Apple A9 vs Google Tensor G2

Last updated:

CPU comparison with benchmarks


Apple A9 CPU1 vs CPU2 Google Tensor G2
Apple A9 Google Tensor G2

CPU comparison

Apple A9 or Google Tensor G2 - which processor is faster? In this comparison we look at the differences and analyze which of these two CPUs is better. We compare the technical data and benchmark results.

The Apple A9 has 2 cores with 2 threads and clocks with a maximum frequency of 1.85 GHz. Up to 2 GB of memory is supported in 1 memory channels. The Apple A9 was released in Q3/2015.

The Google Tensor G2 has 8 cores with 8 threads and clocks with a maximum frequency of 2.85 GHz. The CPU supports up to 12 GB of memory in 2 memory channels. The Google Tensor G2 was released in Q4/2022.
Apple A series (22) Family Google Tensor (3)
Apple A9/A9X (2) CPU group Google Tensor G2 (1)
9 Generation 2
A9 Architecture G2
Mobile Segment Mobile
Apple A8 Predecessor Google Tensor
Apple A10 Fusion Successor --

CPU Cores and Base Frequency

The Apple A9 has 2 CPU cores and can calculate 2 threads in parallel. The clock frequency of the Apple A9 is 1.85 GHz while the Google Tensor G2 has 8 CPU cores and 8 threads can calculate simultaneously. The clock frequency of the Google Tensor G2 is at 2.85 GHz.

Apple A9 Characteristic Google Tensor G2
2 Cores 8
2 Threads 8
normal Core architecture hybrid (Prime / big.LITTLE)
No Hyperthreading No
No Overclocking ? No
1.85 GHz
2x Twister
A-Core 2.85 GHz
2x Cortex-X1
-- B-Core 2.35 GHz
2x Cortex-A78
-- C-Core 1.80 GHz
4x Cortex-A55

Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning

Processors with the support of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) can process many calculations, especially audio, image and video processing, much faster than classic processors. Algorithms for ML improve their performance the more data they have collected via software. ML tasks can be processed up to 10,000 times faster than with a classic processor.

Apple A9 Characteristic Google Tensor G2
-- AI hardware Google Tensor AI
-- AI specifications Google Edge TPU @ 4 TOPS

Internal Graphics

The Apple A9 or Google Tensor G2 has integrated graphics, called iGPU for short. The iGPU uses the system's main memory as graphics memory and sits on the processor's die.

Apple A9 GPU ARM Mali-G710 MP7
0.65 GHz GPU frequency 0.90 GHz
-- GPU (Turbo) --
6 GPU Generation Vallhall 3
16 nm Technology 4 nm
1 Max. displays 1
24 Compute units 7
192 Shader --
No Hardware Raytracing No
No Frame Generation No
4 GB Max. GPU Memory --
-- DirectX Version 12

Hardware codec support

A photo or video codec that is accelerated in hardware can greatly accelerate the working speed of a processor and extend the battery life of notebooks or smartphones when playing videos.

Apple A9 GPU ARM Mali-G710 MP7
No Codec h265 / HEVC (8 bit) Decode / Encode
No Codec h265 / HEVC (10 bit) Decode / Encode
Decode Codec h264 Decode / Encode
No Codec VP9 Decode / Encode
Decode Codec VP8 Decode / Encode
No Codec AV1 Decode
Decode Codec AVC Decode / Encode
Decode Codec VC-1 Decode / Encode
Decode / Encode Codec JPEG Decode / Encode

Memory & PCIe

The Apple A9 can use up to 2 GB of memory in 1 memory channels. The maximum memory bandwidth is 25.6 GB/s. The Google Tensor G2 supports up to 12 GB of memory in 2 memory channels and achieves a memory bandwidth of up to 53.0 GB/s.

