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NVIDIA sets the bar high for Apple’s A9 chip as early Tegra X1 benchmarks significantly outperform A8X

tegra-x1

NVIDIA has thrown down the gauntlet to Apple in the mobile chip power stakes. While the A8X chip used in the iPad Air 2 has so far blown away the competition, NVIDIA has shown off benchmarks indicating that its new mobile superchip, the Tegra X1, leaves it standing.

The benchmark data shared with SlashGear were heavier on graphics than hard data, but appear to show that the chip significantly outperforms the A8X, with NVIDIA saying that it will offer “silky-smooth 60fps 4K video.” The one number the company did share is that when throttled back to match the GPU performance of the Apple chip, power efficiency was 1.7 times better.

It should be noted that NVIDIA is comparing actual A8X performance in the iPad Air 2 with its own chip bolted to a heatsink in order to simulate a tablet environment, but the power consumption of the Apple chip was measured by taking the iPad apart and isolating the GPU.

Apple will also continue to hold the mobile superchip crown for some time yet: the X1 is so far only in the manufacturer testing stages, and NVIDIA has so far said only that it is likely to appear in products sometime this year.

It has been reported that production of the A9 chip destined for next year’s iPhones is already underway, with suggestions that Samsung may get 100% of the orders thanks to its 14-nanometer process.

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Comments

  1. A8/A8X is a real product that you could use since 2014. That’s all.

  2. thaal (@ThaalR) - 9 years ago

    Graphic shows the X1 can’t actually do better without drawing more power… how good is that ?

    • Ben Lovejoy - 9 years ago

      It delivers more performance for the same power, or the same performance for less power.

  3. airmanchairman - 9 years ago

    A Luta Continua!

    The People win every time…

  4. chrisl84 - 9 years ago

    Well pump it out, stick it in an Apple TV and let me get buy it.

  5. It’s not high.
    When you draw the line between the performance under same GPU Power, Tegra X1 is only 50% faster.
    PowerVR Series 7 comes with 60% performance boost compare to Series 6 (the one in A8X)
    And the test is not render under Metal, which is another potential 50% boost.
    So, another “outdated on arrival” chip?

  6. alanaudio - 9 years ago

    NVIDIA are comparing their X1 prototype with a shipping Apple product which has been available for several months. The only meaningful comparison will come when the X1 chips are used in actual devices and then compared with the chips and devices that Apple will have brought to market at that time.

    I think it’s pretty obvious that Apple’s A9 chip is going to significantly outperform their A8, so while the X1 is claimed to outperform the existing A8 in certain circumstances ( which may or may not be meaningful comparisons ), it’s the A9 that it will be facing in the market. Apple aren’t saying just how much better the A9 will be and NVIDIA’s claimed results may well have been skewed in their favour to make the chip seem more attractive to prospective users.

    NVIDIA may believe that the X1 is an improvement over the A8, but will it prove to be enough of an improvement when compared to Apple’s A9 which will reach consumers at around the same time ?

  7. mccfr - 9 years ago

    I’m not sure exactly what any of this is supposed to prove: iOS devices will (as things stand) never run on NVIDIA’s hardware and Apple’s A(x) processors will never be available for sale on the open market.

    Once that point is clear, the differentiating factor is the OS being used (iOS, Android, etc) and the applications available for that platform. Many developers already develop for both platforms and the ones that don’t have very specific reasons for that strategy.

    For example, ~sedna presenter for iOS is an application that partners that developer’s Mac OS products and they have little interest in developing for Windows, Android or anything else; likewise the products from Lightspeed.

    But gaming is pretty much a cross-platform industry and, because of the lack of fragmentation in the iOS market and the ease of development, games developers are going to continue to develop titles for iOS regardless of the performance of another ARM-based chip delivered to a wide range of mobile device manufacturers.

    In short, mazeltov to NVIDIA for building a prototype that appears to have the potential of great performance. Hopefully, the shipping component used in real devices will need to build on that and the software that runs on those devices will be as important a factor. And remember that your competition is unlikely to stand still waiting for you to catch up. :)

    • aamalhameli - 9 years ago

      Apple is pushing the bar really high, when they pass it they brag about it

    • mikhailt - 9 years ago

      > I’m not sure exactly what any of this is supposed to prove: iOS devices will (as things stand) never run on NVIDIA’s hardware and Apple’s A(x) processors will never be available for sale on the open market.

