M1 Max Chip May Have More Raw GPU Performance Than a PlayStation 5

Apple is making impressive and eye-catching claims about the performance of its new M1 Pro and M1 Max chips, and on paper, the highest-end ‌M1 Max‌ chip actually has more raw GPU performance than Sony's PlayStation 5.

m1 max
The ‌M1 Max‌ chip can be configured to include up to a 32-core GPU, a gigantic leap compared to the 8-core GPU option offered in the M1 chip. Apple says that the ‌M1 Max‌ chip uses 70% less power at peak graphic performance than a PC laptop with a discrete graphics card. Apple also claims that the ‌M1 Max‌ chip offers "similar performance" to a "pro laptop with high-performing discrete GPU" while using 100 watts less power.

apple m1 max graphics claim
To make the claims, Apple tested the 16-inch MacBook Pro with the ‌M1 Max‌ chip, featuring a 10-core CPU, 32-core GPU, and 64GB of RAM compared to the MSI GE76 Raider and the Razer Blade 15 Advanced. For a further breakdown of the GPU performance, Notebookcheck estimated how many teraflops the new ‌M1 Pro‌ and ‌M1 Max‌ chips can handle based on Apple's information about the new chips. These are their findings:

  • ‌M1‌ 8-core = 2.6 TF
  • ‌M1 Pro‌ 14-core = 4.5 TF
  • ‌M1 Pro‌ 16-core = 5.2 TF
  • ‌M1 Max‌ 24-core = 7.8 TF
  • ‌M1 Max‌ 32-core = 10.4 TF

On paper, the ‌M1 Max‌ chip maxed out with 32-cores of GPU can tackle more teraflops of graphics than Sony's PlayStation 5, which maxes out at 10.28 teraflops. Notebookcheck's numbers are based on estimations and not real-world testing, but until the new laptops begin arriving in the hands of customers next week, they are all we have to rely on. As noted by YouTuber ZoneOfTech on Twitter, the ‌M1 Max‌ chip can also read up to 7.4GB per second, higher than the PlayStation 5's 5.5GB read speed.

The new MacBook Pros cost more than the PlayStation 5, but nonetheless, Apple's ability to make claims about a portable laptop that rivals a high-end gaming console is impressive. As stated above, these claims are just on-paper, and proper performance and speed tests will surely come shortly after the new MacBook Pros start arriving for customers next week.

Related Roundup: MacBook Pro
Buyer's Guide: MacBook Pro (Caution)
Related Forum: MacBook Pro

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Top Rated Comments

zahuh Avatar
51 months ago
At 7x the price I would hope so! Still very impressive due to the size.
Score: 60 Votes (Like | Disagree)
singularity0993 Avatar
51 months ago
Now if only there are decent games on macOS…

(I mean graphically intensive ones)
Score: 48 Votes (Like | Disagree)
NBAasDOGG Avatar
51 months ago
Such an illiterate logic ?.
Apple’s marketing and their fanbase never fails to impress me, especially on MacRumors…

10.4TF doesn’t mean that it can actually use 10.4TF if it’s power limited to +-60W and probably even bandwidth starved, (lack superior L1 and L2 caches, don’t use unified L3 chance, lacks a geometry engine, doesn’t support techniques such as VRS and storage APIs…)

The AMD Radeon V is actually 14.9 TF and the AMD VEGA 64 is 13.4 TF, and both are slower than the PS5 and Series X, significantly slower in fact!

Don’t fall for the fake marketing people. By no mean these MacBooks are slow or anything, but if you actually believe that it’s faster than a PS5 you have to seek help…

For consoles to consistently hit their maximum TFlops performance they actually uses these kind of heatsink.



Attachment Image
Score: 40 Votes (Like | Disagree)
snipr125 Avatar
51 months ago
The problem is that there are no real AAA games on the Mac. We want to see games like COD modern warfare, red dead redemption 2 and cyber punk etc run on these M1 Pro chips.
Score: 34 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Spacedust Avatar
51 months ago
We want Windows 11 running on these chips.
Score: 26 Votes (Like | Disagree)
4743913 Avatar
51 months ago
and yet Apple dropped the ball by not having one game announcement from an AAA publisher.

Games on the new mac are like Final Cut or Logic pro on the M1 iPad... we have sooooo much power... for nothing.
Score: 25 Votes (Like | Disagree)