Apple M1 Max vs Intel Core i9-12900TE

Processor comparisons 21-10-2022

   You may have difficulties with the choice of a processor, you will solve them by reading the full tests Apple M1 Max vs Intel Core i9-12900TE and see which is better for games or simple use for video editing, streaming, rendering, machine learning, programming. Here is all information from various benchmarks or real video editing and streaming tests. A careful analysis of all the technical characteristics, to make it easier to understand, is made by the table.
   From the comparison video, you can get the results of joint testing in synthetic type tests like WPrime, GeekBench 6, 5.2, UserBenchmark, SuperPi, Blender, PCMark 10, Prime95, Dolphin Emulator, PassMark, 3DMark, 7zip, World of Tanks enCore Benchmark, AIDA64, VeraCrypt, DaVinci Resolve Studio, MATLAB, Handbrake, Furmark, Blender, Cinebench 23 (20, 15), Gears 5, RealBench.
   Gaming performance of processors in:

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare and Warzone
Valheim
Valorant
Cyberpunk 2077
Last Man Standing
Assassin's Creed Valhalla
Fortnite
DOOM: Eternal
Red Dead Redemption 2
Apex Legends
Borderlands 3
Death Stranding
World of Warcraft: Shadowlands
Watch Dogs Legion
Fallout 76
Rainbow Six Siege
Grand Theft Auto V
Overwatch
Halo Infinite

After reading the results of all benchmarks and videos, you already be able to know which CPU is better to buy for gaming Intel Core i9-12900TE or Apple M1 Max.

Summary benchmark results

As a percentage of the maximum value based on a sample from the entire base of all processors
Processor Benchmark

M1 Max

60%

Core i9-12900TE

65%

This parameter shows the performance of the processors in single-threaded and multi-threaded mode. In this comparison, Core i9-12900TE is 7% better than M1 Max. The data source is several popular tests. Detailed information can be found below.

Gaming performance
Summary result of all game benchmarks.

M1 Max

57%

Core i9-12900TE

59%

For the maximum in this test, the results of the most powerful processor in the site database are taken. And it is clear that this is a server processor, on which no one will play games. Because the cost of this processor reaches several tens of thousands of dollars. And if it seems to you that the selected CPU has a small game result, just look at the FPS that it produces in real games in the summary table below.
List of other games in which CPU comparisons were performed: Metro Exodus, Control, Microsoft Flight Simulator, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, DOTA 2A, Resident Evil 7 Biohazard, Monster Hunter World, Battlefield V, League of Legends (LOL), Shadow of the Tomb Raider, NBA 2K20, Forza Horizon 4, Half-Life: Alyx, Hitman 3, PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds (PUBG), Horizon Zero Dawn, Ghostrunner, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS GO).

Gaming benchmark

Fortnite	101.3	103.9
Valorant	115.1	118.0
Cyberpunk 2077	64.5	66.1
Apex Legends	108.2	110.9
Call of Duty Warzone	86.3	88.5
Overwatch	93.2	95.6
Red Dead Redemption 2	79.4	81.4
DOOM Eternal	57.6	59.0
Warzone	89.8	92.1
Assassin's Creed	96.7	99.1
Valheim	95.5	98.0

The numbers in this table indicate the maximum FPS that was received on the device with the corresponding processor. Depending on the configuration of the computer (RAM size and Video Card) and graphics quality settings (Ultra, Medium, Normal), the results may differ quite significantly. We recommend that you better study the results of the Cinebench, GeekBench and Passmark becnmarks.
The computers participating in the comparing not only were the equipped with different video cards and different amounts of RAM. But users also tested them at different screen resolutions: 2K, FullHD or 4K. So the game benchmark data is approximate. But all video cards met the average system requirements of games. To be sure exactly how much performance the processor will be in games, if you compare it in one assembly with the video card that is installed in your computer.

Power consumption

M1 Max

332%

Core i9-12900TE

174%

To make a finishing resolution on which processor is better, you should also consider the generation of its core. It is clear that the newer the generation, the better the performance of the processor in games and benchmarks, as well as its energy efficiency. In this case the M1 Max is more energy efficient than the Core i9-12900TE since it has less power consumption: 18W vs. 35W. Power consumption is especially important for laptops. And TDP should be taken into account when choosing a processor cooling system. You need to buy a cooler that has the TDP data specified in the specification was greater than the TDP of the compared processor.

