Apple M4 (8 cores) vs i7-5550U
Primary details
Comparing Core i7-5550U and Apple M4 (8 cores) processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.
| Place in the ranking | 2015 | not rated |
| Place by popularity | not in top-100 | not in top-100 |
| Market segment | Laptop | Desktop processor |
| Series | Intel Core i7 | Apple M4 |
| Power efficiency | 11.30 | no data |
| Architecture codename | Broadwell-U (2015) | no data |
| Release date | 1 March 2015 (9 years ago) | 28 October 2024 (less than a year ago) |
| Launch price (MSRP) | $426 | no data |
Detailed specifications
Core i7-5550U and Apple M4 (8 cores) 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 | 2 (Dual-core) | 8 (Octa-Core) |
| Threads | 4 | 8 |
| Base clock speed | 2 GHz | no data |
| Boost clock speed | 3 GHz | 4 GHz |
| Bus rate | 5 GT/s | no data |
| L1 cache | 64K (per core) | no data |
| L2 cache | 256K (per core) | no data |
| L3 cache | 4 MB (shared) | no data |
| Chip lithography | 14 nm | 3 nm |
| Die size | 133 mm2 | no data |
| Maximum core temperature | 105 °C | no data |
| Maximum case temperature (TCase) | 105 °C | no data |
| Number of transistors | 1900 Million | no data |
| 64 bit support | + | + |
| Windows 11 compatibility | - | no data |
Compatibility
Information on Core i7-5550U and Apple M4 (8 cores) 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 | 1 | no data |
| Socket | FCBGA1168 | no data |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 15 Watt | 5 Watt |
Technologies and extensions
Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Core i7-5550U and Apple M4 (8 cores). You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.
| Instruction set extensions | Intel® SSE4.1, Intel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX2 | no data |
| AES-NI | + | - |
| AVX | + | - |
| Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST) | + | no data |
| Turbo Boost Technology | 2.0 | no data |
| Hyper-Threading Technology | + | no data |
| Idle States | + | no data |
| Thermal Monitoring | + | - |
| Flex Memory Access | + | no data |
| Smart Response | + | no data |
| FDI | + | no data |
| Fast Memory Access | + | no data |
Security technologies
Core i7-5550U and Apple M4 (8 cores) technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.
| TXT | - | no data |
| EDB | + | no data |
| Secure Key | + | no data |
| Identity Protection | + | - |
| OS Guard | + | no data |
Virtualization technologies
Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Core i7-5550U and Apple M4 (8 cores) are enumerated here.
| AMD-V | + | - |
| VT-d | + | no data |
| VT-x | + | no data |
| EPT | + | no data |
Memory specs
Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Core i7-5550U and Apple M4 (8 cores). Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.
| Supported memory types | DDR3 | no data |
| Maximum memory size | 16 GB | no data |
| Max memory channels | 2 | no data |
| Maximum memory bandwidth | 25.6 GB/s | no data |
Graphics specifications
General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.
| Integrated graphics card Compare | Intel HD Graphics 6000 | Apple M4 8-core GPU |
| Max video memory | 16 GB | no data |
| Quick Sync Video | + | - |
| Clear Video | + | no data |
| Clear Video HD | + | no data |
| Graphics max frequency | 1 GHz | no data |
| InTru 3D | + | no data |
Graphics interfaces
Available interfaces and connections of Core i7-5550U and Apple M4 (8 cores) integrated GPUs.
| Number of displays supported | 3 | no data |
| eDP | + | no data |
| DisplayPort | + | - |
| HDMI | + | - |
Graphics image quality
Maximum display resolutions supported by Core i7-5550U and Apple M4 (8 cores) integrated GPUs, including resolutions over different interfaces.
| Max resolution over HDMI 1.4 | 2560x1600@60Hz | no data |
| Max resolution over DisplayPort | 3840x2160@60Hz | no data |
Graphics API support
APIs supported by Core i7-5550U and Apple M4 (8 cores) integrated GPUs, sometimes API versions are included.
| DirectX | 11.2/12 | no data |
| OpenGL | 4.3 | no data |
Peripherals
Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Core i7-5550U and Apple M4 (8 cores).
| PCIe version | 2.0 | no data |
| PCI Express lanes | 12 | no data |
Pros & cons summary
| Recency | 1 March 2015 | 28 October 2024 |
| Physical cores | 2 | 8 |
| Threads | 4 | 8 |
| Chip lithography | 14 nm | 3 nm |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 15 Watt | 5 Watt |
Apple M4 (8 cores) has an age advantage of 9 years, 300% more physical cores and 100% more threads, a 366.7% more advanced lithography process, and 200% lower power consumption.
We couldn't decide between Core i7-5550U and Apple M4 (8 cores). We've got no test results to judge.
Be aware that Core i7-5550U is a notebook processor while Apple M4 (8 cores) is a desktop one.
Should you still have questions on choice between Core i7-5550U and Apple M4 (8 cores), ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.
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