Intel Core i9 12950HX vs Apple M2 Max
We compared two laptop CPUs: the 2.3 GHz Intel Core i9 12950HX with 16-cores against the 3.5 GHz Apple M2 Max with 12-cores. On this page, you'll find out which processor has better performance in benchmarks, games and other useful information.
Review
Single-Core Performance
Performance in single-threaded apps and benchmarks
Multi-Core Performance
Measure performance when all cores are involved
Power Efficiency
The efficiency score of power consumption
Integrated Graphics
iGPU capabilities for gaming and 3D-intensive tasks
NanoReview Final Score
Generic CPU rating
Key Differences
Advantages of Intel Core i9 12950HX
- Unlocked multiplier
- Has 4 more physical cores
- Supports up to 128 GB DDR5-4800 RAM
Advantages of Apple M2 Max
- Around 332.8 GB/s (433%) higher theoretical memory bandwidth
- Newer - released 9-months later
- More modern manufacturing process – 5 versus 10 nanometers
- 22% faster in a single-core Geekbench v6 test - 2773 vs 2271 points
Promotion
Test in Benchmarks
Comparing the performance of CPUs across various tasksCinebench R23
Cinebench R23 (Single-Core)
Cinebench R23 (Multi-Core)
GeekBench v6
Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)
Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)
| File compression | 1140 MB/sec | 1740 MB/sec |
| Clang compilation | 116.4 Klines/sec | 128.4 Klines/sec |
| HTML 5 Browser | 353.9 pages/sec | 358.1 pages/sec |
| PDF Renderer | 418.1 Mpixels/sec | 385.8 Mpixels/sec |
| Text processing | 239.2 pages/sec | 262.5 pages/sec |
| Background blur | 39.5 images/sec | 54.1 images/sec |
| Photo processing | 115.2 images/sec | 143 images/sec |
| Ray tracing | 25.4 Mpixels/sec | 17.8 Mpixels/sec |
PassMark
Passmark CPU (Single-Core)
Passmark CPU (Multi-Core)
| Integer math | 114 GOps/sec | 58.2 GOps/sec |
| Floating point math | 83.8 GOps/sec | 74 GOps/sec |
| Find prime numbers | 141M Primes/sec | 363M Primes/sec |
| Random string sorting | 43.5M Strings/sec | 41.7M Strings/sec |
| Data encryption | 22.2 GBytes/sec | 15.8 GBytes/sec |
| Data compression | 382.8 MBytes/sec | 338.3 MBytes/sec |
| Physics | 2164 Frames/sec | 3846 Frames/sec |
| Extended instructions | 22.9B Matrices/sec | 12.1B Matrices/sec |
Specifications
Full technical specification of Intel Core i9 12950HX and Apple M2 MaxGeneral
| Vendor | Intel | Apple |
| Released | May 10, 2022 | January 17, 2023 |
| Type | Laptop | Laptop |
| instruction set | x86-64 | ARMv8 |
| Codename | Alder Lake | Apple M2 |
| Model number | i9-12950HX | - |
| Integrated GPU | UHD Graphics (32EU) | Apple M2 Max GPU (38-core) |
CPU
| P-Cores | 8 | 8 |
| P-Threads | 16 | 8 |
| Base Frequency (P) | 2.3 GHz | 3.5 GHz |
| Turbo Boost Frequency (P) | 5 GHz | - |
| E-Cores | 8 | 4 |
| E-Threads | 8 | 4 |
| Base Frequency (E) | 1.7 GHz | 2.4 GHz |
| Turbo Boost Frequency (E) | 3.6 GHz | - |
| Total Cores | 16 | 12 |
| Total Threads | 24 | 12 |
| Bus Frequency | 100 MHz | - |
| Multiplier | 23x | - |
| L1 Cache | 80K (per core) | 192K (per core) |
| L2 Cache | 1280K (per core) | 32MB (shared) |
| L3 Cache | 30MB (shared) | - |
| Unlocked Multiplier | Yes | No |
Package
| Transistors | - | 67 billions |
| Fabrication process | 10 nm | 5 nm |
| TDP (PL1) | 45-55 W (configurable) | 30 W |
| Max. Boost TDP (PL2) | 157 W | - |
| Socket | BGA-1964 | Apple M-Socket |
| Peak temperature | 100°C | - |
iGPU
| Integrated Graphics | Intel UHD Graphics (32EU) | Apple M2 Max GPU (38-core) |
| GPU Base Clock | 300 MHz | 450 MHz |
| GPU Boost Clock | 1550 MHz | 1398 MHz |
| Shading Units | 256 | 4864 |
| TMUs | 16 | 304 |
| ROPs | 8 | 152 |
| Execution Units | 32 | - |
| TGP | 45 W | 70 W |
| Max. Resolution | - | 7680x4320 - 60 Hz |
iGPU FLOPS
Memory Support
| Memory types | - DDR5-4800 - DDR4-3200 |
- LPDDR5-6400 |
| Memory Size | 128 GB | 96 GB |
| Max. Memory Channels | 2 | 8 |
| Max. Memory Bandwidth | 76.8 GB/s | 409.6 GB/s |
| ECC Support | Yes | No |
Misc
| Official site | Intel Core i9 12950HX official page | - |
| PCI Express Version | 5.0 | - |
| PCI Express Lanes | 20 | - |
Cast your vote
Total votes: 17