Software benchmarks

If you plan to use the processor not only for gaming, but also for machine learning, video editing or video rendering, programming, streaming, then first of all you need to pay attention to the performance in multi-threaded mode. In this mode, to reach maximum efficiency, the CPU uses all cores and threads that it has. You will find out this data from the benchmark tables below. Before using the data from these tests, be sure to check whether the program you are going to use on your computer supports multi-threaded mode. Because there are still many programs that use only one core to run, and all the advantages of multi-core mode turns out to be unnecessary.

Cinebench 23, 20 an 15
The results of this benchmark show Single-threaded and Multi-threaded CPU performance

	Apple M1 Max	Intel Core i9-12900TE
Cinbench 15 Single-core	313	432
Cinbench 15 Multi-core	1811	4547
Cinbench 20 Single-core	617	721
Cinbench 20 Multi-core	3106	10110
Cinbench 23 Single-core	2360	2556
Cinbench 23 Multi-core	12204	29091

Passmark
This popular benchmark displays Multi-threaded and Single-threaded processor performance

	Apple M1 Max	Intel Core i9-12900TE
Single-Core	5344	6663
Multi-Core	34572	49735

GeekBench 6, 5.2
This benchmark shows Multi-threaded and Single-threaded processor performance

	Apple M1 Max	Intel Core i9-12900TE
Single-Core	1793	1829
Multi-Core	13028	15550

Comparison of specifications

In the specification comparison table, the processor release date and overclocking capability will be the most useful. The newer the processor, the longer it will last you. And the easier it will be to upgrade the system later. The same benefits from the presence of overclocking. When the processor can be overclocked, thereby increasing its performance, then it will still be able to produce maximum FPS even in new games. The economy are obvious! Accordingly, there is no longer a need to buy a new CPU to enjoy the games any longer.

	Apple M1 Max	Intel Core i9-12900TE
Announcement date	October 07, 2021	July 21, 2021
Type	Laptop;Desktop	Embedded
Socket	M1	FCLGA1700
Core name	8x Firestorm and 2x Icestorm	Alder Lake
Architecture	hybrid (big.LITTLE)	x86
Generation	1	12
Turbo Frequency		4.8 MHz
Frequency	3.2 MHz	3.6 MHz
Cores	10	16
Threads	10	24
Bus rate		16 GT/s
Bit	64	64
Lithography	5 nm	7 nm
Transistors count	57000 millions	12600 millions
Power consumption (TDP)	18 W	35 W
Memory type	LPDDR5 - Up to 6400MHz	Up to DDR5 4800 MT/s Up to DDR4 3200 MT/s
Max. Memory	64 Gb	128 Gb
Memory Frequency	6400	6400
Memory bandwidth	409 GByte/s	76.8 GB/s
L1 cache	4MB	2 MB
L2 cache	24MB	14 MB
L3 cache	48MB	30 MB
Overclocking	No	No
Supports ECC	No	No
Part number	APL1105

In this comparison block, you should pay attention to the differences in clock speed and the number of cores. Here Core i9-12900TE is 11% better than M1 Max in terms of CPU frequency. Another difference is that Core i9-12900TE has 6 more core than M1 Max. Also keep in mind that high CPU frequency affects battery life through power consumption (relevant for laptops).

Result:
The number of parameters for which Apple M1 Max is better: 7
The number of parameters for which Intel Core i9-12900TE is better: 29
However, it should be understood that all the number in the table above do not mean that taking them into account you should undividedly trust a simple comparison of these figures. Be sure to watch the video tests and read the opinion of real owners of Apple M1 Max and Intel Core i9-12900TE before deciding which of the CPUs to buy for gaming.

Apple M1 Max - all data

• Cinebench r15 score
• Cinebench r20 score
• Cinebench r23 score
• GeekBench 6, 5.2 score

• Apple M1 Max specs and review.

Intel Core i9-12900TE - all data

• Cinebench r15 score
• Cinebench r20 score
• Cinebench r23 score
• GeekBench 6, 5.2 score

• Intel Core i9-12900TE specs and review.