Apple A16 Bionic vs Intel Core i9-12900KS

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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 Intel Core i9-12900KS features 16 processor cores and has the capability to manage 24 threads concurrently.
It was released in Q2/2022 and belongs to the 12 generation of the Intel Core i9 series.
To use the Intel Core i9-12900KS, you'll need a motherboard with a LGA 1700 socket.
Mobile Segment Desktop / Server
Apple A16 Bionic Name Intel Core i9-12900KS
Apple A series Family Intel Core i9
16 Generation 12
Apple A16 Group Intel Core i 12000
 
 

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 Intel Core i9-12900KS has 16 CPU cores and can calculate 24 threads in parallel.
The clock frequency of the A-Core is 3.4 GHz.
None None 5.5 GHz
2.02 GHz B-Core Frequency 2.5 GHz
3.46 GHz A-Core Frequency 3.4 GHz
4x Sawtooth Cores B 8x Gracemont
2x Everest Cores A 8x Golden Cove
No Overclocking Yes
hybrid (big.LITTLE) Core architecture hybrid (big.LITTLE)
None None 4.0 GHz
6 Threads 24
No Hyperthreading Yes
6 CPU Cores 16
 
 

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 Intel Core i9-12900KS has integrated graphics, called iGPU for short.
Specifically, the Intel Core i9-12900KS uses the Intel UHD Graphics 770, which has 256 texture shaders
and 32 execution units.
0.7 GHz GPU frequency 0.3 GHz
Q3/2022 Release date Q4/2021
-- Direct X 12
Apple A16 (5 GPU Cores) GPU name Intel UHD Graphics 770
4 nm Technology 10 nm
-- Max. displays --
1280 Shaders 256
8.0 GB Max. GPU Memory 64.0 GB
160 Execution units 32
13 Generation 11
-- GPU (Turbo) 1.55 GHz
 
 

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 Decode / Encode
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 / Encode
Decode / Encode h265 / HEVC (8 bit) Decode / Encode
Decode / Encode JPEG Decode / Encode
No AV1 Decode
 
 

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 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.
1 Memory channels 2
6.0 GB Max. Memory 128.0 GB
pci PCIe pci
No AES-NI Yes
No ECC Yes
51.2 GB/s Bandwidth 76.8 GB/s
LPDDR5-6400 Memory type DDR4-3200, DDR5-4800
 
 

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 150 W watts.
-- Tjunction max 90 °C
None TDP (PL2) 241 W
8.5 W TDP (PL1 / PBP) 150 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 Intel Core i9-12900KS is manufactured using a 10 nm process.
In total, this processor boasts a generous 30.0 MB cache.
Q3/2022 Release date Q2/2022
-- Part Number --
20.0 MB L2-Cache 14.0 MB
None Virtualization VT-x, VT-x EPT, VT-d
ISA extensions SSE4.1, SSE4.2, AVX2, AVX2+
Chiplet Chip design Monolithic
A16 Architecture Alder Lake S
4 nm Technology 10 nm
Socket LGA 1700
iOS Operating systems Windows 10, Linux, Windows 11
-- Release price 749 $
Technical data sheet Documents Technical data sheet
ARMv8-A64 (64 bit) Instruction set (ISA) x86-64 (64 bit)
24.0 MB L3-Cache 30.0 MB
 
 

Benchmarks

AnTuTu 9 Benchmark

Apple A16 Bionic
6C 6T @ 3.46 GHz
947502
947502

Geekbench 5, 64bit (Multi-Core)

Intel Core i9-12900KS
16C 24T @ 3.4 GHz
19010
19010
Apple A16 Bionic
6C 6T @ 3.46 GHz
5465
5465

Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)

Intel Core i9-12900KS
16C 24T @ 3.4 GHz
16455
16455
Apple A16 Bionic
6C 6T @ 3.46 GHz
6299
6299

Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)

Intel Core i9-12900KS
16C 24T @ 3.4 GHz
2831
2831
Apple A16 Bionic
6C 6T @ 3.46 GHz
2531
2531

Geekbench 5, 64bit (Single-Core)

Intel Core i9-12900KS
16C 24T @ 3.4 GHz
2080
2080
Apple A16 Bionic
6C 6T @ 3.46 GHz
1890
1890