Apple M2 Pro vs Intel Core i5-12450HX

Processor comparisons 22-10-2022

   You may have difficulties with the choice of a CPU, you will solve them by reading the full tests Apple M2 Pro vs Intel Core i5-12450HX and see which is better for games or normal use for video editing, streaming, machine learning, rendering, programming. Here is useful information from various benchmarks or real video editing and streaming tests. A careful review of all the technical characteristics, to make it easier to understand, is summarized in the table.
   From the comparison video, you can get the results of joint testing in special test applications like Handbrake, 3DMark, PCMark 10, PassMark, Furmark, Cinebench 23 (20, 15), Prime95, World of Tanks enCore Benchmark, Dolphin Emulator, MATLAB, UserBenchmark, DaVinci Resolve Studio, GeekBench 6, 5.2, 7zip, RealBench, WPrime, VeraCrypt, SuperPi, AIDA64, Blender, Gears 5, Blender.
   And how good the processors are in games:

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

After reading the results of parallel benchmarks and videos, you can already make an informed decision about which CPU is better to buy for gaming Intel Core i5-12450HX 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 i5-12450HX

57%

This value shows the performance of the processors in single-threaded and multi-threaded mode. In this comparison, M2 Pro is 6% better than Core i5-12450HX. The data source is several popular tests. More detailed information of the benchmarks is below.

Gaming performance
Summary result of all game benchmarks.

M2 Pro

59%

Core i5-12450HX

55%

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

Gaming benchmark

Fortnite	104.8	96.9
Valorant	119.1	110.1
Cyberpunk 2077	66.7	61.6
Apex Legends	111.9	103.5
Call of Duty Warzone	89.3	82.5
Overwatch	96.5	89.2
Red Dead Redemption 2	82.2	75.9
DOOM Eternal	59.5	55.0
Warzone	92.9	85.9
Assassin's Creed	100.0	92.5
Valheim	98.8	91.4

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 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 get acquainted with the benchmarks that are made with the same video card that is installed in your computer.

Power consumption

M2 Pro

496%

Core i5-12450HX

101%

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 M2 Pro is more energy efficient than the Core i5-12450HX as it consumes less power: 14W vs. 55W. Power consumption is especially 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 video rendering or video editing, streaming, machine learning, programming, then first of all you need to pay attention to the performance in multi-threaded mode. In this mode, to achieve maximum efficiency, the processor includes all cores and threads that it has. You will learn this data from the benchmark tables below. Before you take into account the data from these tests, be sure to check whether the software you are going to use on your computer supports multi-threaded mode. Since there are still many programs that 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 Pro	Intel Core i5-12450HX
Cinbench 15 Single-core	366	324
Cinbench 15 Multi-core	2078	2314
Cinbench 20 Single-core	714	764
Cinbench 20 Multi-core	3555	5244
Cinbench 23 Single-core	2063	1775
Cinbench 23 Multi-core	16023	17265

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

	Apple M2 Pro	Intel Core i5-12450HX
Single-Core	6111	4149
Multi-Core	39485	24167

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

	Apple M2 Pro	Intel Core i5-12450HX
Single-Core	2085	1679
Multi-Core	16467	8683

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 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. If the processor can be overclocked, increasing its performance, then it will still be able to produce maximum FPS in new games. Accordingly, you do not need to buy a new CPU to enjoy the games any longer. The savings are obvious!

	Apple M2 Pro	Intel Core i5-12450HX
Announcement date	October 20, 2022	June 26, 2022
Type	Desktop;Laptop	Laptop
Socket	M2	FCBGA1964
Core name	8x Avalanche and 4x Blizzard	Alder Lake
Architecture	hybrid (big.LITTLE)	x86
Generation	2	12
Turbo Frequency		4.4 MHz
Frequency	3.49 MHz	3.1 MHz
Cores	12	8
Threads	12	12
Bus rate		8 GT/s
Bit	64	64
Lithography	4 nm	7 nm
Transistors count	42000 millions	10200 millions
Power consumption (TDP)	14 W	55 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
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 11% better than Core i5-12450HX in terms of CPU frequency. Another difference is that M2 Pro has 4 more core than Core i5-12450HX. 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: 27
The number of parameters for which Intel Core i5-12450HX is better: 9
However, it should be understood 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 numbers. Better to watch benchmarks video and read the opinion of of people who bought Apple M2 Pro and Intel Core i5-12450HX before making a decision which of the CPUs 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 i5-12450HX - all data

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

• Intel Core i5-12450HX specs and review.