Apple M4 (9 cores) vs Apple M4 Max (16 cores)

Apple M4 (9 cores)

The 9-core Apple M4 is a rather fast ARM architecture processor (SoC) that sports 9 CPU cores, a 16-core neural engine and a 10-core GPU with hardware RT support and other modern features. Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth 5.3 as well as Thunderbolt 3 and USB 4 are all onboard, too. The M4 debuted in May 2024 as part of an iPad launch event; it has 3 performance cores running at a clock speed of up to 4.3 GHz and 6 efficient cores running at way under 3 GHz whereas the M3 (10 GPU cores) has 4 performance cores and 4 efficiency cores.

The faster 10-core M4 chip delivers 10% higher multi-thread performance and 15% higher graphics performance, to give you a rough figure. More importantly, the 10-core M4 can be had in systems with an active cooling solution, such as Fall 2024 MacBook Pros, whereas the 9-core one is an iPad Pro exclusive. Systems with a fan deliver much higher sustained performance than the ones without it.

Architecture and Features

The new CPU cores run at faster clock speeds than what the M3 was capable of and they also feature minor architectural improvements. The CPU cores are thought to be based on the ARM v9.4-A microarchitecture to a certain degree. The M4 comes with 16 GB or more (depending on the SKU) of on-package LPDDR5x-7500 RAM whereas the M3 was limited to 6400 MT/s. The updated NPU delivers up to 38 TOPS of performance for AI workloads.

Performance

Single-thread performance, multi-thread performance and NPU performance all got a noticeable boost compared to what we had with the M3 (10 GPU cores). The new processor is about 11% faster than the M3 in short-term multi-thread workloads while besting every M3 series chip possible in single-thread tasks by a comfortable margin. Geekbench 6.2 Multi puts the 9-core M4 right above the Core i9-13900H and the Ryzen 7 7840HS; in fact, the M4 is just 3% slower than Intel's top-of-the-line Core Ultra 9 185H chip. A 13% to 18% single-thread performance improvement over M3 series chips is evident if we look at Mozilla's Kraken test results. Octane V2 seems to think the M4 is just 4% slower than Intel's mighty Core i9-14900HX. CrossMark results suggest the M4 is about as fast as the Core i9-13900H.

The 10-core M4 is about 10% faster in multi-threaded tasks than the 9-core part is. It also delivers just slightly higher single-thread performance.

While Apple undoubtedly deserves some praise for what it managed to do here, it is important to highlight that all of the tests we did involve short-term workloads only. The M4 will suffer from heavy throttling if subjected to long-term workloads as there is no active cooling inside that super-thin iPad Pro case.

Graphics

The M4 GPU (10 cores) has hardware support for ray tracing as well as mesh shading and other modern technologies. It supports external displays with resolutions as high as "8K".

As far as performance is concerned, it appears the 9-core M4's GPU runs at significantly lower clock speeds than the (otherwise the same) GPU built into the 10-core M4 chip. This leads to a disappointing situation where what's supposedly a newer graphics adapter is about 10% slower than the 10-core GPU built into the M3. Still, this M4 GPU delivers very decent benchmark scores that put it in the same ballpark as the Radeon RX 6500M.

Power consumption

The chip's sustained power consumption is limited to ~7 W, with short-term peaks of up to 14 W possible.

The chip is built with a "second generation" 3 nm TSMC process that's still cutting-edge as of late 2024.

Apple M4 Max (16 cores)

The 16-core Apple M4 Max is a powerful ARM architecture processor (SoC) for laptops and mini-PCs that debuted in Sep 2024. It features 12 performance CPU cores running at well over 4 GHz along with 4 efficient cores running at under 3 GHz. The 40-core M4 Max GPU and at least 48 GB of fast 546 GB/s LPDDR5x on-package memory depending on the configuration are included as well, as is USB 4 and Thunderbolt 5 support.

The built-in 16 core neural engine (up to 38 TOPS) is found across the whole M4 chip family. Furthermore, all M4 processors are thought to be based on the ARM v9.4-A architecture to a certain degree.

Performance

The M4 Max is set to be just around 15% faster than the 16-core M3 Max. This is very, very impressive.

Graphics

The 40-core M4 Max GPU has hardware support for ray tracing as well as mesh shading and other modern technologies. It supports external displays with resolutions as high as "8K" and it can HW-decode a few popular video codecs such as h.264, h.265 and AV1.

Its gaming performance is set to be about as good the GeForce RTX 4070 Laptop. Please keep in mind that very few games have been compiled specifically for Apple silicon Macs meaning most titles have to be run via emulation layers. Some of them are displayed with visual artefacts as a result, or don't start at all.

Power consumption

To let so many CPU and GPU cores breathe, some really high TDP figures are required. We assume the chip consumes 90 W to 100 W when under full load.

The 2nd generation 3 nm TSMC process the M4 Max is built with delivers good power efficiency, as of late 2024.