Apple M2 Max vs Intel Core i7-12700K

Processor comparisons 22-10-2022

   If there are difficulties with the choice of a CPU, you will solve them by reading the comprehensive tests Apple M2 Max vs Intel Core i7-12700K and understand which is better for games or simple use for programming, video editing, rendering, machine learning, streaming. Here you can find all information from several benchmarks or real video editing and streaming tests. A careful analysis of all the specifications, to make it easier to read, is made by the table.
   From the video comparison, you can get the results of parallel examination in special testing software such as World of Tanks enCore Benchmark, WPrime, UserBenchmark, 3DMark, RealBench, DaVinci Resolve Studio, GeekBench 6, 5.2, SuperPi, Handbrake, Dolphin Emulator, VeraCrypt, PCMark 10, AIDA64, Furmark, Cinebench 23 (20, 15), Blender, Prime95, 7zip, MATLAB, PassMark, Gears 5, Blender.
   And how good the CPUs are in games:

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

After reading the results of joint benchmarks and videos, you already be able to figure out which CPU is better to buy for gaming Intel Core i7-12700K or Apple M2 Max.

Summary benchmark results

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

M2 Max

62%

Core i7-12700K

63%

The number of this parameter shows the performance of the processors in single-threaded and multi-threaded mode. In this comparison, Core i7-12700K is 1% better than M2 Max. The data source is several popular tests. More detailed information of the benchmarks is below.

Gaming performance
Summary result of all game benchmarks.

M2 Max

60%

Core i7-12700K

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. Therefore, if you think that the selected CPU has a small game result, look at the FPS that it produces in real games in the final table below.
List of other games in which processors were compared: Control, PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds (PUBG), Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS GO), League of Legends (LOL), Ghostrunner, DOTA 2A, Microsoft Flight Simulator, Forza Horizon 4, Metro Exodus, Horizon Zero Dawn, Shadow of the Tomb Raider, Battlefield V, Resident Evil 7 Biohazard, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, Half-Life: Alyx, Hitman 3, NBA 2K20, Monster Hunter World.

Gaming benchmark

Fortnite	106.0	105.4
Valorant	120.4	119.8
Cyberpunk 2077	67.4	67.1
Apex Legends	113.2	112.6
Call of Duty Warzone	90.3	89.8
Overwatch	97.5	97.0
Red Dead Redemption 2	83.1	82.7
DOOM Eternal	60.2	59.9
Warzone	93.9	93.4
Assassin's Creed	101.2	100.6
Valheim	99.9	99.4

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 comparisons not only were the equipped with different amounts of RAM and different video cards. 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. You will get more accurate information about how powerful 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

M2 Max

465%

Core i7-12700K

56%

To make a final decision 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 M2 Max is more energy efficient than the Core i7-12700K since it has less power consumption: 15W vs. 125W. Power consumption is particularly important for laptops. Also, when choosing a processor cooling system, it will be useful to know its TDP. 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, programming, video editing or video rendering, streaming, then first of all you need to pay attention to the performance in multi-threaded mode. In this mode, to achieve maximum efficiency, the CPU turns on all threads and cores that it has. You will learn this data from the benchmark tables below. Before using the data from these tests, be sure to make sure that the program that you are going to use on your computer can work in multi-threaded mode. Since there are still many programs that use only one core to run, and all the advantages 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 M2 Max	Intel Core i7-12700K
Cinbench 15 Single-core	389	569
Cinbench 15 Multi-core	2220	4145
Cinbench 20 Single-core	761	1358
Cinbench 20 Multi-core	3801	9408
Cinbench 23 Single-core	2204	3179
Cinbench 23 Multi-core	17142	31015

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

	Apple M2 Max	Intel Core i7-12700K
Single-Core	6536	7441
Multi-Core	42246	43423

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

	Apple M2 Max	Intel Core i7-12700K
Single-Core	2096	2117
Multi-Core	17617	17079

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 later the processor is released, the longer it will last you. And the easier it will be to upgrade the system in the future. The same can be said about overclocking. When the processor can be overclocked, thereby increasing its performance, then it will continue to maintain maximum FPS even in the newest games. The economy are obvious! Accordingly, you do not need to buy a new CPU to enjoy the games any longer.

	Apple M2 Max	Intel Core i7-12700K
Announcement date	October 20, 2022	January 07, 2022
Type	Desktop;Laptop	Desktop
Socket	M2	FCLGA1700
Core name	8x Avalanche and 4x Blizzard	Alder Lake
Architecture	hybrid (big.LITTLE)	x86
Generation	2	12
Turbo Frequency		5 MHz
Frequency	3.49 MHz	3.8 MHz
Cores	12	12
Threads	12	20
Bus rate		8 GT/s
Bit	64	64
Lithography	4 nm	7 nm
Transistors count	68000 millions	10200 millions
Power consumption (TDP)	15 W	125 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
Memory bandwidth	412 GByte/s	76.8 GB/s
L1 cache	4MB
L2 cache	24MB	12 MB
L3 cache	48MB	25 MB
Overclocking	No	No
Supports ECC	No	No
Part number

In this comparison block, you should pay attention to the differences in clock speed and the number of cores. Here Core i7-12700K is 8% better than M2 Max in terms of CPU frequency. 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 M2 Max is better: 20
The number of parameters for which Intel Core i7-12700K is better: 16
All the number in the text above do not mean that taking them into account you should undividedly trust a simple quantitative comparison. Be sure to watch benchmarks video and read the reviews of real owners of Apple M2 Max and Intel Core i7-12700K before making a decision which processor to buy for gaming and which not.

Apple M2 Max - all data

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

• Apple M2 Max specs and review.

Intel Core i7-12700K - all data

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

• Intel Core i7-12700K specs and review.