Apple A9 Characteristic Google Tensor G2
LPDDR4-3200 Memory LPDDR5-5500
2 GB Max. Memory 12 GB
1 (Single Channel) Memory channels 2 (Dual Channel)
25.6 GB/s Max. Bandwidth 53.0 GB/s
No ECC No
3.00 MB L2 Cache 8.00 MB
4.00 MB L3 Cache 4.00 MB
-- PCIe version --
-- PCIe lanes --
-- PCIe Bandwidth --

Thermal Management

The thermal design power (TDP for short) of the Apple A9 is 5 W, while the Google Tensor G2 has a TDP of 10 W. The TDP specifies the necessary cooling solution that is required to cool the processor sufficiently.

Apple A9 Characteristic Google Tensor G2
5 W TDP (PL1 / PBP) 10 W
-- TDP (PL2) --
-- TDP up --
-- TDP down --
-- Tjunction max. --

Technical details

The Apple A9 is manufactured in 16 nm and has 7.00 MB cache. The Google Tensor G2 is manufactured in 4 nm and has a 12.00 MB cache.

Apple A9 Characteristic Google Tensor G2
16 nm Technology 4 nm
Chiplet Chip design Chiplet
Armv8-A (64 bit) Instruction set (ISA) Armv8-A (64 bit)
-- ISA extensions --
-- Socket --
None Virtualization None
No AES-NI No
iOS Operating systems Android
Q3/2015 Release date Q4/2022
-- Release price --
show more data show more data


Rate these processors

Here you can rate the Apple A9 to help other visitors make their purchasing decisions. The average rating is 4.2 stars (5 ratings). Rate now:
Here you can rate the Google Tensor G2 to help other visitors make their purchasing decisions. The average rating is 4.0 stars (23 ratings). Rate now:


Average performance in benchmarks

⌀ Single core performance in 2 CPU benchmarks
Apple A9 (48%)
Google Tensor G2 (100%)
⌀ Multi core performance in 2 CPU benchmarks
Apple A9 (31%)
Google Tensor G2 (100%)

Geekbench 5, 64bit (Single-Core)

Geekbench 5 is a cross plattform benchmark that heavily uses the systems memory. A fast memory will push the result a lot. The single-core test only uses one CPU core, the amount of cores or hyperthreading ability doesn't count.
Apple A9 Apple A9
2C 2T @ 1.85 GHz
558 (52%)
Google Tensor G2 Google Tensor G2
8C 8T @ 2.85 GHz
1068 (100%)

Geekbench 5, 64bit (Multi-Core)

Geekbench 5 is a cross plattform benchmark that heavily uses the systems memory. A fast memory will push the result a lot. The multi-core test involves all CPU cores and taks a big advantage of hyperthreading.
Apple A9 Apple A9
2C 2T @ 1.85 GHz
1024 (33%)
Google Tensor G2 Google Tensor G2
8C 8T @ 2.85 GHz
3149 (100%)

Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)

Geekbench 6 is a benchmark for modern computers, notebooks and smartphones. What is new is an optimized utilization of newer CPU architectures, e.g. based on the big.LITTLE concept and combining CPU cores of different sizes. The single-core benchmark only evaluates the performance of the fastest CPU core, the number of CPU cores in a processor is irrelevant here.
Apple A9 Apple A9
2C 2T @ 1.85 GHz
632 (44%)
Google Tensor G2 Google Tensor G2
8C 8T @ 2.85 GHz
1426 (100%)

Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)

Geekbench 6 is a benchmark for modern computers, notebooks and smartphones. What is new is an optimized utilization of newer CPU architectures, e.g. based on the big.LITTLE concept and combining CPU cores of different sizes. The multi-core benchmark evaluates the performance of all of the processor's CPU cores. Virtual thread improvements such as AMD SMT or Intel's Hyper-Threading have a positive impact on the benchmark result.
Apple A9 Apple A9
2C 2T @ 1.85 GHz
921 (28%)
Google Tensor G2 Google Tensor G2
8C 8T @ 2.85 GHz
3342 (100%)

iGPU - FP32 Performance (Single-precision GFLOPS)

