Apple M3 vs M2: Performance Comparison
Apple recently unveiled its new M3 series processors during the "Scary Fast" event, introducing them alongside the MacBook Pro and iMac models. However, Apple chose to compare these new processors to the two generations old M1 chips during the event, making it somewhat challenging to understand the exact performance gap between the M2 and M3 series. Let's dive into the details to clarify the performance differences.
Performance Improvements in the M3 Series (as per Apple's official data):
- The base model M3 offers approximately 35% better CPU performance and 65% better GPU performance compared to the M1.
- The M3 Pro promises about 20% higher CPU performance and 40% higher GPU performance when compared to the M1 Pro.
- The M3 Max boasts around 80% more CPU performance and 50% better GPU performance than the M1 Max.
Comparing M3 to M2 (as per Apple's official data):
- The M2, in comparison to the M1, provides approximately 18% more CPU performance and 35% better GPU performance. Therefore, the M3 processor should be about 17% faster in terms of CPU and 30% faster in GPU performance than the M2.
M3 Pro vs. M2 Pro:
- Apple stated that the M2 Pro is 20% faster in CPU performance and 30% faster in GPU performance compared to the M1 Pro. Thus, the M3 Pro's CPU performance should be on par with the M2 Pro, but it's only about 10% faster in terms of GPU performance.
M3 Max vs. M2 Max:
- The M2 Max offers 20% more CPU performance and 30% better GPU performance compared to the M1 Max. Consequently, the M3 Max should deliver 60% higher CPU performance and 20% better GPU performance than the M2 Max.
In summary, based on Apple's official data, the M3 and M3 Max show significant performance improvements compared to their predecessors, but the M3 Pro may not provide as substantial gains, likely due to its fewer performance cores and GPU cores. Apple's specific reasons for these differences remain unclear.