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Apple A15 Bionic (5-GPU) vs Apple M3
Last updated:
Summary
The Apple A15 Bionic (5-GPU), developed for mobile devices, offers efficient everyday performance. The Apple M3, a newer generation of Apple Silicon, targets desktop and laptop computers and delivers higher computing and graphics capability for professional users.
The A15 Bionic is manufactured using the 5-nanometer process, has a 6-core CPU, 5-core GPU, and 34 GB/s memory bandwidth. The M3 uses the 3-nanometer process, features an 8-core CPU, 10-core GPU, and 102 GB/s memory bandwidth. The M3 significantly outperforms the A15 Bionic (5-GPU) in single-core and multi-core performance, which results in faster and smoother applications.
For gaming, the M3 offers a superior experience thanks to its more powerful GPU and higher memory bandwidth. The A15 Bionic is optimized for high energy efficiency in mobile devices. The M3, despite its higher performance, offers good performance per watt thanks to the 3-nanometer process and is intended for systems with active cooling.
Both are tightly integrated into Apple devices. The A15 Bionic (5-GPU) is ideal for compact devices with good everyday performance and efficiency. The M3 is recommended for professional applications and intensive gaming, as it delivers superior computing and graphics performance.
The A15 Bionic is manufactured using the 5-nanometer process, has a 6-core CPU, 5-core GPU, and 34 GB/s memory bandwidth. The M3 uses the 3-nanometer process, features an 8-core CPU, 10-core GPU, and 102 GB/s memory bandwidth. The M3 significantly outperforms the A15 Bionic (5-GPU) in single-core and multi-core performance, which results in faster and smoother applications.
For gaming, the M3 offers a superior experience thanks to its more powerful GPU and higher memory bandwidth. The A15 Bionic is optimized for high energy efficiency in mobile devices. The M3, despite its higher performance, offers good performance per watt thanks to the 3-nanometer process and is intended for systems with active cooling.
Both are tightly integrated into Apple devices. The A15 Bionic (5-GPU) is ideal for compact devices with good everyday performance and efficiency. The M3 is recommended for professional applications and intensive gaming, as it delivers superior computing and graphics performance.
Apple A15 Bionic (5-GPU)
- Efficient performance for mobile devices
- 5-nanometer manufacturing, 6-core CPU, 5-core GPU
- High energy efficiency
- Ideal for compact devices
Apple M3
- Higher computing and graphics performance for desktops/laptops
- 3-nanometer manufacturing, 8-core CPU, 10-core GPU
- Superior performance per watt
- Recommended for professional applications and gaming
Benchmarks
Performance Overview
Average performance across multiple benchmarks
Single-core performance
Multi-core performance
Geekbench 6 Single-Core
Single-core performance
6C / 6T · 3.23 GHz
Apple M3
100 %
8C / 8T · 4.06 GHz
Geekbench 6 Multi-Core
Multi-core performance
6C / 6T · 3.23 GHz
Apple M3
100 %
8C / 8T · 4.06 GHz
Geekbench 5, 64bit Single-Core
Single-core performance
6C / 6T · 3.23 GHz
Apple M3
100 %
8C / 8T · 4.06 GHz
Geekbench 5, 64bit Multi-Core
Multi-core performance
6C / 6T · 3.23 GHz
Apple M3
100 %
8C / 8T · 4.06 GHz
iGPU - FP32 Performance (Single-precision GFLOPS)
Apple A15 (5 GPU Cores)
Apple M3
100 %
Apple M3 (10 Core)
AI performance (NPU)
6C / 6T · 3.23 GHz
Apple M3
100 %
8C / 8T · 0.70 GHz
More benchmarks
Cinebench 2026 (ST)
218 entries
218 entries
Cinebench 2026 (MC)
219 entries
219 entries
Cinebench 2024 (SC)
427 entries
427 entries
