Discussion Apple Silicon SoC thread

[Eug]

M1
5 nm
Unified memory architecture - LP-DDR4
16 billion transistors

8-core CPU

4 high-performance cores
192 KB instruction cache
128 KB data cache
Shared 12 MB L2 cache

4 high-efficiency cores
128 KB instruction cache
64 KB data cache
Shared 4 MB L2 cache
(Apple claims the 4 high-effiency cores alone perform like a dual-core Intel MacBook Air)

8-core iGPU (but there is a 7-core variant, likely with one inactive core)
128 execution units
Up to 24576 concurrent threads
2.6 Teraflops
82 Gigatexels/s
41 gigapixels/s

16-core neural engine
Secure Enclave
USB 4

Products:
$999 ($899 edu) 13" MacBook Air (fanless) - 18 hour video playback battery life
$699 Mac mini (with fan)
$1299 ($1199 edu) 13" MacBook Pro (with fan) - 20 hour video playback battery life

Memory options 8 GB and 16 GB. No 32 GB option (unless you go Intel).

It should be noted that the M1 chip in these three Macs is the same (aside from GPU core number). Basically, Apple is taking the same approach which these chips as they do the iPhones and iPads. Just one SKU (excluding the X variants), which is the same across all iDevices (aside from maybe slight clock speed differences occasionally).

EDIT:



M1 Pro 8-core CPU (6+2), 14-core GPU
M1 Pro 10-core CPU (8+2), 14-core GPU
M1 Pro 10-core CPU (8+2), 16-core GPU
M1 Max 10-core CPU (8+2), 24-core GPU
M1 Max 10-core CPU (8+2), 32-core GPU

M1 Pro and M1 Max discussion here:

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M1 Ultra discussion here:

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M2 discussion here:

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Second Generation 5 nm
Unified memory architecture - LPDDR5, up to 24 GB and 100 GB/s
20 billion transistors

8-core CPU

4 high-performance cores
192 KB instruction cache
128 KB data cache
Shared 16 MB L2 cache

4 high-efficiency cores
128 KB instruction cache
64 KB data cache
Shared 4 MB L2 cache

10-core iGPU (but there is an 8-core variant)
3.6 Teraflops

16-core neural engine
Secure Enclave
USB 4

Hardware acceleration for 8K h.264, h.264, ProRes

M3 Family discussion here:

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M4 Family discussion here:

Discussion - Apple Silicon SoC thread

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M5 Family discussion here:

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[poke01]

Well yeah, SoIC-mH which is the lamest SoIC variant.
Better than InFO I guess.

I wonder why didn’t do what Nvidia did with GB10 or their previous Ultra line. Cheaper?

 

[MerryCherry]

As our test of the MacBook Pro with the M5 Max showed, the two core types are clocked at nearly the same speed, with a difference of only 228 MHz. We asked Apple whether this represents a departure from efficiency in Apple Silicon.

Do the super cores run at max frequency in all-core load scenarios?

In previous M chips, the Super cores (formerly P-cores) clocked 10% lower in all core loads.

“With the earlier Ultra chips, we connected two identical SoCs to form a larger SoC. Now, we’ve actually split a number of functions across two different dies. They are not mirror images of each other—we’ve integrated distinct IP blocks into each.”

Do we know yet what IP blocks are in each die?

 

[johnsonwax]

He says the machine will occasionally "chug" with just 10 Chrome tabs due to the 8 GB RAM Chrome.

Fixed it.

 

[jdubs03]

Do the super cores run at max frequency in all-core load scenarios?

In previous M chips, the Super cores (formerly P-cores) clocked 10% lower in all core loads.


Do we know yet what IP blocks are in each die?

Nope! In CB 2026, the s/p-core cluster seems to vary between 3-4Ghz or so under multicore load.:

 

[Eug]

Fixed it.

Ah, the old fall back argument: It doesn’t count because it’s a bloated program.

Chrome is the number 1 browser in the world overall, and the number 2 browser on macOS. Chrome is also the best supported browser for stuff like some banking / tax / shopping sites, even on Macs.

 

[johnsonwax]

Ah, the old fall back argument: It doesn’t count because it’s a bloated program.

Chrome is the number 1 browser in the world overall, and the number 2 browser on macOS. Chrome is also the best supported browser for stuff like some banking / tax / shopping sites, even on Macs.

Chrome also trades memory for performance which backfires when you have too little RAM. That's not an inherent property - see Safari. Chrome is simply the wrong tool for that situation, by their own decisions. There are tradeoffs in all sorts of things - if you are unwilling to recognize where you are resource poor and resource rich, and choose accordingly, then you're just a fool. Why you would make a $599 computer a dependency on a free piece of software and not the other way around is beyond me. I've never once seen a video or print review 'the best computer to pick to run Chrome'. Nobody does that.

 

[Eug]

Chrome also trades memory for performance which backfires when you have too little RAM. That's not an inherent property - see Safari. Chrome is simply the wrong tool for that situation, by their own decisions. There are tradeoffs in all sorts of things - if you are unwilling to recognize where you are resource poor and resource rich, and choose accordingly, then you're just a fool. Why you would make a $599 computer a dependency on a free piece of software and not the other way around is beyond me. I've never once seen a video or print review 'the best computer to pick to run Chrome'. Nobody does that.

That’s just a poor argument. The fact is, Chrome is the most popular browser in the world, including by the target market of the MacBook Neo. So many tech geeks claim most of this Neo crowd doesn’t understand what RAM is but now you’re arguing they should know the RAM utilization characteristics of specific apps like Chrome before deciding which apps to use, which is simply ridiculous in that context.

I will tell you the first application I install on all Macs is Chrome, even on 8 GB models (despite the RAM requirements), because Chrome hands down has the best website support. In fact, my decidely non-techie wife refuses to run Safari now because she ran into compatibility problems on various sites with Safari that were fixed simply by switching to Chrome. Furthermore my kids run Chrome exclusively because their schools will only support Chrome for their web apps.

The slowdowns with Chrome one can encounter with low RAM machines are actually not a deal killer for much of this crowd, but it’s nonetheless very good info to have when making a purchase decision, especially if they’re considering purchasing the higher cost 512 GB model, vs an entry level MacBook Air. And yes, that review video I linked indeed is implying the Neo isn’t greatest choice if you want to use Chrome, and that a 12 GB model would likely be a significant improvement.