Apple M2 Pro vs Intel Core i3-12100

Processor comparisons   22-10-2022
   If you can't decide which CPU to buy, you can make a choice by looking at the Apple M2 Pro vs Intel Core i3-12100 tests and see which is better for games or simple use for machine learning, rendering, streaming, programming, video editing. Here you can find all information from real video editing and streaming tests or several benchmarks. A careful analysis of all the technical characteristics, to make it easier to read, is presented in the form of the table.
   From the comparison video, you can get the results of parallel examination in special test applications such as Handbrake, MATLAB, Prime95, PCMark 10, SuperPi, GeekBench 6, 5.2, VeraCrypt, Blender, World of Tanks enCore Benchmark, UserBenchmark, Dolphin Emulator, Gears 5, RealBench, PassMark, 7zip, 3DMark, WPrime, Blender, Cinebench 23 (20, 15), AIDA64, DaVinci Resolve Studio, Furmark.
   Gaming performance of processors in:

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

After reading the results these benchmarks and videos, you can already make an briefed decision about which processor is better to buy for gaming Intel Core i3-12100 or Apple M2 Pro.

Summary benchmark results

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

M2 Pro

61%

Core i3-12100

56%

The number of this parameter shows the performance of the processors in single-threaded and multi-threaded mode. In this comparison, M2 Pro is 8% better than Core i3-12100. The data source is several popular tests. Detailed information can be found below.

Gaming performance
Summary result of all game benchmarks.

M2 Pro

59%

Core i3-12100

54%

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 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, 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, League of Legends (LOL), Horizon Zero Dawn, Resident Evil 7 Biohazard, Hitman 3, Half-Life: Alyx, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS GO), Battlefield V, Forza Horizon 4, NBA 2K20, PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds (PUBG), Control, DOTA 2A, Monster Hunter World, Ghostrunner, Microsoft Flight Simulator, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, Shadow of the Tomb Raider.

Gaming benchmark

Fortnite	104.8	96.0
Valorant	119.1	109.1
Cyberpunk 2077	66.7	61.1
Apex Legends	111.9	102.6
Call of Duty Warzone	89.3	81.8
Overwatch	96.5	88.4
Red Dead Redemption 2	82.2	75.3
DOOM Eternal	59.5	54.6
Warzone	92.9	85.1
Assassin's Creed	100.0	91.7
Valheim	98.8	90.6

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 participating in the comparisons 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. Therefore, 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 Pro

496%

Core i3-12100

96%

To make a final 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 M2 Pro is more energy efficient than the Core i3-12100 since it has less power consumption: 14W vs. 60W. Power consumption is especially important for laptops. And TDP should be taken into account when choosing a processor cooling system. 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

For example you plan to use the processor not only for gaming, but also for streaming, video editing or video rendering, programming, machine learning, then first of all you need to pay attention to the performance in multi-threaded mode. In this mode, to achieve maximum performance, the processor uses all threads and cores 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 can use only one core to work, 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 Pro	Intel Core i3-12100
Cinbench 15 Single-core	366	267
Cinbench 15 Multi-core	2078	1958
Cinbench 20 Single-core	714	642
Cinbench 20 Multi-core	3555	4447
Cinbench 23 Single-core	2063	1503
Cinbench 23 Multi-core	16023	14658

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

	Apple M2 Pro	Intel Core i3-12100
Single-Core	6111	3516
Multi-Core	39485	20521

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

	Apple M2 Pro	Intel Core i3-12100
Single-Core	2085	1740
Multi-Core	16467	7859

Comparison of specifications

In the specification comparison table, the most useful 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 in your computer. And the easier it will be to upgrade the system later. 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. It turns out that you do not need to buy a new CPU to enjoy the games any longer. The economy are obvious!

	Apple M2 Pro	Intel Core i3-12100
Announcement date	October 20, 2022	January 07, 2022
Type	Desktop;Laptop	Desktop
Socket	M2	FCBGA1744
Core name	8x Avalanche and 4x Blizzard	Alder Lake-U
Architecture	hybrid (big.LITTLE)	x86
Generation	2	12
Turbo Frequency		4.3 MHz
Frequency	3.49 MHz	1 MHz
Cores	12	4
Threads	12	8
Bus rate		8 GT/s
Bit	64	64
Lithography	4 nm	7 nm
Transistors count	42000 millions	9800 millions
Power consumption (TDP)	14 W	60 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
Memory bandwidth	208 GByte/s	76.8 GB/s
L1 cache	4MB
L2 cache	24MB	5 MB
L3 cache	36MB	12 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 M2 Pro is 71% better than Core i3-12100 in terms of CPU frequency. Another difference is that M2 Pro has 8 more core than Core i3-12100. 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 Pro is better: 30
The number of parameters for which Intel Core i3-12100 is better: 7
Although it should be understood that all the number in the table above do not mean that taking them into account you should totally trust a simple quantitative comparison. Better to watch the video tests and read the reviews of real owners of Apple M2 Pro and Intel Core i3-12100 before making a choice which of the processors to buy for gaming.

Apple M2 Pro - all data

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

• Apple M2 Pro specs and review.

Intel Core i3-12100 - all data

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

• Intel Core i3-12100 specs and review.