4 ms·

What's up with the CPU? The recent iPhone has A13 Bionic and now, half year latter theier flagship iPad has A12z?! How do both compare?

by gozzoo 7y ago

whoisjuan 7y ago
They actually do that a lot. They usually release A(n)X when there's already an A(n+1) available. Usually, the X version (or in this case, the Z version) is the same architecture as a previous non-letter architecture but with optimized and improved multi-core performance achieved with new components and likely some overclocking. They are also likely optimized to handle workloads differently since they are put in devices that are meant to work differently than a handheld phone. The X versions seem to be optimized to take full advantage of the larger batteries available in the iPads or for non-battery devices like the Apple TV. I don't think there are X CPUs that were put in iPhones, so far (I could be wrong, though).
- gozzoo 7y ago
  When the previous duo of iPad Pros was released the current iPhone was using A12 and respectively the iPads had A12X Bionic. iPad Pro is the most powerfull device in their mobile line, it's very starange that the are doing a step backwards with it. My question was rather how A12z compares to A13. They have already explained many times how A(n) compares to A(n)X.
  - ksec 7y ago
    This. It is always A12, then A12X, A13, then A13X. But they got A12z this time round.
- AgloeDreams 7y ago
  I think it's a timeline issue. They likely have skipped A13X due to TSMC's fast cadence of 7nm+ and are working on A14. I'm guessing that A14X is destined for the Mac and next iPad Pro but that's maybe 9 months out? This CPU should be an A12X + extra GPU performance, but who knows what it brings.
- AprilArcus 7y ago
  New iPhones always ship in September with an incremented A series chip. The single exception was the A5, which shipped with the iPad 2 six months before the iPhone 4S. Apart from the iPad 2, new top-of-the-line iPads have almost always shipped with the existing highest-numbered A series chip in an X variant. The single exception was the first iPad Air, which shipped with a regular A7. So this is indeed the first time that a new high-end iPad has shipped with a lower-numbered CPU than the most recent iPhone.

What's up with the CPU? The recent iPhone has A13 Bionic and now, half year latter theier flagship iPad has A12z?! How do both compare?

by gozzoo 7y ago

What's up with the CPU? The recent iPhone has A13 Bionic and now, half year latter theier flagship iPad has A12z?! How do both compare?

whoisjuan 7y ago

They actually do that a lot. They usually release A(n)X when there's already an A(n+1) available. Usually, the X version (or in this case, the Z version) is the same architecture as a previous non-letter architecture but with optimized and improved multi-core performance achieved with new components and likely some overclocking. They are also likely optimized to handle workloads differently since they are put in devices that are meant to work differently than a handheld phone. The X versions seem to be optimized to take full advantage of the larger batteries available in the iPads or for non-battery devices like the Apple TV. I don't think there are X CPUs that were put in iPhones, so far (I could be wrong, though).

gozzoo 7y ago
When the previous duo of iPad Pros was released the current iPhone was using A12 and respectively the iPads had A12X Bionic. iPad Pro is the most powerfull device in their mobile line, it's very starange that the are doing a step backwards with it. My question was rather how A12z compares to A13. They have already explained many times how A(n) compares to A(n)X.
- ksec 7y ago
  This. It is always A12, then A12X, A13, then A13X. But they got A12z this time round.
AgloeDreams 7y ago
I think it's a timeline issue. They likely have skipped A13X due to TSMC's fast cadence of 7nm+ and are working on A14. I'm guessing that A14X is destined for the Mac and next iPad Pro but that's maybe 9 months out? This CPU should be an A12X + extra GPU performance, but who knows what it brings.
AprilArcus 7y ago
New iPhones always ship in September with an incremented A series chip. The single exception was the A5, which shipped with the iPad 2 six months before the iPhone 4S. Apart from the iPad 2, new top-of-the-line iPads have almost always shipped with the existing highest-numbered A series chip in an X variant. The single exception was the first iPad Air, which shipped with a regular A7. So this is indeed the first time that a new high-end iPad has shipped with a lower-numbered CPU than the most recent iPhone.