Apple M1 Pro vs Intel Core i9-12900F

Processor comparisons 21-10-2022

   You may have difficulties with the choice of a CPU, you will solve them by reading the comprehensive tests Apple M1 Pro vs Intel Core i9-12900F and understand which is better for games or simple use for video editing, machine learning, streaming, rendering, programming. Here you can find useful information from many benchmarks or real video editing and streaming tests. A thorough analysis of all the specifications, to make it easier to read, is made by the table.
   From the comparison video, you can get the results of parallel examination in software tests like Furmark, Blender, PCMark 10, Gears 5, WPrime, RealBench, 3DMark, SuperPi, PassMark, UserBenchmark, 7zip, World of Tanks enCore Benchmark, Handbrake, DaVinci Resolve Studio, AIDA64, Blender, MATLAB, GeekBench 6, 5.2, VeraCrypt, Prime95, Cinebench 23 (20, 15), Dolphin Emulator.
   Gaming performance of CPUs in:

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

After looking at the data of joint benchmarks and videos, you already be able to figure out which CPU is better to buy for gaming Intel Core i9-12900F or Apple M1 Pro.

Summary benchmark results

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

M1 Pro

59%

Core i9-12900F

65%

This value shows the performance of the processors in single-threaded and multi-threaded mode. In this comparison, Core i9-12900F is 9% better than M1 Pro. The data source is several popular tests. Detailed information can be found below.

Gaming performance
Summary result of all game benchmarks.

M1 Pro

57%

Core i9-12900F

59%

The maximum result in this parameter is 100 percent, which is the performance of the most powerful processor at the moment. And of course, this is a server processor, on which no one will run games. Because this processor costs several tens of thousands of dollars. And if it seems to you that the selected CPU has a little game result, just look at the FPS that it produces in real games in the summary table below.
List of other games in which processors were compared: PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds (PUBG), Shadow of the Tomb Raider, Resident Evil 7 Biohazard, Monster Hunter World, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS GO), Forza Horizon 4, Half-Life: Alyx, Control, Hitman 3, Ghostrunner, League of Legends (LOL), The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, DOTA 2A, Metro Exodus, Microsoft Flight Simulator, Horizon Zero Dawn, Battlefield V, NBA 2K20.

Gaming benchmark

Fortnite	101.0	104.5
Valorant	114.8	118.8
Cyberpunk 2077	64.3	66.5
Apex Legends	107.9	111.6
Call of Duty Warzone	86.1	89.1
Overwatch	93.0	96.2
Red Dead Redemption 2	79.2	81.9
DOOM Eternal	57.4	59.4
Warzone	89.5	92.6
Assassin's Creed	96.4	99.8
Valheim	95.3	98.6

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 that were in the comparisons not only did they have different video cards and different amounts of RAM. But users also tested them at different screen resolutions: 4K, 2K or FullHD. 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 Pro

358%

Core i9-12900F

97%

To make a final resolution on which processor is better, you should also consider the generation of its core. The newer the processor generation, the better its performance in games and benchmarks, as well as its energy efficiency. In this case the M1 Pro is more energy efficient than the Core i9-12900F since it has less power consumption: 16W vs. 65W. Power consumption is especially important for laptops. Also, when choosing a processor cooling system, you need to know its TDP. It is necessary to calculate so that the TDP data specified in the cooler specification is greater than the TDP of the compared processor.

Software benchmarks

If you plan to use the processor not only for gaming, but also for programming, streaming, video editing or video rendering, machine learning, then the main parameter for you is its performance in multi-threaded mode. In this mode, to achieve maximum efficiency, the CPU includes 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 find out whether the program that you are going to use on your computer can work in multi-threaded mode. Since there are still many programs that can use only one core to work, and all the benefit of multi-core mode are unused.

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

	Apple M1 Pro	Intel Core i9-12900F
Cinbench 15 Single-core	304	449
Cinbench 15 Multi-core	1716	4734
Cinbench 20 Single-core	590	750
Cinbench 20 Multi-core	2936	10524
Cinbench 23 Single-core	2233	2661
Cinbench 23 Multi-core	11512	30285

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

	Apple M1 Pro	Intel Core i9-12900F
Single-Core	5046	6936
Multi-Core	32596	51775

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

	Apple M1 Pro	Intel Core i9-12900F
Single-Core	1723	1904
Multi-Core	12737	16188

Comparison of specifications

In the specification comparison table, the most useful will be the the possibility of overclocking it and release date of the processor. The newer the processor, the longer it will last in your computer. And the easier it will be to upgrade the system in the future. The same can be said about overclocking. If the processor can be overclocked, thereby increasing its performance, then it will continue to maintain 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 Pro	Intel Core i9-12900F
Announcement date	October 07, 2021	July 21, 2021
Type	Laptop	Desktop
Socket	M1	FCLGA1700
Core name	8x Firestorm and 2x Icestorm	Alder Lake
Architecture	hybrid (big.LITTLE)	x86
Generation	1	12
Turbo Frequency		5.1 MHz
Frequency	3.2 MHz	3.8 MHz
Cores	10	16
Threads	10	24
Bus rate		16 GT/s
Bit	64	64
Lithography	5 nm	7 nm
Transistors count	34000 millions	12600 millions
Power consumption (TDP)	16 W	65 W
Memory type	LPDDR5 - Up to 6400MHz	Up to DDR5 4800 MT/s Up to DDR4 3200 MT/s
Max. Memory	32 Gb	128 Gb
Memory Frequency	6400	6400
Memory bandwidth	208 GByte/s	76.8 GB/s
L1 cache	4MB	2 MB
L2 cache	24MB	12 MB
L3 cache	24MB	30 MB
Overclocking	No	No
Supports ECC	No	No
Part number	APL1103

In this comparison block, you should pay attention to the differences in clock speed and the number of cores. Here Core i9-12900F is 15% better than M1 Pro in terms of CPU frequency. Another difference is that Core i9-12900F has 6 more core than M1 Pro. 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 Pro is better: 6
The number of parameters for which Intel Core i9-12900F is better: 30
Although it should be realized that the summary data in the table above do not mean that taking them into account you should entirely trust a simple comparison of these numbers. Be sure to watch the video tests and read the reviews of real owners of Apple M1 Pro and Intel Core i9-12900F before deciding which of the CPUs to buy for gaming.

Apple M1 Pro - all data

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

• Apple M1 Pro specs and review.

Intel Core i9-12900F - all data

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

• Intel Core i9-12900F specs and review.