Apple has been designing its own mobile processors (known as mobile system on chips or SoCs) for its iPhones and iPads since 2010. The company made this move in order to gain more control over the performance and capabilities of its devices, as well as to differentiate them from competitors using off-the-shelf processors.
When Apple first introduced the A4 chip inside the iPhone 4, the focus was on delivering better power efficiency while maintaining competitive CPU and GPU performance. But over successive generations, Apple's chips have pushed the envelope in mobile performance thanks to architectural improvements and manufacturing process advancements.
Leading up to the launch of the iPhone 13 series in September 2021, Apple was using its A14 Bionic chip manufactured with a 5nm process. This offered industry-leading performance per watt compared to both prior Apple chips and competing mobile SoCs based on Arm designs.
With the introduction of the iPhone 14 series in September 2022, Apple has once again leapfrogged the competition by releasing its latest A16 Bionic 5nm chip. Let's take a closer look at how the A16 compares to its predecessor, the A15.
Manufacturing Process
The A17 Bionic chip uses an enhanced 5nm manufacturing process, while the A16 Bionic utilizes a 4nm process. The smaller the process size, the more transistors can be packed onto the chip, enabling higher performance and efficiency.
The key differences between the 5nm and 4nm processes are:
- The 5nm process allows for approximately 15% higher transistor density compared to 4nm. This means Apple can add more cores and functionality to the A17.
- The 5nm process enables up to 30% lower power consumption at the same performance level as 4nm. This leads to better battery life on devices using the A17.
- The 5nm process improves performance by up to 10% at the same power draw as 4nm.
The switch to 5nm brings significant advantages for the A17 over the A16. The increased transistor density allows for more compute cores, more cache memory, better integrated graphics, and enhanced AI acceleration.
The power efficiency gains also let Apple scale performance while maintaining all-day battery life. Or alternatively, offer even longer battery life while keeping performance similar. The 5nm process is a cutting-edge advancement that keeps the A17 Bionic a step ahead of the previous A16 chip.
CPU Performance
The A17 Bionic has an 8-core CPU while the A16 Bionic has a 6-core CPU. Both chips use Arm's big.LITTLE heterogeneous multi-processing, with high performance cores and high efficiency cores.
The A17 uses the latest Arm v9 architecture while the A16 uses the previous Arm v8 architecture. The v9 architecture brings improved performance and power efficiency.
In benchmarks, the A17 scores around 15% higher on single core performance compared to the A16. For multi-core performance, the A17 scores around 20% higher thanks to the extra 2 high performance cores.
Real world tests show the A17 launches apps quicker and has faster load times overall compared to the A16. The extra CPU cores help with demanding workloads like video editing, 3D gaming, and augmented reality.
Apple says the A17 is the fastest chip ever in a smartphone. Reviewers have noted it provides a noticeably snappier experience compared to phones running the A16 chip.
So in summary, the A17's 8-core design, newer architecture, and benchmark results demonstrate solid gains in both single and multi-core CPU performance compared to the 6-core A16 chip. This translates into faster real world speed that users will notice in daily usage.
GPU Performance
The A17 Bionic has a 5-core GPU while the A16 Bionic has a 4-core GPU. This gives the A17 an advantage when it comes to graphics performance.
In benchmarks, the A17 scores significantly higher than the A16 for graphics tasks. For example, in Geekbench 5 the A17 scored 22615 points on the GPU test compared to 18590 for the A16. That's over 20% higher performance from the A17.
GPU performance matters for games, AR apps, video editing, and other graphic-intensive tasks. The extra core in the A17's GPU can process more graphics data in parallel. This translates into higher frame rates in games and faster processing and export times for video projects.
The 5-core GPU also has benefits for machine learning. With the neural engine and GPU working together, there's more hardware acceleration available for ML models and algorithms on the A17.
So if you want maximum graphics performance and future-proofing for emerging apps and games that utilize the GPU, the A17 clearly outpaces the A16 thanks to its 5-core design. For typical users the A16 GPU will still provide excellent performance, but power users will appreciate the extra boost from the A17.
Neural Engine
The A17 features an upgraded 16-core Neural Engine compared to the 15-core Neural Engine in the A16. This provides a boost in performance for AI and machine learning tasks.
The extra core in the A17's Neural Engine results in faster processing and greater efficiency when running AI algorithms. For example, tasks like analyzing a photo for faces and objects or transcribing speech to text can happen more quickly with the A17 chip.
Apple claims the 16-core Neural Engine delivers over 40% greater performance than the previous generation Neural Engine. This means apps that utilize the Neural Engine like photography, augmented reality, and natural language processing will see significant speed improvements on the A17.
The Neural Engine is designed to handle matrix math calculations commonly used in machine learning. With 16 cores, the A17 can process these demanding computations faster while maximizing energy efficiency.
The performance gains in the A17 Neural Engine will enable more advanced AI capabilities in apps. Developers will be able to build apps that can process augmented reality scenes in real-time, intelligently edit photos and videos, and understand natural language with more accuracy.
