Apple M2 Max vs Intel Xeon Platinum 8260M

Processor comparisons 22-10-2022

   You may have difficulties with the choice of a CPU, you will solve them by reading the detailed tests Apple M2 Max vs Intel Xeon Platinum 8260M and decide which is better for games or normal use for streaming, machine learning, rendering, video editing, programming. Here you can find useful information from many benchmarks or real video editing and streaming tests. A thorough analysis of all the specifications, so that it can be easier to read, is made by the table.
   From the video comparison, you can get the results of joint testing in special test applications such as Furmark, Prime95, World of Tanks enCore Benchmark, RealBench, MATLAB, Cinebench 23 (20, 15), 3DMark, UserBenchmark, 7zip, Gears 5, VeraCrypt, PCMark 10, GeekBench 6, 5.2, SuperPi, DaVinci Resolve Studio, PassMark, WPrime, Handbrake, Blender, Dolphin Emulator, AIDA64, Blender.
   And how good the processors are in games:

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

After looking at the data of parallel benchmarks and videos, you can already make an informed decision about which processor is better to buy for gaming Intel Xeon Platinum 8260M 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%

Xeon Platinum 8260M

60%

The number of this parameter shows the performance of the processors in single-threaded and multi-threaded mode. In this comparison, M2 Max is 3% better than Xeon Platinum 8260M. The data source is several popular tests. Detailed information can be found below.

Gaming performance
Summary result of all game benchmarks.

M2 Max

60%

Xeon Platinum 8260M

69%

The maximum result in this parameter is 100 percent, which is the performance of the most powerful processor currently available. And of course, this is a server processor, on which no one will play games. Because this processor costs several tens of thousands of dollars. Therefore, if you think that the selected CPU has a low 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: The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS GO), Metro Exodus, Shadow of the Tomb Raider, League of Legends (LOL), Hitman 3, Forza Horizon 4, Horizon Zero Dawn, DOTA 2A, Battlefield V, Ghostrunner, Microsoft Flight Simulator, Half-Life: Alyx, Control, Resident Evil 7 Biohazard, Monster Hunter World, PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds (PUBG), NBA 2K20.

Gaming benchmark

Fortnite	106.0	121.9
Valorant	120.4	138.5
Cyberpunk 2077	67.4	77.6
Apex Legends	113.2	130.2
Call of Duty Warzone	90.3	103.9
Overwatch	97.5	112.2
Red Dead Redemption 2	83.1	95.6
DOOM Eternal	60.2	69.3
Warzone	93.9	108.1
Assassin's Creed	101.2	116.4
Valheim	99.9	115.0

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 tested computers not only did they have 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. 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

M2 Max

465%

Xeon Platinum 8260M

21%

To make a final choice 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 M2 Max is more energy efficient than the Xeon Platinum 8260M as it consumes less power: 15W vs. 165W. Power consumption is particularly important for laptops. Also, when choosing a processor cooling system, you must 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

Let's say you want to use the processor not only for gaming, but also for programming, machine learning, 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 reach maximum performance, the processor uses 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 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 run, 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 M2 Max	Intel Xeon Platinum 8260M
Cinbench 15 Single-core	389	211
Cinbench 15 Multi-core	2220	5808
Cinbench 20 Single-core	761	366
Cinbench 20 Multi-core	3801	14048
Cinbench 23 Single-core	2204	1239
Cinbench 23 Multi-core	17142	35899

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

	Apple M2 Max	Intel Xeon Platinum 8260M
Single-Core	6536	2291
Multi-Core	42246	34071

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

	Apple M2 Max	Intel Xeon Platinum 8260M
Single-Core	2096	1071
Multi-Core	17617	33238

Comparison of specifications

In the specification comparison table, the most helpful will be the release date of the processor and the possibility of overclocking it. The later the processor is released, 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. If the processor can be overclocked, increasing its performance, then it will continue to maintain maximum FPS even in new games. The savings are obvious! It turns out that you do not need to buy a new CPU to enjoy the games any longer.

	Apple M2 Max	Intel Xeon Platinum 8260M
Announcement date	October 20, 2022	October 01, 2020
Type	Desktop;Laptop	Server
Socket	M2	LGA3647
Core name	8x Avalanche and 4x Blizzard	Cascade Lake
Architecture	hybrid (big.LITTLE)	x86
Generation	2	2
Turbo Frequency		3.9 MHz
Frequency	3.49 MHz	2.3 MHz
Cores	12	24
Threads	12	48
Bus rate
Bit	64	64
Lithography	4 nm	14 nm
Transistors count	68000 millions	7510 millions
Power consumption (TDP)	15 W	165 W
Memory type	LPDDR5 - Up to 6400MHz	DDR4-2933
Max. Memory	64 Gb	1 Gb
Memory Frequency	6400
Memory bandwidth	412 GByte/s
L1 cache	4MB
L2 cache	24MB
L3 cache	48MB	35.75 MB
Overclocking	No	Yes
Supports ECC	No	Yes
Part number

In this comparison block, you should pay attention to the differences in clock speed and the number of cores. Here M2 Max is 34% better than Xeon Platinum 8260M in terms of CPU frequency. Another difference is that Xeon Platinum 8260M has 12 more core than M2 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 M2 Max is better: 17
The number of parameters for which Intel Xeon Platinum 8260M is better: 20
Although it should be realized that the summary data that you have looked at here do not mean that taking them into account you should entirely trust a simple comparison of these figures. Better to watch the testing video and read the reviews of of people who bought Apple M2 Max and Intel Xeon Platinum 8260M 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 Xeon Platinum 8260M specs and review.