Alleged benchmark test of Apple’s unreleased ‘M2 Max’ chip surfaces on the web

We’ve been hearing rumors about the next generation of Macs for some time now, which are expected to be introduced sometime in 2023. While Apple is yet to officially announce the new machines, a supposed benchmark test of the unreleased “M2 Max” chip has surfaced on the web with details about the performance of the chip that is expected to power the new Macs.

Apple’s new M2 Max chip may not be a huge upgrade

As noted by ShrimpApplePro on Twitter, a test result from Geekbench 5 (a platform used to measure CPU performance) has been published from a device identified as “Mac14.6.” Interestingly, Geekbench 5 shows that this device has an Apple M2 Max CPU, which doesn’t officially exist.

According to the platform, the M2 Max chip used in the benchmark test has a 12-core CPU with 3.54GHz and 96GB of RAM. It scored 1853 on single core and 13855 on multi-core. For comparison, the M1 Max chip that powers the MacBook Pro and entry-level Mac Studio has 10 cores with 3.2GHz and scores 1746 in single-core and 12154 in multi-core.

Based on these tests, the M2 Max chip is only about 14% faster than the M1 Max chip. Considering that the results are from a real machine, it’s unclear whether Geekbench 5 failed to measure the full performance of the new CPU or whether M2 Max in fact won’t be a huge upgrade compared to M1 Max, which doesn’t sound unlikely.

For instance, the base M2 chip, which was introduced earlier this year with the new MacBook Air, is only 11% faster than the M1 in single-core and 19% faster in multi-core. This is because Apple kept the same 5-nanometer architecture in the new chip and focused on power efficiency rather than performance gains.

At the same time, Apple’s chip supplier TSMC is yet to deliver next-generation 3-nanometer chips, so it wouldn’t be a surprise if the new M2 Max is also based on the current 5-nanometer architecture.

New M2 Macs rumored to be coming in 2023

Apple is rumored to introduce multiple new Macs in 2023. This includes new 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro, Mac Studio, and the long-awaited Apple Silicon-powered Mac Pro.

When it comes to the M2 Max chip, it is most likely to power the high-end versions of the new MacBook Pro and the entry-level Mac Studio model, which is also expected to have an even more powerful version with the M2 Ultra chip. Apple also has a new Mac mini in the works, which will have versions with the M2 and M2 Pro chips.