Despite Apple's claims and charts, the new M1 Ultra chip is not able to outperform Nvidia's RTX 3090 in terms of raw GPU performance, according to benchmark testing performed by The Verge.
When the M1 Ultra was introduced, Apple shared a chart that had the new chip winning out over the "highest-end discrete GPU" in "relative performance," without details on what tests were run to achieve those results. Apple showed the M1 Ultra beating the RTX 3090 at a certain power level, but Apple isn't sharing the whole picture with its limited graphic.
The Verge decided to pit the M1 Ultra against the Nvidia RTX 3090 using Geekbench 5 graphics tests, and unsurprisingly, it cannot match Nvidia's chip when that chip is run at full power. The Mac Studio beat out the 16-core Mac Pro, but performance was about half that of the RTX 3090.
But it seems that Apple just simply isn't showing the full performance of the competitor it's chasing here.
It's sort of like arguing that because your electric car can use dramatically less fuel when driving at 80 miles per hour than a Lamborghini, it has a better engine -- without mentioning the fact that a Lambo can still go twice as fast.
The M1 Ultra is otherwise impressive, and it is unclear why Apple focused on this particular benchmark as it is somewhat misleading to customers because it does not take into account the full range of Nvidia's chip.
Apple's M1 Ultra is essentially two M1 Max chips connected together, and as The Verge highlighted in its full Mac Studio review, Apple has managed to successfully get double the M1 Max performance out of the M1 Ultra, which is a notable feat that other chip makers cannot match.
Apple is planning to launch a set of smart glasses by the end of 2026, reports Bloomberg. The glasses will be comparable to the Meta Ray-Bans and the Android XR glasses that Google showed off earlier this week.
Apple's smart glasses are expected to include cameras, microphones, and AI capabilities, much like the Meta Ray-Bans. The glasses will be able to take photos, record video, provide...
Wednesday May 21, 2025 8:21 am PDT by Tim Hardwick
Google recently made waves by showcasing a set of lightweight smart glasses featuring deep Gemini integration and an optional in-lens display. The demo has reignited interest in Apple's own smart glasses project, which has been the subject of rumors for nearly a decade. Here's a recap of where things stand.
Current Development Status
Apple is actively working on new chips specifically...
Apple's recently announced CarPlay Ultra promises a deeply integrated in-car experience, but not all iPhone users will be able to take advantage of the new feature.
According to Apple's press release, CarPlay Ultra requires an iPhone 12 or later running iOS 18.5 or later. This means if you're using an iPhone 11, iPhone XR, or any older model, you'll need to upgrade your device to access...
The big news in the technology world this week is that ChatGPT maker OpenAI is working more closely with Apple's former design chief Jony Ive on a futuristic AI device. The company is remaining tight lipped about the device, but Apple supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has shared some alleged details about its design.
In a social media post today, Kuo said the device will be "slightly larger" ...
Apple has temporarily increased its iPhone trade-in values in select countries, including the U.S., Canada, Australia, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, U.K., and China. Apple says the extra credit towards a new iPhone is available through June 18.
In the U.S., the maximum estimated trade-in values increased by only $5 to $30, with the full changes in that country outlined below.
...
The next generation of CarPlay is finally starting to roll out, and it includes a new feature that solves one of regular CarPlay's longstanding limitations.
Apple last week announced the launch of CarPlay Ultra, and it offers a Radio app, allowing you to control AM and FM radio stations within CarPlay. With regular CarPlay, you must switch between CarPlay and your vehicle's built-in software ...
Despite being more than two years old, Apple's AirPods Pro 2 still dominate the premium wireless‑earbud space, thanks to a potent mix of top‑tier audio, class‑leading noise cancellation, and Apple's habit of delivering major new features through software updates. With AirPods Pro 3 widely expected to arrive in 2025, prospective buyers now face a familiar dilemma: snap up the proven...
A new Apple job listing has provided more evidence that the company is working on a major overhaul of its Calendar app.
A senior software engineer position for "Calendar Experience," spotted by Macworld's Filipe Espósito, explicitly states that Apple seeks candidates to join a team that will "reimagine what a modern calendar can be across Apple's platforms." Listed on April 29, the posting ...
I suppose it is possible that in the chart displayed in this article, Apple is saying an M1 Ultra at ~100 watts matches a 3090 at ~300 watts. However, pushing the 3090 to it's near-500W maximum would allow it to pull significantly ahead as the benchmarks run by The Verge showed.
Forget the actual results. The worrisome part for Nvidia is Apple has a chip that is quite good and might overtake them at sometime even though it is not a discrete graphic card. I mean this stuff is built into the chip. Everyone used to laugh at built-in graphics. Not so much anymore.
