Apple A10 Fusion vs Apple A9

Apple A10 Fusion and Apple A9 are SoCs developed by Apple for mobile devices.

The Apple A10 Fusion debuted with the iPhone 7, and the Apple A9 with the iPhone 6s. Both chips were designed for balanced performance and energy efficiency in apps and multimedia. The Apple A10 Fusion (architecture: A10) uses a 10 nm process with four cores (two high-performance, two efficient).

The Apple A9 (architecture: A9) uses a 16 nm process with two cores. Both feature 3 MB L2 and 4 MB L3 cache, as well as 26 GB/s memory bandwidth. The Apple A10 Fusion surpasses the Apple A9 in single- and multi-core benchmarks by over 30 percent, enabling more responsive applications and more efficient task processing.

Its more powerful integrated graphics unit (Apple A10 vs. Apple A9) also offers better gaming performance. Both mobile SoCs are energy-efficient, with the Apple A10 Fusion's 10 nm process being more efficient. These processors are permanently installed in older Apple devices. Devices with the Apple A10 Fusion tend to be more expensive in resale, commensurate with their higher performance.

For smoother operation and gaming, the Apple A10 Fusion is the better choice; for simple, cost-effective use, the Apple A9 suffices.