Apple M1 vs Microsoft SQ1
Aggregate performance score
Apple M1 outperforms Microsoft SQ1 by a substantial 39% based on our aggregate benchmark results.
Primary details
Comparing Microsoft SQ1 and Apple M1 processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.
| Place in the ranking | 1489 | 1207 |
| Place by popularity | not in top-100 | not in top-100 |
| Market segment | Laptop | Laptop |
| Series | Qualcomm Snapdragon | Apple Apple M-Series |
| Architecture codename | Cortex-A76 / A55 (Kryo 495) (2019) | no data |
| Release date | 2 October 2019 (5 years ago) | 10 November 2020 (4 years ago) |
Detailed specifications
Microsoft SQ1 and Apple M1 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) | 8 (Octa-Core) |
| Threads | 8 | 8 |
| Base clock speed | no data | 2.064 GHz |
| Boost clock speed | 3 GHz | 3.2 GHz |
| L1 cache | no data | 2 MB |
| L2 cache | no data | 16 MB |
| L3 cache | 2 MB | 16 MB |
| Chip lithography | 7 nm | 5 nm |
| Number of transistors | no data | 16000 Million |
| 64 bit support | + | + |
| Windows 11 compatibility | - | - |
Graphics specifications
General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.
| Integrated graphics card | Qualcomm Adreno 685 | Apple M1 8-Core GPU |
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 | 3.73 | 5.17 |
| Recency | 2 October 2019 | 10 November 2020 |
| Chip lithography | 7 nm | 5 nm |
Apple M1 has a 38.6% higher aggregate performance score, an age advantage of 1 year, and a 40% more advanced lithography process.
The Apple M1 is our recommended choice as it beats the Microsoft SQ1 in performance tests.
Should you still have questions on choice between Microsoft SQ1 and Apple M1, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.
Similar processor comparisons
We picked several similar comparisons of processors in the same market segment and performance relatively close to those reviewed on this page.