Cinebench 2024 (MC)
422 entries
422 entries
Cinebench R23 (SC)
690 entries
690 entries
Cinebench R23 (MC)
665 entries
665 entries
Geekbench 6 (SC)
1,989 entries
1,989 entries
Geekbench 6 (MC)
1,927 entries
1,927 entries
Geekbench 5 (SC)
2,512 entries
2,512 entries
Geekbench 5 (MC)
2,483 entries
2,483 entries
FP32 SP (iGPU)
2,219 entries
2,219 entries
AnTuTu 10 Benchmark
25 entries
25 entries
AnTuTu 9 Benchmark
90 entries
90 entries
PassMark CPU-Mark
2,504 entries
2,504 entries
CPU performance per watt (efficiency)
140 entries
140 entries
AI performance (NPU)
218 entries
218 entries
Specifications
At a glance
|
Wischen
|
Apple A15 Bionic (5-GPU) | Apple M3 |
|---|---|---|
| Family | Apple A series (27) | Apple M series (38) |
| CPU group | Apple A15 (2) | Apple M3 (6) |
| Architecture | A15 | M3 |
| Technology | 5 nm | 3 nm |
| Segment | Smartphone / Tablet | Notebook |
| Socket | ||
| Predecessor | Apple A14 Bionic | Apple M2 |
| Successor | Apple A16 Bionic | Apple M4 |
CPU Cores and Base Frequency
|
Wischen
|
Apple A15 Bionic (5-GPU) | Apple M3 |
|---|---|---|
| CPU Cores / Threads | 6 / 6 | 8 / 8 |
| Hyperthreading / SMT | ✗ | ✗ |
| Core architecture | hybrid (big.LITTLE) | hybrid (big.LITTLE) |
| Core Cluster 1: | 2x Avalanche 3.23 GHz |
4x Ibiza P-Core 0.70 - 4.06 GHz |
| Core Cluster 2: | 4x Blizzard 2.02 GHz |
4x Ibiza E-Core 0.74 - 2.75 GHz |
| L2-Cache | 16.00 MB | 20.00 MB |
| L3-Cache | 32.00 MB | |
| Overclocking | ✗ | ✗ |
Integrated graphics (iGPU)
|
Wischen
|
Apple A15 Bionic (5-GPU) | Apple M3 |
|---|---|---|
| GPU name | Apple A15 (5 GPU Cores) | Apple M3 (10 Core) |
| GPU frequency | 1.34 GHz | 0.39 - 1.40 GHz |
| CUs / Shader | 20 / 640 | 160 / 1280 |
| Raytracing | ✗ | ✓ |
| Max. displays | 3 | 2 |
| Max. GPU Memory | 6 GB | 24 GB |
| Technology | 5 nm | 3 nm |
| Release date | Q3/2021 | Q4/2023 |
NPU AI performance
|
Wischen
|
Apple A15 Bionic (5-GPU) | Apple M3 |
|---|---|---|
| AI hardware | Apple Neural Engine | Apple Neural Engine |
| AI specifications | 16 Neural cores @ 15.8 TOPS | 16 Neural cores @ 35 TOPS |
| NPU + CPU + iGPU |
Memory & PCIe
|
Wischen
|
Apple A15 Bionic (5-GPU) | Apple M3 |
|---|---|---|
| Memory | LPDDR4X-4266 (34.1 GB/s) | LPDDR5-6400 (102.4 GB/s) |
| Max. Memory | 6 GB | 24 GB |
| Memory channels | 1 | 2 |
| ECC | No | No |
| PCIe | 4.0 | |
| PCIe Bandwidth |
Thermal Management
|
Wischen
|
Apple A15 Bionic (5-GPU) | Apple M3 |
|---|---|---|
| TDP | 10 W | 22 W |
| TDP (PL2) | ||
| TDP up | ||
| TDP down | 15 W | |
| T. junction max. | 100 °C |
Technical details
|
Wischen
|
Apple A15 Bionic (5-GPU) | Apple M3 |
|---|---|---|
| Chip design | Chiplet | Monolithic |
| AES-NI | ✗ | ✓ |
| Operating systems | iOS | macOS, iPadOS |
| Instruction set | Armv8-A (64 bit) | Armv8-A (64 bit) |
| ISA extensions | Rosetta 2 x86-Emulation | |
| Release date | Q3/2021 | Q4/2023 |
| Release price | ||
| Documents |
User Reviews
Your rating
Here you can rate one or both of the processors. The average rating of Apple A15 Bionic (5-GPU) is 4.2 stars (195 ratings), while Apple M3 has received 4.6 stars (1638 ratings).
Click on the stars to rate one or both processors.
Most popular CPUs in both categories
1
Apple M5 Max (18-CPU 32-GPU)
18C / 18T · 4.61 GHz
2
Apple M5 Max (18-CPU 40-GPU)
18C / 18T · 4.61 GHz
3
Apple M2 Ultra (76-GPU)
24C / 24T · 3.50 GHz
4
Apple M1 Ultra (64-GPU)
20C / 20T · 3.20 GHz
5
Apple M1 Ultra (48-GPU)
20C / 20T · 3.20 GHz
6
Apple M4 (8-CPU)
8C / 8T · 4.46 GHz
7
Apple M2 Ultra (60-GPU)
24C / 24T · 3.50 GHz
8
Apple M3
8C / 8T · 4.06 GHz
9
Apple A15 Bionic (5-GPU)
6C / 6T · 0.00 GHz
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