      I agree. I can’t recall where but I think it was on Anandtech where nVidia’s rep at CES did say they consider Apple’s A8X to be the fastest on the market and they’re the one to beat, so that’s why they’re comparing it.

      They’re trying to appeal to the press and public that thinks Apple has the fastest GPU and thus, if nVidia shows their own chipset is faster, more Android companies would get in talks with nVidia. nVidia is trying to get design wins, that’s all.

      > iOS devices will (as things stand) never run on NVIDIA’s hardware

      Never say never. Apple isn’t loyal to anybody, Apple will switch as long as it is justified and if Apple can’t do better. Look at their Mac history to see that.

      Remember one thing, nvidia is willing to license their GPU technologies completely. So, if Apple wants to, they can pay to take advantages of Nvidia work and customize their own nvidia-based GPUs.

      I’d suspect Apple has been working on their own GPU solution based off ImagTec’s design but if Apple can’t do 2x power efficiency at the same performance, than I’m sure Apple would switch to Nvidia assuming Nvidia can continue to provide the same improvements yearly.

  8. Laughing_Boy48 - 9 years ago

    Would someone tell me where all these super-powered rival chips that are supposedly better than anything Apple has to offer are going into. Which particular Android products are outperforming Apple’s iPhones and iPads? I know Apple’s processors are being used in shipping products in very high numbers, but where are all rival chips going. All people keep bragging about is Apple losing market share to these really cheap devices but how is NVIDIA going to make any money from $200 smartphone and tablet devices. Why are these processors always being compared to Apple processors? Apple doesn’t sell its A-series processors to anyone. Apple uses them for only its own products. Any comparisons should be made to companies who sell processors to other companies. One thing for certain, when the A9 is ready it will be going into tens of millions of Apple products and Apple will get back every penny of R&D spent on it and the A9 will be widely used. The Tegra X1 is a crap-shoot in terms of future sales.

    • Rich Davis (@RichDavis9) - 9 years ago

      Yeah, it will be a little while until we see actual products with the X1 inside. I don’t know if Qualcomm is going to have their 810’s ready to ship in qty this year, there have been numerous articles explaining that they have 3 major issues to deal with, so in the mean time nvidia is going to be about the only player for the Android crowd other than the impending Exynos, which isn’t going to be that much better. The problem they both have are these A53 and A57 cores, the Cyclone core is far more advanced than either of these designs.

  9. dcj001 - 9 years ago

    “The one number the company did share is that when throttled back to match the GPU performance of the Apple chip, power efficiency was 1.7 times better.”

    1.7x efficiency is 0.7 times better, not 1.7 times better, as you said, Ben.

    Why is this concept so difficult for some people to understand?

  10. Viktor Chernikov - 9 years ago

    Actually, it is a big deal. There are three points to consider from the graph:

    1. NVIDIA marked Tegra K1 as having lower performance than A8X. According to the tests run by Anandtech, they perform more or less the same, with A8X having a slight edge in some of the benchmarks. So, at the face value this gives legitimacy to the data provided.

    2. It is quite a feat to achieve much higher performance on the same tech process. Both X1 and A8X use 20 nm. This is actually looks like a marketing material intended for Apple: “Look, here’s what you’ll have if you replace PowerVR solution with our GPU”. I’m not saying this is easy to do or that Apple would even consider that. But still.

    3. A9 should be left out of the picture. First, it will be built on 14 nm, giving Apple free energy efficiency, even if they won’t touch the architecture. Second, it may move to PowerVR 7 series, providing another boost. So, basically, it is an unknown SoC with huge potential. This can be used to provide incredible performance, or to leave it on the same level while giving devices very long battery life, which is very important. It’s just too early to tell. One can’t compare an engineering sample to an unknown design.

Author

Avatar for Ben Lovejoy Ben Lovejoy

Ben Lovejoy is a British technology writer and EU Editor for 9to5Mac. He’s known for his op-eds and diary pieces, exploring his experience of Apple products over time, for a more rounded review. He also writes fiction, with two technothriller novels, a couple of SF shorts and a rom-com!


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