Apple A16 Bionic vs Apple M1 (7-GPU)

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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 M1 (7-GPU) features 8 processor cores and has the capability to manage 8 threads concurrently.
It was released in Q4/2020 and belongs to the 1 generation of the Apple M series series.
Mobile Segment Mobile
Apple A16 Bionic Name Apple M1 (7-GPU)
Apple A series Family Apple M series
16 Generation 1
Apple A16 Group Apple M1
 
 

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 M1 (7-GPU) has 8 CPU cores and can calculate 8 threads in parallel.
The clock frequency of the A-Core is 3.2 GHz.
2.02 GHz B-Core Frequency 2.06 GHz
3.46 GHz A-Core Frequency 3.2 GHz
4x Sawtooth Cores B 4x Icestorm
2x Everest Cores A 4x Firestorm
No Overclocking No
hybrid (big.LITTLE) Core architecture hybrid (big.LITTLE)
6 Threads 8
No Hyperthreading No
6 CPU Cores 8
 
 

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 M1 (7-GPU) has integrated graphics, called iGPU for short.
Specifically, the Apple M1 (7-GPU) uses the Apple M1 (7 Core), which has 896 texture shaders
and 112 execution units.
0.7 GHz GPU frequency 1.3 GHz
Q3/2022 Release date Q4/2020
-- Direct X --
Apple A16 (5 GPU Cores) GPU name Apple M1 (7 Core)
4 nm Technology 5 nm
-- Max. displays --
1280 Shaders 896
8.0 GB Max. GPU Memory 8.0 GB
160 Execution units 112
13 Generation 1
-- GPU (Turbo) --
 
 

Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning

16 Neural cores @ 17 TOPS AI specifications 16 Neural cores @ 11 TOPS
Apple Neural Engine AI hardware Apple Neural Engine
 
 

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 Decode
Decode VC-1 Decode
Decode / Encode VP9 Decode / Encode
Decode / Encode h265 / HEVC (10 bit) Decode / Encode
Decode / Encode h264 Decode / Encode
Decode / Encode VP8 Decode
Decode / Encode h265 / HEVC (8 bit) Decode / Encode
Decode / Encode JPEG Decode / Encode
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 16.0 GB distributed across 2 memory channels. It offers a peak memory bandwidth of 68.2 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 16.0 GB
pci PCIe pci
No AES-NI Yes
No ECC No
51.2 GB/s Bandwidth 68.2 GB/s
LPDDR5-6400 Memory type LPDDR4X-4266
 
 

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 15 W watts.
None TDP up 20 W
-- Tjunction max --
8.5 W TDP (PL1 / PBP) 15 W
None TDP down 10 W
 
 

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 M1 (7-GPU) is manufactured using a 5 nm process.
Q3/2022 Release date Q4/2020
-- Part Number APL 1102
20.0 MB L2-Cache 16.0 MB
None Virtualization Apple Virtualization Framework
ISA extensions Rosetta 2 x86-Emulation
Chiplet Chip design Chiplet
A16 Architecture M1
4 nm Technology 5 nm
Socket
iOS Operating systems macOS
-- Release price --
Technical data sheet Documents Technical data sheet
ARMv8-A64 (64 bit) Instruction set (ISA) ARMv8-A64 (64 bit)
24.0 MB L3-Cache 0 bytes
 
 

Apple A16 Bionic and Apple M1 (7-GPU) in leaderboards