Ultra 5 125U vs Apple M2
Aggregate performance score
Core Ultra 5 125U outperforms Apple M2 by a moderate 18% based on our aggregate benchmark results.
Primary details
Comparing Apple M2 and Core Ultra 5 125U processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.
| Place in the ranking | 805 | 695 |
| Place by popularity | not in top-100 | not in top-100 |
| Market segment | Laptop | Laptop |
| Series | Apple Apple M-Series | Intel Meteor Lake-U |
| Power efficiency | 44.50 | 69.97 |
| Architecture codename | no data | Meteor Lake-P (2023) |
| Release date | 10 June 2022 (2 years ago) | 14 December 2023 (less than a year ago) |
| Launch price (MSRP) | no data | $363 |
Detailed specifications
Apple M2 and Core Ultra 5 125U 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 | 8 (Octa-Core) | 12 (Dodeca-Core) |
| Threads | 8 | 14 |
| Base clock speed | 2.424 GHz | 1.3 GHz |
| Boost clock speed | 3.48 GHz | 4.3 GHz |
| L1 cache | 2 MB | 112 KB (per core) |
| L2 cache | 20 MB | 2 MB (per core) |
| L3 cache | no data | 12 MB (shared) |
| Chip lithography | 5 nm | Intel 4 nm |
| Maximum core temperature | no data | 110 °C |
| Number of transistors | 20000 Million | no data |
| 64 bit support | + | + |
Compatibility
Information on Apple M2 and Core Ultra 5 125U 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 |
| Socket | no data | FCBGA2049 |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 20 Watt | 15 Watt |
Technologies and extensions
Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Apple M2 and Core Ultra 5 125U. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.
| Instruction set extensions | no data | Intel® SSE4.1, Intel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX2 |
| AES-NI | - | + |
| AVX | - | + |
| vPro | no data | + |
| Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST) | no data | + |
| Speed Shift | no data | + |
| Hyper-Threading Technology | no data | + |
| TSX | - | + |
| Thermal Monitoring | - | + |
| Flex Memory Access | no data | + |
| Turbo Boost Max 3.0 | no data | - |
| Deep Learning Boost | - | + |
| Supported AI Software Frameworks | - | OpenVINO™, WindowsML, ONNX RT |
Security technologies
Apple M2 and Core Ultra 5 125U technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.
| TXT | no data | + |
| EDB | no data | + |
| Secure Key | no data | + |
| OS Guard | no data | + |
Virtualization technologies
Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Apple M2 and Core Ultra 5 125U 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 M2 and Core Ultra 5 125U. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.
| Supported memory types | no data | DDR5 |
| Maximum memory size | no data | 96 GB |
| Max memory channels | no data | 2 |
Graphics specifications
General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.
| Integrated graphics card | Apple M2 10-Core GPU ( - 1398 MHz) | Intel® Graphics |
| Quick Sync Video | - | + |
| Graphics max frequency | no data | 1.85 GHz |
Graphics interfaces
Available interfaces and connections of Apple M2 and Core Ultra 5 125U integrated GPUs.
| Number of displays supported | no data | 4 |
Graphics image quality
Maximum display resolutions supported by Apple M2 and Core Ultra 5 125U integrated GPUs, including resolutions over different interfaces.
| Max resolution over HDMI 1.4 | no data | 4096 x 2304 @ 60Hz (HDMI 2.1 TMDS) 7680 x 4320 @ 60Hz (HDMI2.1 FRL) |
| Max resolution over eDP | no data | 3840x2400 @ 120Hz |
| Max resolution over DisplayPort | no data | 7680 x 4320 @ 60Hz |
Graphics API support
APIs supported by Apple M2 and Core Ultra 5 125U integrated GPUs, sometimes API versions are included.
| DirectX | no data | 12.2 |
| OpenGL | no data | 4.6 |
Peripherals
Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Apple M2 and Core Ultra 5 125U.
| PCIe version | no data | 4.0 |
| PCI Express lanes | no data | 12 |
| PCI support | no data | 4.0 |
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.
Cinebench 15 64-bit multi-core
Cinebench Release 15 Multi Core is a variant of Cinebench R15 which uses all the processor threads.
Cinebench 15 64-bit single-core
Cinebench R15 (standing for Release 15) is a benchmark made by Maxon, authors of Cinema 4D. It was superseded by later versions of Cinebench, which use more modern variants of Cinema 4D engine. The Single Core version (sometimes called Single-Thread) only uses a single processor thread to render a room full of reflective spheres and light sources.
Pros & cons summary
| Performance score | 9.76 | 11.51 |
| Recency | 10 June 2022 | 14 December 2023 |
| Physical cores | 8 | 12 |
| Threads | 8 | 14 |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 20 Watt | 15 Watt |
Ultra 5 125U has a 17.9% higher aggregate performance score, an age advantage of 1 year, 50% more physical cores and 75% more threads, and 33.3% lower power consumption.
The Core Ultra 5 125U is our recommended choice as it beats the Apple M2 in performance tests.
Should you still have questions on choice between Apple M2 and Core Ultra 5 125U, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.
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