Intel Core i7-3940XM vs Apple A8

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CPU comparison with benchmarks


Intel Core i7-3940XM CPU1 vs CPU2 Apple A8
Intel Core i7-3940XM Apple A8

CPU comparison

In this CPU comparison, we compare the Intel Core i7-3940XM and the Apple A8 and use benchmarks to check which processor is faster.

We compare the Intel Core i7-3940XM 4 core processor released in Q3/2012 with the Apple A8 which has 2 CPU cores and was introduced in Q3/2014.
Intel Core i7 Extreme Edition (24) Family Apple A series (22)
Intel Core i 3000M (29) CPU group Apple A8/A8X (2)
3 Generation 8
Ivy Bridge H Architecture A8
Mobile Segment Mobile
-- Predecessor Apple A7
-- Successor Apple A9

CPU Cores and Base Frequency

The Intel Core i7-3940XM is a 4 core processor with a clock frequency of 3.00 GHz (3.90 GHz). The processor can compute 8 threads at the same time. The Apple A8 clocks with 1.50 GHz, has 2 CPU cores and can calculate 2 threads in parallel.

Intel Core i7-3940XM Characteristic Apple A8
4 Cores 2
8 Threads 2
normal Core architecture normal
Yes Hyperthreading No
Yes Overclocking ? No
3.00 GHz Frequency 1.50 GHz
3.90 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.

Intel Core i7-3940XM Characteristic Apple A8
-- AI hardware --
-- AI specifications --

Internal Graphics

Graphics (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.

Intel HD Graphics 4000 GPU Apple A8
0.65 GHz GPU frequency 0.53 GHz
1.35 GHz GPU (Turbo) --
7 GPU Generation 5
22 nm Technology 20 nm
3 Max. displays 1
16 Compute units 16
128 Shader 128
No Hardware Raytracing No
No Frame Generation No
2 GB Max. GPU Memory 4 GB
11.0 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.

Intel HD Graphics 4000 GPU Apple A8
No Codec h265 / HEVC (8 bit) No
No Codec h265 / HEVC (10 bit) No
Decode / Encode Codec h264 Decode
No Codec VP9 No
No Codec VP8 No
No Codec AV1 No
Decode / Encode Codec AVC Decode
Decode Codec VC-1 Decode
Decode Codec JPEG Decode / Encode

Memory & PCIe

Up to 32 GB of memory in a maximum of 2 memory channels is supported by the Intel Core i7-3940XM, while the Apple A8 supports a maximum of 1 GB of memory with a maximum memory bandwidth of 12.8 GB/s enabled.

Intel Core i7-3940XM Characteristic Apple A8
DDR3L-1333, DDR3L-1600, DDR3-1333, DDR3-1600 Memory LPDDR3-1600
32 GB Max. Memory 1 GB
2 (Dual Channel) Memory channels 1 (Single Channel)
25.6 GB/s Max. Bandwidth 12.8 GB/s
No ECC No
-- L2 Cache 1.00 MB
8.00 MB L3 Cache 4.00 MB
3.0 PCIe version --
16 PCIe lanes --
15.8 GB/s PCIe Bandwidth --

Thermal Management

The Intel Core i7-3940XM has a TDP of 55 W. The TDP of the Apple A8 is 5 W. System integrators use the TDP of the processor as a guide when dimensioning the cooling solution.

Intel Core i7-3940XM Characteristic Apple A8
55 W TDP (PL1 / PBP) 5 W
-- TDP (PL2) --
-- TDP up --
-- TDP down --
105 °C Tjunction max. --

Technical details

The Intel Core i7-3940XM has 8.00 MB cache and is manufactured in 22 nm. The cache of Apple A8 is at 5.00 MB. The processor is manufactured in 20 nm.

Intel Core i7-3940XM Characteristic Apple A8
22 nm Technology 20 nm
Monolithic Chip design Chiplet
x86-64 (64 bit) Instruction set (ISA) Armv8-A (64 bit)
SSE4.1, SSE4.2, AVX ISA extensions --
PGA 988 Socket --
VT-x, VT-x EPT Virtualization None
Yes AES-NI No
Windows 10, Linux Operating systems iOS
Q3/2012 Release date Q3/2014
-- Release price --
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Here you can rate the Apple A8 to help other visitors make their purchasing decisions. The average rating is 3.0 stars (2 ratings). Rate now:


Average performance in benchmarks

⌀ Single core performance in 2 CPU benchmarks
Intel Core i7-3940XM (100%)
Apple A8 (50%)
⌀ Multi core performance in 3 CPU benchmarks
Intel Core i7-3940XM (100%)
Apple A8 (22%)

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.
Intel Core i7-3940XM Intel Core i7-3940XM
4C 8T @ 3.90 GHz
799 (100%)
Apple A8 Apple A8
2C 2T @ 1.50 GHz
324 (41%)

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.
Intel Core i7-3940XM Intel Core i7-3940XM
4C 8T @ 3.00 GHz
3310 (100%)
Apple A8 Apple A8
2C 2T @ 1.50 GHz
607 (18%)

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.
Intel Core i7-3940XM Intel Core i7-3940XM
4C 8T @ 3.90 GHz
694 (100%)
Apple A8 Apple A8
2C 2T @ 1.50 GHz
412 (59%)

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.
Intel Core i7-3940XM Intel Core i7-3940XM
4C 8T @ 3.00 GHz
2670 (100%)
Apple A8 Apple A8
2C 2T @ 1.50 GHz
588 (22%)

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.
Intel Core i7-3940XM Intel Core i7-3940XM
Intel HD Graphics 4000 @ 1.35 GHz
346 (100%)
Apple A8 Apple A8
Apple A8 @ 0.53 GHz
136 (39%)

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.
Intel Core i7-3940XM Intel Core i7-3940XM
4C 8T @ 3.00 GHz
5849 (100%)
Apple A8 Apple A8
2C 2T @ 1.50 GHz
1532 (26%)

CPU-Z Benchmark 17 (Multi-Core)

The CPU-Z benchmark measures a processor's performance by measuring the time it takes the system to complete all benchmark calculations. The faster the benchmark is completed, the higher the score.
Intel Core i7-3940XM Intel Core i7-3940XM
4C 8T @ 3.00 GHz
1790 (100%)
Apple A8 Apple A8
2C 2T @ 1.50 GHz
0 (0%)

Devices using this processor

Intel Core i7-3940XM Apple A8
Unknown Apple iPhone 6
Apple iPhone 6 Plus
Apple iPad Mini 4
Apple TV HD
Apple HomePod
Apple iPod touch (6. Gen)

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