Apple is keen to show how its own internal silicon handles running games, but a recent benchmark in which the recently released M2 chip outperforms an AMD Ryzen iGPU really puts its determination to enter the gaming market in perspective.
The M2 chip was compared to a variety of AMD and Intel processors by popular tech YouTuber Hardware without box (opens in new tab)which found that the new addition to Apple’s line of SoCs (system-on-a-chip) outperformed the RDNA 2 iGPU featured in the AMD Ryzen 7 6800U CPU by about 10%.
It’s worth noting that this particular test involves running Shadow of The Tomb Raider (released in 2018) at a modest 1200p with SMAA (Enhanced Subpixel Morphological Antialiasing) enabled.
It also outperformed the same processor and Intel Core i7-1260P in battery life when running a YouTube 4K video playback test, delivering 48% more juice than AMD’s offerings and a whopping 2.2x increase over to Intel, so while gaming testing itself isn’t particularly demanding, it’s still amazing to see what the M2 can do on a much lower power budget.
HardwareUnboxed has run many other tests on a wide range of other processors, including those in the 12th Gen, 11th Gen, Ryzen 6000, and Ryzen 5000 lines, with mixed results, so we recommend checking out the full video below if you’re especially interested in how it works. M2 left. As WCCFTech Reports (opens in new tab)the M2 proved slower than the Intel Core i7-1260P and the Ryzen 7 6800U in Cinebench R23, while the M2 leads against the same Ryzen processor, but loses out to the Intel chip in Cinebench R23 single-thread tests.
The bottom line across all the benchmarks is that while some people are disappointed with the performance of the M2 when compared to its predecessor, the M1, we are seeing some impressive results from Apple even when compared to the broader market. AMD and Intel will need to pay attention, or else the fruit-themed tech giant could start encroaching on markets that were once believed to be safe.
Review: What does this mean for MacBook Gaming?
As exciting as these results are, Apple will not be a smart choice for AAA gaming at high resolutions. At least, not yet, but I wouldn’t be surprised if this is a market that is determined to recover. After all, some of the early PC games weren’t just playable on Apple computers, they were built and designed on them.
The PC gaming industry has changed quite a bit since the 90s so this will not be an easy task, but since the M1 proved its capabilities it was seeing more and more games appearing on the platform. We have a complete list of the best M1-compatible video games, and if you normally walk away when Apple announcements are made, you might be surprised to learn that great titles like EVE Online, Borderlands 3, and even Fortnite don’t just run on the M1 – they do. run We will.
I’d still like to see Apple try to create a dedicated graphics card if they want to be serious about Mac-based gaming, regardless of how impressive the M1 and M2 chips have proven to be. iGPUs are used for gaming, of course, but most PC gamers will at some point upgrade to a low-key option, whether it’s a new gaming laptop or building a gaming computer from scratch.
The M2 won’t bring years of hard work on the PC platform, but it’s a good sign of things to come – at least, if you’re a fan of the Apple ecosystem. For those of you who are critical, let’s hope this is the kick in the ass that AMD and Intel needed to create something innovative to compete with.
