HiSilicon Kirin 960 | Apple A12 Bionic | |
CPU comparisonIn this CPU comparison, we compare the HiSilicon Kirin 960 and the Apple A12 Bionic and use benchmarks to check which processor is faster.
We compare the HiSilicon Kirin 960 8 core processor released in Q4/2016 with the Apple A12 Bionic which has 6 CPU cores and was introduced in Q3/2018. |
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HiSilicon Kirin (29) | Family | Apple A series (22) |
HiSilicon Kirin 960 (2) | CPU group | Apple A12/A12X/A12Z (3) |
5 | Generation | 12 |
Cortex-A73 / Cortex-A53 | Architecture | A12 |
Mobile | Segment | Mobile |
-- | Predecessor | Apple A11 Bionic |
-- | Successor | Apple A13 Bionic |
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CPU Cores and Base FrequencyThe HiSilicon Kirin 960 is a 8 core processor with a clock frequency of 2.40 GHz. The processor can compute 8 threads at the same time. The Apple A12 Bionic clocks with 2.49 GHz, has 6 CPU cores and can calculate 6 threads in parallel. |
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HiSilicon Kirin 960 | Characteristic | Apple A12 Bionic |
8 | Cores | 6 |
8 | Threads | 6 |
hybrid (big.LITTLE) | Core architecture | hybrid (big.LITTLE) |
No | Hyperthreading | No |
No | Overclocking ? | No |
2.40 GHz 4x Cortex-A73 |
A-Core | 2.49 GHz 2x Vortex |
1.80 GHz 4x Cortex-A53 |
B-Core | 1.59 GHz 4x Tempest |
Artificial Intelligence and Machine LearningProcessors 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. |
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HiSilicon Kirin 960 | Characteristic | Apple A12 Bionic |
-- | AI hardware | Apple Neural Engine |
-- | AI specifications | 8 Neural cores @ 5 TOPS |
Internal GraphicsGraphics (iGPU) integrated into the processor not only enable image output without having to rely on a dedicated graphics solution, but can also efficiently accelerate video playback. |
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ARM Mali-G71 MP8 | GPU | Apple A12 |
0.90 GHz | GPU frequency | 1.13 GHz |
-- | GPU (Turbo) | -- |
Bifrost 1 | GPU Generation | 9 |
16 nm | Technology | 7 nm |
2 | Max. displays | 1 |
8 | Compute units | 16 |
256 | Shader | 256 |
No | Hardware Raytracing | No |
No | Frame Generation | No |
2 GB | Max. GPU Memory | 4 GB |
11 | DirectX Version | -- |
Hardware codec supportA 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. |
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ARM Mali-G71 MP8 | GPU | Apple A12 |
Decode / Encode | Codec h265 / HEVC (8 bit) | Decode / Encode |
Decode | Codec h265 / HEVC (10 bit) | Decode / Encode |
Decode / Encode | Codec h264 | Decode / Encode |
No | Codec VP9 | Decode / Encode |
Decode / Encode | Codec VP8 | Decode / Encode |
No | Codec AV1 | No |
Decode / Encode | Codec AVC | Decode |
No | Codec VC-1 | Decode |
Decode / Encode | Codec JPEG | Decode / Encode |
Memory & PCIeUp to 6 GB of memory in a maximum of 2 memory channels is supported by the HiSilicon Kirin 960, while the Apple A12 Bionic supports a maximum of 4 GB of memory with a maximum memory bandwidth of 34.1 GB/s enabled. |
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HiSilicon Kirin 960 | Characteristic | Apple A12 Bionic |
LPDDR4-1600 | Memory | LPDDR4X-4266 |
6 GB | Max. Memory | 4 GB |
2 (Dual Channel) | Memory channels | 1 (Single Channel) |
12.8 GB/s | Max. Bandwidth | 34.1 GB/s |
No | ECC | No |
-- | L2 Cache | 8.00 MB |
4.00 MB | L3 Cache | -- |
-- | PCIe version | -- |
-- | PCIe lanes | -- |
-- | PCIe Bandwidth | -- |
Thermal ManagementThe HiSilicon Kirin 960 has a TDP of 5 W. The TDP of the Apple A12 Bionic is 6 W. System integrators use the TDP of the processor as a guide when dimensioning the cooling solution. |
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HiSilicon Kirin 960 | Characteristic | Apple A12 Bionic |
5 W | TDP (PL1 / PBP) | 6 W |
-- | TDP (PL2) | -- |
-- | TDP up | -- |
-- | TDP down | -- |
-- | Tjunction max. | -- |
Technical detailsThe HiSilicon Kirin 960 has 4.00 MB cache and is manufactured in 16 nm. The cache of Apple A12 Bionic is at 8.00 MB. The processor is manufactured in 7 nm. |
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HiSilicon Kirin 960 | Characteristic | Apple A12 Bionic |
16 nm | Technology | 7 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 |
Android | Operating systems | iOS |
Q4/2016 | Release date | Q3/2018 |
-- | Release price | -- |
show more data | show more data | |
HiSilicon Kirin 960
8C 8T @ 2.40 GHz |
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Apple A12 Bionic
6C 6T @ 2.49 GHz |
HiSilicon Kirin 960
8C 8T @ 2.40 GHz |
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Apple A12 Bionic
6C 6T @ 2.49 GHz |
HiSilicon Kirin 960
8C 8T @ 2.40 GHz |
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Apple A12 Bionic
6C 6T @ 2.49 GHz |
HiSilicon Kirin 960
8C 8T @ 2.40 GHz |
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Apple A12 Bionic
6C 6T @ 2.49 GHz |
HiSilicon Kirin 960
ARM Mali-G71 MP8 @ 0.90 GHz |
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Apple A12 Bionic
Apple A12 @ 1.13 GHz |
HiSilicon Kirin 960
8C 8T @ 2.40 GHz |
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Apple A12 Bionic
6C 6T @ 2.49 GHz |
HiSilicon Kirin 960
8C 8T @ 2.40 GHz |
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Apple A12 Bionic
6C 6T @ 2.49 GHz |
HiSilicon Kirin 960
8C 8T @ 2.40 GHz |
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Apple A12 Bionic
6C 6T @ 2.49 GHz |
Devices using this processor |
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HiSilicon Kirin 960 | Apple A12 Bionic |
Huawei Honor 8 Pro Huawei Honor 9 Huawei Mate 9 Huawei Mate 9 Pro Huawei Mate 9 Porsche Huawei MediaPad M5 Huawei Nova 2s Huawei P10 |
Apple iPhone XR Apple iPhone XS Apple iPhone XS Max Apple iPad mini (5. Gen) Apple iPad Air (3. Gen) |