when playing videos.
Decode / Encode VP8 Decode / Encode
Decode VC-1 Decode
Decode / Encode JPEG Decode / Encode
No AV1 Decode
Decode / Encode h265 / HEVC (8 bit) Decode / Encode
Decode AVC Decode / Encode
Decode / Encode h264 Decode / Encode
Decode / Encode VP9 Decode / Encode
Decode / Encode h265 / HEVC (10 bit) Decode / Encode
 
 

Memory & PCIe

The processor supports a maximum memory capacity of 6.0 GB distributed across 1 memory channels. It offers a peak memory bandwidth of 34.1 GB/s. Both the type and quantity of memory can have a substantial impact on the overall system performance.
The processor supports a maximum memory capacity of 128.0 GB distributed across 2 memory channels. It offers a peak memory bandwidth of 76.8 GB/s. Both the type and quantity of memory can have a substantial impact on the overall system performance.
pci PCIe pci
No AES-NI Yes
LPDDR4X-4266 Memory type DDR4-3200, DDR5-4800
No ECC Yes
6.0 GB Max. Memory 128.0 GB
1 Memory channels 2
34.1 GB/s Bandwidth 76.8 GB/s
 
 

Thermal Management

The processor has a thermal design power (TDP) of 8.5 W watts.
TDP indicates the cooling solution needed to effectively manage the processor's heat. It generally provides an approximate indication of the actual power consumption of the CPU itself.
The processor has a thermal design power (TDP) of 35 W watts.
None TDP (PL2) 106 W
8.5 W TDP (PL1 / PBP) 35 W
-- Tjunction max 100 °C
 
 

Technical details

The Apple A15 Bionic (4-GPU) is manufactured using a 5 nm process.
A smaller manufacturing process indicates a more contemporary and energy-efficient CPU.
In total, this processor boasts a generous 32.0 MB cache.
A substantial cache can significantly enhance the processor's performance, particularly in scenarios like gaming.
The Intel Core i9-12900TE is manufactured using a 10 nm process.
In total, this processor boasts a generous 30.0 MB cache.
Q3/2021 Release date Q1/2022
None Virtualization VT-x, VT-x EPT, VT-d
ISA extensions SSE4.1, SSE4.2, AVX2, AVX2+
5 nm Technology 10 nm
Chiplet Chip design Monolithic
-- Release price 494 $
A15 Architecture Alder Lake S
32.0 MB L3-Cache 30.0 MB
iOS Operating systems Windows 10, Linux, Windows 11
Technical data sheet Documents Technical data sheet
ARMv8-A64 (64 bit) Instruction set (ISA) x86-64 (64 bit)
-- Part Number --
Socket LGA 1700
16.0 MB L2-Cache 14.0 MB
 
 

Apple A15 Bionic (4-GPU) and Intel Core i9-12900TE in leaderboards