The theoretical computing performance of the internal graphics unit of the processor with simple accuracy (32 bit) in GFLOPS. GFLOPS indicates how many billion floating point operations the iGPU can perform per second.
Apple A9 Apple A9
Apple A9 @ 0.65 GHz
250 (36%)
Google Tensor G2 Google Tensor G2
ARM Mali-G710 MP7 @ 0.90 GHz
700 (100%)

AnTuTu 9 Benchmark

The AnTuTu 9 benchmark is very well suited to measuring the performance of a smartphone. AnTuTu 9 is quite heavy on 3D graphics and can now also use the "Metal" graphics interface. In AnTuTu, memory and UX (user experience) are also tested by simulating browser and app usage. AnTuTu version 9 can compare any ARM CPU running on Android or iOS. Devices may not be directly comparable when benchmarked on different operating systems.

In the AnTuTu 9 benchmark, the single-core performance of a processor is only slightly weighted. The rating is made up of the multi-core performance of the processor, the speed of the working memory, and the performance of the internal graphics.
Apple A9 Apple A9
2C 2T @ 1.85 GHz
0 (0%)
Google Tensor G2 Google Tensor G2
8C 8T @ 2.85 GHz
789419 (100%)

AnTuTu 8 Benchmark

The AnTuTu 8 Benchmark measures the performance of a SoC. AnTuTu benchmarks the CPU, GPU, Memory as well as the UX (User Experience) by simulating browser and app usage. AnTuTu can benchmark any ARM CPU that runs under Android or iOS. Devices may not be directly compareable if the benchmark has been performed under different operating systems.

In the AnTuTu 8 benchmark, the single-core performance of a processor is only slightly weighted. The evaluation consists of the multi-core performance of the processor, the speed of the RAM and the performance of the internal graphics.
Apple A9 Apple A9
2C 2T @ 1.85 GHz
172160 (100%)
Google Tensor G2 Google Tensor G2
8C 8T @ 2.85 GHz
0 (0%)

Estimated results for PassMark CPU Mark

Some of the CPUs listed below have been benchmarked by CPU-monkey. However the majority of CPUs have not been tested and the results have been estimated by a CPU-monkey’s secret proprietary formula. As such they do not accurately reflect the actual Passmark CPU mark values and are not endorsed by PassMark Software Pty Ltd.
Apple A9 Apple A9
2C 2T @ 1.85 GHz
2053 (100%)
Google Tensor G2 Google Tensor G2
8C 8T @ 2.85 GHz
0 (0%)

Performance for Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML)

Processors with the support of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) can process many calculations, especially audio, image and video processing, much faster than classic processors. The performance is given in the number (trillions) of arithmetic operations per second (TOPS).
Apple A9 Apple A9
2C 2T @ 1.85 GHz
0 (0%)
Google Tensor G2 Google Tensor G2
8C 8T @ 2.85 GHz
4 (100%)

Devices using this processor

Apple A9 Google Tensor G2
Apple iPhone 6s
Apple iPhone SE (1. Gen)
Google Pixel 7
Google Pixel 7 Pro

Popular comparisons containing this CPUs

1. Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 1Google Tensor G2 Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 vs Google Tensor G2
2. Google Tensor G3Google Tensor G2 Google Tensor G3 vs Google Tensor G2
3. Qualcomm Snapdragon 888Google Tensor G2 Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 vs Google Tensor G2
4. Apple A8XApple A9 Apple A8X vs Apple A9
5. Google TensorGoogle Tensor G2 Google Tensor vs Google Tensor G2
6. Apple A14 BionicApple A9 Apple A14 Bionic vs Apple A9
7. Apple A13 BionicApple A9 Apple A13 Bionic vs Apple A9
8. Apple A9Apple A10 Fusion Apple A9 vs Apple A10 Fusion
9. Apple A9Apple A8 Apple A9 vs Apple A8
10. Apple A12 BionicApple A9 Apple A12 Bionic vs Apple A9


back to index