Apple A9 review: specs and price
Apple A9
Why is Apple A9 better than the average?
- Semiconductor size?
16 nmvs17.78 nm - Bits executed at a time?
128vs108.86 - L2 cache?
3 MBvs1.56 MB - OpenGL version?
3.3vs2.88 - L1 cache?
128 KBvs109.95 KB - Front-end width?
6vs2.52 - GPU execution units?
6vs4.28
Which are the most popular comparisons?
Price comparison
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User reviews
Overall rating
Features
Gaming
6.0/10
2 votes
Performance
6.5/10
2 votes
General info
Supports 64-bit
✔Apple A9
A 32-bit operating system can only support up to 4GB of RAM. 64-bit allows more than 4GB, giving increased performance. It also allows you to run 64-bit apps.
Has integrated graphics
✔Apple A9
With integrated graphics you don’t need to buy a separate graphics card.
semiconductor size
16 nm
Small semiconductors provide better performance and reduced power consumption. Chipsets with a higher number of transistors, semiconductor components of electronic devices, offer more computational power. A small form factor allows more transistors to fit on a chip, therefore increasing its performance.
GPU clock speed
650 MHz
The clock speed of the graphics processing unit (GPU).
has 5G support
✖Apple A9
The fifth-generation wireless technology delivers higher speeds and lower latency than the previous, fourth-generation tech.
GPU turbo
Unknown. Help us by suggesting a value.
When the GPU is running below its limitations, it can boost to a higher clock speed in order to give increased performance.
DirectX version
DirectX 11
DirectX is used in video games, with newer versions supporting better graphics and features. The latest version is DirectX 12 Ultimate, which includes support for ray tracing, mesh shaders, and variable rate shading (VRS).
OpenGL ES is used for games on mobile devices such as smartphones. Newer versions support better graphics.
Some apps use OpenCL to apply the power of the graphics processing unit (GPU) for non-graphical computing. Newer versions introduce more functionality and better performance.
Performance
CPU speed
2 x 2 GHz
The CPU speed indicates how many processing cycles per second can be executed by a CPU, considering all of its cores (processing units). It is calculated by adding the clock rates of each core or, in the case of multi-core processors employing different microarchitectures, of each group of cores.
CPU threads
2 threads
More threads result in faster performance and better multitasking.
Uses big.LITTLE technology
✖Apple A9
Using big.LITTLE technology, a chip can switch between two sets of processor cores to maximize performance and battery life. For example, when playing a game the more powerful cores will be used to increase performance, whereas checking email will use the less powerful cores to maximize battery life.
Uses HMP
✖Apple A9
Heterogeneous Multi-Processing (HMP) is a more advanced version of big.LITTLE technology. In this setup, a processor can utilize all cores at the same time, or just a single core for low-intensity tasks. This can provide powerful performance or increased battery life respectively.
turbo clock speed
Unknown. Help us by suggesting a value.
When the CPU is running below its limitations, it can boost to a higher clock speed in order to give increased performance.
L2 cache
3 MB
A larger L2 cache results in faster CPU and system-wide performance.
L1 cache
128 KB
A larger L1 cache results in faster CPU and system-wide performance.
clock multiplier
Unknown. Help us by suggesting a value.
The clock multiplier controls the speed of the CPU.
L3 cache
4 MB
A larger L3 cache results in faster CPU and system-wide performance.
Memory
RAM speed
1333 MHz
It can support faster memory, which will give quicker system performance.
DDR (Double Data Rate) memory is the most common type of RAM. Newer versions of DDR memory support higher maximum speeds and are more energy-efficient.
The maximum amount of memory (RAM) supported.
maximum memory bandwidth
14.9 GB/s
This is the maximum rate that data can be read from or stored into memory.
More memory channels increases the speed of data transfer between the memory and the CPU.
eMMC version
Unknown. Help us by suggesting a value.
A higher version of eMMC allows faster memory interfaces, having a positive effect on the performance of a device. For example, when transferring files from your computer to the internal storage over USB.
Supports ECC memory
✖Apple A9
Error-correcting code memory can detect and correct data corruption. It is used when is it essential to avoid corruption, such as scientific computing or when running a server.
Features
Has integrated LTE
✔Apple A9
The system on a chip (SoC) has an integrated LTE cellular chip. LTE is capable of downloading at faster speeds than older, 3G technology.
download speed
450 MBits/s
This is the maximum download speed supported. In reality, the download speed will usually be lower, as it will be affected by other factors (such as your home/mobile network speeds).
upload speed
150 MBits/s
This is the maximum upload speed supported. In reality, the upload speed will usually be lower, as it will be affected by other factors (for example your home/mobile network speeds).
Has TrustZone
✔Apple A9
A technology integrated into the processor to secure the device for use with features such as mobile payments and streaming video using digital rights management (DRM).
uses multithreading
✖Apple A9
Multithreading technology (such as Intel's Hyperthreading or AMD's Simultaneous Multithreading) provides increased performance by splitting each of the processor's physical cores into virtual cores, also known as threads. This way, each core can run two instruction streams at once.
Has NX bit
✔Apple A9
NX bit helps protect the computer from malicious attacks.
NEON provides acceleration for media processing, such as listening to MP3s.
Vector Floating-Point (VFP) is used by the processor to deliver increased performance in areas such as digital imaging.
The CPU can decode more instructions per clock (IPC), meaning that the CPU performs better
Benchmarks
Geekbench 6 result (single)
Unknown. Help us by suggesting a value.
Geekbench 6 is a cross-platform benchmark that measures a processor's single-core performance. (Source: Primate Labs, 2024)
Geekbench 6 result (multi)
Unknown. Help us by suggesting a value.
Geekbench 6 is a cross-platform benchmark that measures a processor's multi-core performance. (Source: Primate Labs, 2024)
Geekbench 5 is a cross-platform benchmark that measures a processor's single-core performance. (Source: Primate Labs, 2024)
Geekbench 5 is a cross-platform benchmark that measures a processor's multi-core performance. (Source: Primate Labs, 2024)
PassMark result
Unknown. Help us by suggesting a value.
This benchmark measures the performance of the CPU using multiple threads.
PassMark result (single)
Unknown. Help us by suggesting a value.
This benchmark measures the performance of the CPU using a single thread.
PassMark result (overclocked)
Unknown. Help us by suggesting a value.
This benchmark measures the performance of the CPU when it is overclocked.
Miscellaneous
DirectX is used in games, with newer versions supporting better graphics.
Price comparison
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Comments
Boy
2 years ago
9 / 10
Not Worth Getting in 2022
Boy
2 years ago
9 / 10
Pros
Cons
Harrison
1 year ago
6 / 10
Great Chip But is Starting to Show it's Age.
Harrison
1 year ago
6 / 10
I had an iPad 5th generation and I must say, its has served me well even in the start of 2022 (until I upgraded from it). It gave solid day to day performance as it handled productivity tasks such as typing and researching quite well and even managed multitasking decently (noticeable performance drop though). For gaming, the A9 chip USED to be great for gaming but is now average (5/10) in performance in 2022. It can still run light games easily enough but struggles to handle certain games such as 1st person shooter multiplayer games that I play It even gets really hot whilst doing so. I wouldn't recommend that anyone would buy devices .with this chip unless they only do very basic tasks. Overall, this is still a good chip which is respectable due to its age. I believe there are many other offerings with more performance and better thermals than this chip. I personally wouldn’t recommend buying devices with this chip as most of them are being unsupported this year (except the iPad 5th gen surprisingly) again, there are many better and newer offerings than A9 powered devices.
Pros
Cons