Apple A15 Bionic VS Apple A12 Bionic

Comparing Apple A15 Bionic vs Apple A12 Bionic

Comparison of video cards Apple A15 Bionic vs Apple A12 Bionic in benchmarks and specifications.

Differences Specifications

Differences

Top features of Apple A12 Bionic

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Performance per watt

6 W 8.5 W

About 1.42 0.97 times less performance per watt

Top features of Apple A15 Bionic

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Higher clock speed

3.23 GHz 1.59 GHz

Around 51% better clock speed

Specifications

Complete list of technical specifications

Apple A12 Bionic Apple A15 Bionic

CPU generation and family

Let's find out which one of Apple A12 Bionic and Apple A15 Bionic is of a more recent generation, and what segment it belongs to.

Specification	Value
Name	Apple A12 Bionic Apple A15 Bionic
Segment	Mobile Mobile
Family	Apple A series Apple A series
Generation	12 15
CPU group	Apple A12/A12X/A12Z Apple A15
Predecessor	Apple A11 Bionic Apple A14 Bionic
Successor	Apple A13 Bionic --

CPU Cores and Base Frequency

In this block we are going to compare Apple A12 Bionic vs Apple A15 Bionic by main technical specifications: number of cores and threads, base and maximum frequencies, process technology and cache size. The higher these specifications are, the more powerful your CPU will be.

Specification	Value
Frequency	1.59 GHz 3.23 GHz
CPU Cores	6 6
Turbo (1 Core)	2.49 GHz No turbo
CPU Threads	6 6
Turbo (6 Cores)	2.49 GHz No turbo
Hyperthreading	No No
Overclocking	No No
Core architecture	hybrid (big.LITTLE) hybrid (big.LITTLE)
A core	2x Vortex 2x Avalanche
B core	4x Tempest 4x Blizzard

Internal Graphics

Common specifications for integrated graphics cards in Apple A12 Bionic and Apple A15 Bionic along with supported interfaces and connection options. This block has no effect on the final efficiency of the CPU.

Specification	Value
GPU name	Apple A12 Apple A15 (5 GPU Cores)
GPU frequency	1.59 GHz 1.80 GHz
GPU (Turbo)	2.49 GHz 3.20 GHz
Execution units	4 5
Max. GPU Memory	4 GB 8 GB
Max. displays	1 3
Generation	9 12
Technology	7 nm 5 nm
Release date	Q3/2018 Q3/2021

Hardware codec support

Let's compare the support of video codecs between Apple A12 Bionic and Apple A15 Bionic. Hardware support of video decoding by embedded graphics cards directly affects the speed and quality of rendering videos.

Specification	Value
h265 / HEVC (8 bit)	Decode / Encode Decode / Encode
h265 / HEVC (10 bit)	Decode / Encode Decode / Encode
h264	Decode / Encode Decode / Encode
VP9	Decode / Encode Decode / Encode
VP8	Decode / Encode Decode / Encode
AV1	No Decode
AVC	Decode Decode
VC-1	Decode Decode
JPEG	Decode / Encode Decode / Encode

Memory & PCIe

To choose the best model between Apple A12 Bionic and Apple A15 Bionic you need to pay special attention to memory type, clock frequency, multi-channel features, and PCIe version. The higher these numbers are, the better your CPU will be. Keep in mind that the maximum memory and frequency may also depend on the model of the motherboard.

Specification	Value
Memory type	LPDDR4X-4266 LPDDR4X-4266
Max. Memory	16 GB 8 GB
ECC	No No
Memory channels	1 2

Encryption

AES-NI encryption support for CPUs Apple A12 Bionic and Apple A15 Bionic.

Specification	Value
AES-NI	No No

Thermal Management

Let's find out what TDP value would be better for Apple A12 Bionic or Apple A15 Bionic? The Thermal Design Power (TDP) indicates the maximum amount of heat that should be dissipated by the chip cooling system. However, the value of TDP gives only a rough indication of the real power consumption of the CPU.

Specification	Value
TDP (PL1)	6 W 8.5 W

Technical details

Here you can find a comparison of 2nd and 3rd level cache sizes for Apple A12 Bionic and Apple A15 Bionic CPUs along with a list of ISA extensions.

Specification	Value
Instruction set (ISA)	x86-64 (64 bit) x86-64 (64 bit)
Virtualization	None None
L2-Cache	8.00 MB 4.00 MB
Architecture	A12 A15
Technology	7 nm 5 nm
Socket	N/A N/A
Release date	Q3/2018 Q3/2021

Devices using this processor

List of devices based on Apple A12 Bionic and Apple A15 Bionic.

Specification	Value
Used in	Apple iPhone XRApple iPhone XSApple iPhone XS MaxApple iPad mini (5. Gen)Apple iPad Air (3. Gen) Apple iPad mini (6. Gen)Apple iPhone 13 miniApple iPhone 13Apple iPhone 13 ProApple iPhone 13 Pro Max