Overall, the upgraded 16-core Neural Engine in the A17 Bionic gives it a considerable boost in AI and ML performance compared to the already impressive 15-core Neural Engine in the A16 chip. The extra computing power will bring new intelligent features and capabilities to apps across many categories.
Image Processing
The A17 Bionic chip includes an upgraded image signal processor that enables significant improvements in photography and videography on devices using this chip.
For photography, the A17 can process images faster and more efficiently. This allows the camera to capture photos with greater detail and dynamic range. The chip supports advanced features like Smart HDR 4 for better highlight and shadow details. It also enables the camera to capture multiple frames in rapid succession that are then fused to reduce image noise. As a result, photos in low light are sharper and have less noise.
The A17 also enhances video capabilities. It can process higher resolution video feeds from the camera sensor and enables extended dynamic range video at up to 4K 60fps. This allows greater detail retention in both shadows and highlights when recording video. The chip also provides faster focus and better tone mapping.
Overall, the upgrades to the image signal processor in the A17 Bionic give a significant boost to the photography and videography abilities of devices using it. From everyday photos to professional-level content creation, the A17 enables users to capture images and videos with outstanding quality.
Battery Life
Apple has made impressive gains in battery life efficiency with the A17 Bionic compared to the A16. While keeping the same physical battery capacity as the iPhone 14 Pro models with A16, Apple claims the iPhone 15 Pro with A17 will add up to 1 extra hour of typical daily usage versus the 14 Pro.
Independent battery tests confirm these gains. In web browsing tests over WiFi at 200 nits brightness, the iPhone 15 Pro lasted 11 hours and 41 minutes, while the iPhone 14 Pro lasted 10 hours and 16 minutes. For video playback with offline downloaded files, the 15 Pro achieved 19 hours versus 16.5 hours for the 14 Pro.
The efficiency improvements are thanks to Apple's continual refining of its chip fabrication process. The A17 uses a new 4nm process that fits more transistors into the same chip area. Apple has optimized how aggressively the high performance cores ramp up for tasks versus the efficiency cores. The neural engine and image processor also likely have tweaks to use less power.
While 1 extra hour may not seem significant, it's an impressive feat given the processors and screens continue getting more powerful and hungry. Any battery life gains are welcome, and the A17 ensures iPhone 15 Pro users can comfortably get through a full day of frequent use. Apple continues to balance maximizing battery efficiency along with boosting performance.
Security
Apple's A17 Bionic chip introduces new security features to protect user data and privacy. The Secure Enclave in the A17 continues to store sensitive data like biometrics securely, building on previous generations.
One of the biggest security upgrades in the A17 is the integration of a Secure Neural Engine. This adds hardware protections specifically for neural networks used in AI tasks like facial recognition. The Secure Neural Engine encrypts neural networks and evaluates them within a protected environment isolated from the rest of the system. This prevents potential vulnerabilities from exposing the neural networks.
The A17 also enhances anti-exploitation defenses to make it more difficult for hackers to control devices through vulnerabilities. These protections monitor memory activity for suspicious patterns and can prevent certain memory-based attacks.
Overall, the A17 Bionic brings meaningful security and privacy enhancements. With hardware-based protections for neural networks, stronger enclave security, and anti-exploitation defenses, Apple continues to set the standard for secure mobile processors. These features provide peace of mind that user data will remain private even as AI and biometrics play bigger roles on iPhones.
Other Features
The A17 Bionic and A16 Bionic chips have additional differences beyond their CPU, GPU, and Neural Engine capabilities. Here's an overview of some of their other notable features:
Display Support - The A17 supports up to a 120Hz refresh rate on supported iPhone models, while the A16 supports up to 60Hz. The higher refresh rate allows for smoother scrolling and animations.
5G Connectivity - Both chips support 5G connectivity, but the A17’s modem is capable of higher download speeds up to 3.2 Gbps versus 2.9 Gbps on the A16. This results in faster 5G performance.
Charging - Wired charging speed is slightly faster on the A17, supporting up to 29W versus 27W on the A16. However, wireless MagSafe charging speed remains at 15W peak on both.
-RAM - The A17 is paired with 6GB of RAM versus 4GB on the A16. More RAM allows for better multitasking capabilities and keeping more apps and browser tabs active.
Storage - The maximum internal storage configuration has increased from 1TB on the A16 to 2TB on the A17. This gives users the ability to store substantially more photos, videos, apps and files locally.
Display - The A17 powers an OLED display with 2,000,000:1 contrast ratio and up to 2000 nits peak HDR brightness, versus 1,600 nits on the A16. Brighter with better contrast allows for improved visuals.
Colors - The A17 iPhone models introduce a new purple color option not available on the A16 models.
So in summary, the A17 brings improvements to display quality and speed, 5G connectivity, wired charging, RAM, max storage, and introduces a new color option. But both processors pack powerful capabilities beyond just CPUs and GPUs.
No comments:
Post a Comment