Apple A16 Bionic vs Apple A5

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CPU comparison with benchmarks

-VS-

CPU lineage

Apple A16 Bionic or Apple A16 Bionic – 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 A16 Bionic features 6 processor cores and has the capability to manage 6 threads concurrently.
It was released in Q3/2022 and belongs to the 16 generation of the Apple A series series.
The Apple A5 features 2 processor cores and has the capability to manage 2 threads concurrently.
It was released in Q1/2011 and belongs to the 5 generation of the Apple A series series.
Mobile Segment Mobile
Apple A16 Bionic Name Apple A5
Apple A series Family Apple A series
16 Generation 5
Apple A16 Group Apple A5/A5X
 
 

CPU Cores and Base Frequency

The Apple A16 Bionic has 6 CPU cores and can calculate 6 threads in parallel.
The clock frequency of the A-Core is 3.46 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 Apple A5 has 2 CPU cores and can calculate 2 threads in parallel.
The clock frequency of the Apple A5 is 1.0 GHz
2.02 GHz B-Core Frequency None
3.46 GHz A-Core Frequency None
4x Sawtooth Cores B None
2x Everest Cores A None
No Overclocking No
hybrid (big.LITTLE) Core architecture normal
None None 1.0 GHz
6 Threads 2
No Hyperthreading No
6 CPU Cores 2
None None 2x Cortex-A9
 
 

Internal Graphics

The Apple A16 Bionic has integrated graphics, called iGPU for short.
Specifically, the Apple A16 Bionic uses the Apple A16 (5 GPU Cores), which has 1280 texture shaders
and 160 execution units.
The iGPU uses the system's main memory as graphics memory and sits on the processor's die.
The Apple A5 has integrated graphics, called iGPU for short.
Specifically, the Apple A5 uses the PowerVR SGX543MP2 (2 Cores), which has 32 texture shaders
and 4 execution units.
0.7 GHz GPU frequency 0.2 GHz
Q3/2022 Release date Q1/2012
-- Direct X 10
Apple A16 (5 GPU Cores) GPU name PowerVR SGX543MP2 (2 Cores)
4 nm Technology 32 nm
-- Max. displays --
1280 Shaders 32
8.0 GB Max. GPU Memory 0 bytes
160 Execution units 4
13 Generation --
-- GPU (Turbo) --
 
 

Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning

16 Neural cores @ 17 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 AVC No
Decode VC-1 No
Decode / Encode VP9 No
Decode / Encode h265 / HEVC (10 bit) No
Decode / Encode h264 No
Decode / Encode VP8 No
Decode / Encode h265 / HEVC (8 bit) No
Decode / Encode JPEG No
No AV1 No
 
 

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 51.2 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 1.0 GB distributed across 2 memory channels. It offers a peak memory bandwidth of 6.4 GB/s. Both the type and quantity of memory can have a substantial impact on the overall system performance.
1 Memory channels 2
6.0 GB Max. Memory 1.0 GB
pci PCIe pci
No AES-NI No
No ECC No
51.2 GB/s Bandwidth 6.4 GB/s
LPDDR5-6400 Memory type LPDDR2-800
 
 

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.
-- Tjunction max --
8.5 W TDP (PL1 / PBP) None
 
 

Technical details

The Apple A16 Bionic is manufactured using a 4 nm process.
A smaller manufacturing process indicates a more contemporary and energy-efficient CPU.
In total, this processor boasts a generous 24.0 MB cache.
A substantial cache can significantly enhance the processor's performance, particularly in scenarios like gaming.
The Apple A5 is manufactured using a 32 nm process.
Q3/2022 Release date Q1/2011
-- Part Number APL 0498
20.0 MB L2-Cache 1.0 MB
None Virtualization None
ISA extensions
Chiplet Chip design Chiplet
A16 Architecture A5
4 nm Technology 32 nm
Socket
iOS Operating systems iOS
-- Release price --
Technical data sheet Documents Technical data sheet
ARMv8-A64 (64 bit) Instruction set (ISA) ARMv7-A32 (32 bit)
24.0 MB L3-Cache 0 bytes
 
 

Apple A16 Bionic and Apple A5 in leaderboards