Apple A9 vs Intel Core i7-640UM

Comparative analysis of Apple A9 and Intel Core i7-640UM processors for all known characteristics in the following categories: Essentials, Performance, Memory, Graphics, Graphics interfaces, Compatibility, Peripherals, Security & Reliability, Advanced Technologies, Virtualization. Benchmark processor performance analysis: PassMark - Single thread mark, PassMark - CPU mark, Geekbench 4 - Single Core, Geekbench 4 - Multi-Core.

Apple A9

Intel Core i7-640UM

Differences

Reasons to consider the Apple A9

CPU is newer: launch date 5 year(s) 8 month(s) later
A newer manufacturing process allows for a more powerful, yet cooler running processor: 16 nm vs 32 nm
6x more L2 cache, more data can be stored in the L2 cache for quick access later
Around 35% better performance in PassMark - Single thread mark: 1188 vs 879
Around 75% better performance in PassMark - CPU mark: 2069 vs 1183

Specifications (specs)
Launch date	9 Sep 2015 vs 4 January 2010
Manufacturing process technology	16 nm vs 32 nm
L2 cache	3 MB (shared) vs 512 KB
Benchmarks
PassMark - Single thread mark	1188 vs 879
PassMark - CPU mark	2069 vs 1183

Reasons to consider the Intel Core i7-640UM

2 more threads: 4 vs 2
Around 23% higher clock speed: 2.27 GHz vs 1.85 GHz
4x more maximum memory size: 8 GB vs 2 GB

Number of threads	4 vs 2
Maximum frequency	2.27 GHz vs 1.85 GHz
Maximum memory size	8 GB vs 2 GB

Compare benchmarks

CPU 1: Apple A9
CPU 2: Intel Core i7-640UM

PassMark - Single thread mark

CPU 1

CPU 2

1188

879

PassMark - CPU mark

CPU 1

CPU 2

2069

1183

Name	Apple A9	Intel Core i7-640UM
PassMark - Single thread mark	1188	879
PassMark - CPU mark	2069	1183
Geekbench 4 - Single Core		1425
Geekbench 4 - Multi-Core		2406

Compare specifications (specs)

	Apple A9	Intel Core i7-640UM
Essentials
Architecture codename	Twister	Arrandale
Launch date	9 Sep 2015	4 January 2010
OS Support	iOS 9.0, iOS 15.7.5, iPadOS 16.4.1, tvOS 16.2
Place in performance rating	2043	2041
Processor Number	APL1021	i7-640UM
Launch price (MSRP)		$305
Series		Legacy Intel® Core™ Processors
Status		Discontinued
Vertical segment		Mobile
Performance
Base frequency	1.85 GHz	1.20 GHz
L1 cache	64 KB instruction + 64 KB data (per core)
L2 cache	3 MB (shared)	512 KB
L3 cache	4 MB (shared)	4 MB
Manufacturing process technology	16 nm	32 nm
Maximum frequency	1.85 GHz	2.27 GHz
Number of cores	2	2
Number of threads	2	4
Transistor count	2 billion	382 million
64 bit support
Bus Speed		2.5 GT/s DMI
Die size		81 mm2
Front-side bus (FSB)		2500 MHz
Maximum core temperature		105°C
Memory
Max memory channels	1	2
Maximum memory bandwidth	25.6 GB/s	12.8 GB/s
Maximum memory size	2 GB	8 GB
Supported memory types	LPDDR4-3200	DDR3 800
Graphics
Execution Units	24
Graphics base frequency	650 MHz	166 MHz
iGPU core count	6
Processor graphics	Custom PowerVR Series 7XT @ 650MHz	Intel HD Graphics
Graphics max dynamic frequency		500 MHz
Graphics max frequency		500 MHz
Intel® Clear Video HD technology
Intel® Clear Video technology
Intel® Flexible Display Interface (Intel® FDI)
Graphics interfaces
Number of displays supported		2
Compatibility
Low Halogen Options Available
Max number of CPUs in a configuration		1
Package Size		BGA 34mm x 28mm
Sockets supported		BGA1288
Thermal Design Power (TDP)		18 Watt
Peripherals
Max number of PCIe lanes		16
PCI Express revision		2.0
PCIe configurations		1x16
Security & Reliability
Execute Disable Bit (EDB)
Intel® Trusted Execution technology (TXT)
Advanced Technologies
Enhanced Intel SpeedStep® technology
Flexible Display interface (FDI)
Idle States
Instruction set extensions		Intel® SSE4.1, Intel® SSE4.2
Intel 64
Intel® AES New Instructions
Intel® Fast Memory Access
Intel® Flex Memory Access
Intel® Hyper-Threading technology
Intel® Turbo Boost technology
Intel® vPro™ Platform Eligibility
Physical Address Extensions (PAE)		36-bit
Thermal Monitoring
Virtualization
Intel® Virtualization Technology (VT-x)
Intel® Virtualization Technology for Directed I/O (VT-d)
Intel® VT-x with Extended Page Tables (EPT)