i5-540M vs Apple M1 Pro
Aggregate performance score
Apple M1 Pro outperforms Core i5-540M by a whopping 849% based on our aggregate benchmark results.
Primary details
Comparing Apple M1 Pro and Core i5-540M processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.
| Place in the ranking | 713 | 2377 |
| Place by popularity | not in top-100 | not in top-100 |
| Market segment | Laptop | Laptop |
| Series | Apple M-Series | Intel Core i5 |
| Power efficiency | no data | 3.08 |
| Architecture codename | no data | Arrandale (2010−2011) |
| Release date | 18 October 2021 (3 years ago) | 7 January 2010 (14 years ago) |
| Launch price (MSRP) | no data | $257 |
Detailed specifications
Apple M1 Pro and Core i5-540M basic parameters such as number of cores, number of threads, base frequency and turbo boost clock, lithography, cache size and multiplier lock state. These parameters indirectly say of CPU speed, though for more precise assessment you have to consider their test results.
| Physical cores | 10 (Deca-Core) | 2 (Dual-core) |
| Threads | 10 | 4 |
| Base clock speed | 2.064 GHz | 2.53 GHz |
| Boost clock speed | 3.22 GHz | 3.07 GHz |
| Bus type | no data | DMI 1.0 |
| Bus rate | no data | 1 × 2.5 GT/s |
| Multiplier | no data | 19 |
| L1 cache | 2.9 MB | 64K (per core) |
| L2 cache | 28 MB | 256K (per core) |
| L3 cache | 24 MB | 3 MB (shared) |
| Chip lithography | 5 nm | 32 nm |
| Die size | no data | 81+114 mm2 |
| Maximum core temperature | no data | 105 °C |
| Number of transistors | 33700 Million | 382+177 Million |
| 64 bit support | + | + |
| Windows 11 compatibility | no data | - |
Compatibility
Information on Apple M1 Pro and Core i5-540M compatibility with other computer components: motherboard (look for socket type), power supply unit (look for power consumption) etc. Useful when planning a future computer configuration or upgrading an existing one. Note that power consumption of some processors can well exceed their nominal TDP, even without overclocking. Some can even double their declared thermals given that the motherboard allows to tune the CPU power parameters.
| Number of CPUs in a configuration | no data | 1 (Uniprocessor) |
| Socket | no data | BGA1288,PGA988 |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 2064 ‑ 3220 Watt | 35 Watt |
Technologies and extensions
Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Apple M1 Pro and Core i5-540M. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.
| Instruction set extensions | no data | Intel® SSE4.1, Intel® SSE4.2 |
| AES-NI | - | + |
| FMA | - | + |
| vPro | no data | + |
| Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST) | no data | + |
| Turbo Boost Technology | no data | + |
| Hyper-Threading Technology | no data | + |
| Idle States | no data | + |
| Thermal Monitoring | - | + |
| Flex Memory Access | no data | + |
| PAE | no data | 36 Bit |
| FDI | no data | + |
| Fast Memory Access | no data | + |
Security technologies
Apple M1 Pro and Core i5-540M technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.
| TXT | no data | + |
| EDB | no data | + |
Virtualization technologies
Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Apple M1 Pro and Core i5-540M are enumerated here.
| VT-d | no data | + |
| VT-x | no data | + |
| EPT | no data | + |
Memory specs
Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Apple M1 Pro and Core i5-540M. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.
| Supported memory types | no data | DDR3 |
| Maximum memory size | no data | 8 GB |
| Max memory channels | no data | 2 |
| Maximum memory bandwidth | no data | 17.051 GB/s |
Graphics specifications
General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.
| Integrated graphics card Compare | Apple M1 Pro 16-Core GPU | Intel HD Graphics for Previous Generation Intel Processors |
| Clear Video | no data | + |
| Clear Video HD | no data | + |
| Graphics max frequency | no data | 766 MHz |
Graphics interfaces
Available interfaces and connections of Apple M1 Pro and Core i5-540M integrated GPUs.
| Number of displays supported | no data | 2 |
Peripherals
Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Apple M1 Pro and Core i5-540M.
| PCIe version | no data | 2.0 |
| PCI Express lanes | no data | 16 |
Synthetic benchmark performance
Various benchmark results of the processors in comparison. Overall score is measured in points in 0-100 range, higher is better.
Combined synthetic benchmark score
This is our combined benchmark performance rating. We are regularly improving our combining algorithms, but if you find some perceived inconsistencies, feel free to speak up in comments section, we usually fix problems quickly.
Passmark
Passmark CPU Mark is a widespread benchmark, consisting of 8 different types of workload, including integer and floating point math, extended instructions, compression, encryption and physics calculation. There is also one separate single-threaded scenario measuring single-core performance.
Pros & cons summary
| Performance score | 10.82 | 1.14 |
| Recency | 18 October 2021 | 7 January 2010 |
| Physical cores | 10 | 2 |
| Threads | 10 | 4 |
| Chip lithography | 5 nm | 32 nm |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 2064 Watt | 35 Watt |
Apple M1 Pro has a 849.1% higher aggregate performance score, an age advantage of 11 years, 400% more physical cores and 150% more threads, and a 540% more advanced lithography process.
i5-540M, on the other hand, has 5797.1% lower power consumption.
The Apple M1 Pro is our recommended choice as it beats the Core i5-540M in performance tests.
Should you still have questions on choice between Apple M1 Pro and Core i5-540M, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.
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