Google Tensor G2 vs Apple M1
Google Tensor G2
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The Google Tensor G2 SoC is a chip that was developed by Google and Samsung for the Google Pixel smarthpones. It is the successor to the Google Tensor G1 and still integrates the same CPU cores. This processor part includes two fast ARM Cortex-X1 cores at up to 2.85 GHz (up from 2.8 GHz of the G1), two mid-range Cortex-A78 cores at up to 2.35 GHz and four small ARM Cortex-A55 efficiency cores with up to 1.8 GHz. The caches are identical with 4 MB CPU L3 cache and 8 MB system level cache. Therefore, the CPU performance is very similar to the first generation of the Tensor SoC.
A big upgrade is the new TPU, which should be more powerful and power efficient compared to its predecessor. In our tests, the AI performance is about 50% higher.
The iGPU was also improved, and now uses a more modern ARM Mali G710 architecture with 7 cores.
The chip also integrates a Titan M2 security processor, a LPDDR5 memory controller, and an ISP for 10-bit HDR / 4k/60 video and 108 MP cameras.
The SoC is manufactured in 5nm at Samsung.
Apple M1
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The Apple M1 is a System on a Chip (SoC) from Apple that is found in the late 2020 MacBook Air, MacBook Pro 13, and Mac Mini. It offers 8 cores divided in four performance cores and four power-efficiency cores. The big cores offer 192 KB instruction cache, 128 KB data cache, and 12 MB shared L2 cache. According to Apple the performance of these cores should be better than anything on the market (in late 2020). The four efficiency cores are a lot smaller and offer only 128 KB instruction cache, 64 KB data cache, and 4 MB shared cache. The efficiency cores (E cluster) clock with 600 - 2064 MHz, the performance cores (P cluster) with 600 - 3204 MHz.
The M1 is available in two TDP variants, a passive cooled 10 Watt variant for the MacBook Air and an active cooled faster variant for the MacBook Pro 13 and Mac Mini. Those should offer a better-sustained performance according to Apple.
The integrated graphics card in the M1 offers 8 cores (7 cores in the entry MacBook Air) and a peak performance of 2.6 teraflops. Apple claims that it is faster than any other iGPU at the time of announcement.
Furthermore, the SoC integrates a fast 16 core neural engine with a peak performance of 11 TOPS (for AI hardware acceleration), a secure enclave (e.g., for encryption), a unified memory architecture, Thunderbolt / USB 4 controller, an ISP, and media de- and encoders.
The Apple M1 includes 16 billion transistors (up from the 10 billion of the A12Z Bionic and therefore double the amount of a Tiger Lake-U chip like the i7-1185G7) and is manufactured in 5nm at TSMC.
| Model | Google Tensor G2 | Apple M1 | ||||||||||||||||
| Codename | Cortex X1 / A76 / A55 | |||||||||||||||||
| Clock | 1800 - 2850 MHz | 2064 - 3220 MHz | ||||||||||||||||
| L3 Cache | 4 MB | 8 MB | ||||||||||||||||
| Cores / Threads | 8 / 8 | 8 / 8 | ||||||||||||||||
| Technology | 5 nm | 5 nm | ||||||||||||||||
| Features | ARM Mali-G78MP20 GPU | ARMv8 Instruction Set | ||||||||||||||||
| iGPU | ARM Mali-G710 MP7 | Apple M1 8-Core GPU | ||||||||||||||||
| Architecture | ARM | ARM | ||||||||||||||||
| Announced | ||||||||||||||||||
| Manufacturer | store.google.com | |||||||||||||||||
| Series | Apple M1 | |||||||||||||||||
| Series: M1 |
| |||||||||||||||||
| L1 Cache | 2 MB | |||||||||||||||||
| L2 Cache | 16 MB | |||||||||||||||||
| Transistors | 16000 Million |
Benchmarks
Average Benchmarks Google Tensor G2 → 100% n=16
Average Benchmarks Apple M1 → 186% n=16
- Average benchmark values for this graphics card* Smaller numbers mean a higher performance
1 This benchmark is not used for the average calculation
