Apple M4 (8 cores) vs i9-12900
Primary details
Comparing Core i9-12900 and Apple M4 (8 cores) processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.
| Place in the ranking | 249 | not rated |
| Place by popularity | not in top-100 | not in top-100 |
| Cost-effectiveness evaluation | 35.12 | no data |
| Market segment | Desktop processor | Desktop processor |
| Series | no data | Apple M4 |
| Power efficiency | 31.21 | no data |
| Architecture codename | Alder Lake-S (2022) | no data |
| Release date | 4 January 2022 (2 years ago) | 28 October 2024 (less than a year ago) |
| Launch price (MSRP) | $489 | no data |
Cost-effectiveness evaluation
Performance per price, higher is better.
Detailed specifications
Core i9-12900 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 | 16 (Hexadeca-Core) | 8 (Octa-Core) |
| Threads | 24 | 8 |
| Base clock speed | 2.4 GHz | no data |
| Boost clock speed | 5.1 GHz | 4 GHz |
| L1 cache | 80K (per core) | no data |
| L2 cache | 1.25 MB (per core) | no data |
| L3 cache | 30 MB (shared) | no data |
| Chip lithography | Intel 7 nm | 3 nm |
| Die size | 215 mm2 | no data |
| Maximum core temperature | 100 °C | no data |
| Maximum case temperature (TCase) | 72 °C | no data |
| 64 bit support | + | + |
| Windows 11 compatibility | + | no data |
| Unlocked multiplier | + | - |
Compatibility
Information on Core i9-12900 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 | FCLGA1700 | no data |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 65 Watt | 5 Watt |
Technologies and extensions
Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Core i9-12900 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 |
| Speed Shift | + | no data |
| Turbo Boost Technology | 2.0 | no data |
| Hyper-Threading Technology | + | no data |
| TSX | + | - |
| Idle States | + | no data |
| Thermal Monitoring | + | - |
| SIPP | + | - |
| Turbo Boost Max 3.0 | + | no data |
| Deep Learning Boost | + | - |
Security technologies
Core i9-12900 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 |
| OS Guard | + | no data |
Virtualization technologies
Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Core i9-12900 and Apple M4 (8 cores) 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 Core i9-12900 and Apple M4 (8 cores). Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.
| Supported memory types | DDR4, DDR5 | no data |
| Maximum memory size | 128 GB | no data |
| Max memory channels | 2 | no data |
| Maximum memory bandwidth | 76.8 GB/s | no data |
| ECC memory support | + | - |
Graphics specifications
General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.
| Integrated graphics card Compare | Intel UHD Graphics 770 | Apple M4 8-core GPU |
| Quick Sync Video | + | - |
| Clear Video HD | + | no data |
| Graphics max frequency | 1.55 GHz | no data |
| Execution Units | 32 | no data |
Graphics interfaces
Available interfaces and connections of Core i9-12900 and Apple M4 (8 cores) integrated GPUs.
| Number of displays supported | 4 | no data |
Graphics image quality
Maximum display resolutions supported by Core i9-12900 and Apple M4 (8 cores) integrated GPUs, including resolutions over different interfaces.
| Max resolution over HDMI 1.4 | 4096 x 2160 @ 60Hz | no data |
| Max resolution over eDP | 5120 x 3200 @ 120Hz | no data |
| Max resolution over DisplayPort | 7680 x 4320 @ 60Hz | no data |
Graphics API support
APIs supported by Core i9-12900 and Apple M4 (8 cores) integrated GPUs, sometimes API versions are included.
| DirectX | 12 | no data |
| OpenGL | 4.5 | no data |
Peripherals
Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Core i9-12900 and Apple M4 (8 cores).
| PCIe version | 5.0 and 4.0 | no data |
| PCI Express lanes | 20 | no data |
Pros & cons summary
| Recency | 4 January 2022 | 28 October 2024 |
| Physical cores | 16 | 8 |
| Threads | 24 | 8 |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 65 Watt | 5 Watt |
i9-12900 has 100% more physical cores and 200% more threads.
Apple M4 (8 cores), on the other hand, has an age advantage of 2 years, and 1200% lower power consumption.
We couldn't decide between Core i9-12900 and Apple M4 (8 cores). We've got no test results to judge.
Should you still have questions on choice between Core i9-12900 and Apple M4 (8 cores), ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.
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