Apple A9 vs Intel Core 2 Quad Q8400s

Last updated:

CPU comparison with benchmarks


Apple A9 CPU1 vs CPU2 Intel Core 2 Quad Q8400s
Apple A9 Intel Core 2 Quad Q8400s

CPU comparison

Apple A9 or Intel Core 2 Quad Q8400s - 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 Intel Core 2 Quad Q8400s has 4 cores with 4 threads and clocks with a maximum frequency of 2.66 GHz. The CPU supports up to 16 GB of memory in 2 memory channels. The Intel Core 2 Quad Q8400s was released in Q2/2009.
Apple A series (22) Family Intel Core2 Quad (19)
Apple A9/A9X (2) CPU group Intel Core 2 Quad Q8000/Q9000 (16)
9 Generation 2
A9 Architecture Yorkfield (Penryn)
Mobile Segment Desktop / Server
Apple A8 Predecessor --
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 Intel Core 2 Quad Q8400s has 4 CPU cores and 4 threads can calculate simultaneously. The clock frequency of the Intel Core 2 Quad Q8400s is at 2.66 GHz.

Apple A9 Characteristic Intel Core 2 Quad Q8400s
2 Cores 4
2 Threads 4
normal Core architecture normal
No Hyperthreading No
No Overclocking ? No
1.85 GHz Frequency 2.66 GHz
-- Turbo Frequency (1 Core) --
-- Turbo Frequency (All Cores) --

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 Intel Core 2 Quad Q8400s
-- AI hardware --
-- AI specifications --

Internal Graphics

The Apple A9 or Intel Core 2 Quad Q8400s 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 no iGPU
0.65 GHz GPU frequency --
-- GPU (Turbo) --
6 GPU Generation --
16 nm Technology
1 Max. displays
24 Compute units --
192 Shader --
No Hardware Raytracing No
No Frame Generation No
4 GB Max. GPU Memory --
-- DirectX Version --

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

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 Intel Core 2 Quad Q8400s supports up to 16 GB of memory in 2 memory channels and achieves a memory bandwidth of up to 17.1 GB/s.

Apple A9 Characteristic Intel Core 2 Quad Q8400s
LPDDR4-3200 Memory DDR3-1066, DDR2-800
2 GB Max. Memory 16 GB
1 (Single Channel) Memory channels 2 (Dual Channel)
25.6 GB/s Max. Bandwidth 17.1 GB/s
No ECC No
3.00 MB L2 Cache 4.00 MB
4.00 MB L3 Cache --
-- PCIe version --
-- PCIe lanes --
-- PCIe Bandwidth --

Thermal Management

The thermal design power (TDP for short) of the Apple A9 is 5 W, while the Intel Core 2 Quad Q8400s has a TDP of 65 W. The TDP specifies the necessary cooling solution that is required to cool the processor sufficiently.

Apple A9 Characteristic Intel Core 2 Quad Q8400s
5 W TDP (PL1 / PBP) 65 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 Intel Core 2 Quad Q8400s is manufactured in 45 nm and has a 4.00 MB cache.

Apple A9 Characteristic Intel Core 2 Quad Q8400s
16 nm Technology 45 nm
Chiplet Chip design Monolithic
Armv8-A (64 bit) Instruction set (ISA) x86-64 (64 bit)
-- ISA extensions MMX, SSE2, SSE3, SSE4.1
-- Socket LGA 775
None Virtualization VT-x, VT-d
No AES-NI No
iOS Operating systems Windows 10, Linux
Q3/2015 Release date Q2/2009
-- 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 Intel Core 2 Quad Q8400s to help other visitors make their purchasing decisions. The average rating is 0 stars (0 ratings). Rate now:


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 (100%)
Intel Core 2 Quad Q8400s Intel Core 2 Quad Q8400s
4C 4T @ 2.66 GHz
0 (0%)

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 (100%)
Intel Core 2 Quad Q8400s Intel Core 2 Quad Q8400s
4C 4T @ 2.66 GHz
0 (0%)

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 (100%)
Intel Core 2 Quad Q8400s Intel Core 2 Quad Q8400s
4C 4T @ 2.66 GHz
0 (0%)

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 (100%)
Intel Core 2 Quad Q8400s Intel Core 2 Quad Q8400s
4C 4T @ 2.66 GHz
0 (0%)

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 (100%)
Intel Core 2 Quad Q8400s Intel Core 2 Quad Q8400s
@ 0.00 GHz
0 (0%)

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%)
Intel Core 2 Quad Q8400s Intel Core 2 Quad Q8400s
4C 4T @ 2.66 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%)
Intel Core 2 Quad Q8400s Intel Core 2 Quad Q8400s
4C 4T @ 2.66 GHz
0 (0%)

Devices using this processor

Apple A9 Intel Core 2 Quad Q8400s
Apple iPhone 6s
Apple iPhone SE (1. Gen)
Unknown

Popular comparisons containing this CPUs

1. Apple A8XApple A9 Apple A8X vs Apple A9
2. Apple A14 BionicApple A9 Apple A14 Bionic vs Apple A9
3. Apple A13 BionicApple A9 Apple A13 Bionic vs Apple A9
4. Apple A9Apple A10 Fusion Apple A9 vs Apple A10 Fusion
5. Apple A9Apple A8 Apple A9 vs Apple A8
6. Apple A12 BionicApple A9 Apple A12 Bionic vs Apple A9
7. Apple A9Apple A9X Apple A9 vs Apple A9X
8. Apple M1Apple A9 Apple M1 vs Apple A9
9. Apple A11 BionicApple A9 Apple A11 Bionic vs Apple A9
10. Apple A7Apple A9 Apple A7 vs Apple A9


back to index