Apple A12 Bionic vs Apple A8X

The Apple A12 Bionic is an advanced mobile processor primarily designed for Apple devices such as iPhones and iPads.

It aims for high performance for demanding applications, more complex multitasking scenarios, and AI tasks. Manufacturing takes place in a modern 7-nm process, based on the A12 architecture. This enables high transistor density and improved energy efficiency. The processor has an 8 MB Level-2 cache.

Regarding performance, the Apple A12 Bionic shows significantly higher single-core and multi-core performance compared to the Apple A8X.

This results in much better responsiveness for everyday tasks and a superior ability to handle computationally intensive operations. The integrated graphics unit offers superior gaming performance, supported by a maximum memory bandwidth of 34 GB/s, which enables smoother frame rates and more detailed graphics in modern games.

The 7-nm manufacturing process also contributes to more efficient energy consumption. Since it is an integrated mobile processor, no separate market prices or a direct price-performance ratio, like with desktop CPUs, can be evaluated. The Apple A8X is a mobile processor found in older Apple tablets and was developed for general mobile applications and moderate performance requirements.

It is based on the A8 architecture and is manufactured using a 20-nm process. This was a common standard at the time of its introduction. The processor is equipped with a 2 MB Level-2 cache and a 4 MB Level-3 cache. The performance of the Apple A8X is significantly lower than that of the Apple A12 Bionic in both single-core and multi-core areas.

For basic tasks such as web browsing, emails, and lighter applications, it is sufficient, but it quickly reaches its limits with more demanding programs and multitasking. The integrated graphics unit, called Apple A8X, delivers lower performance and is less suitable for modern, graphics-intensive games.

The maximum memory bandwidth is 13 GB/s, which is also lower than that of the Apple A12 Bionic. The 20-nm manufacturing process is less energy-efficient than the newer 7-nm process. Similar to the Apple A12 Bionic, the Apple A8X is not traded as a standalone product.