Apple M2 Pro vs i5-8259U

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Aggregate performance score

Core i5-8259U
2018
4 cores / 8 threads, 28 Watt
4.95
Apple M2 Pro
2023
12 cores / 12 threads
13.73
+177%

Apple M2 Pro outperforms Core i5-8259U by a whopping 177% based on our aggregate benchmark results.

Primary details

Comparing Core i5-8259U and M2 Pro processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.

Place in the ranking1237544
Place by popularitynot in top-100not in top-100
Market segmentLaptopLaptop
SeriesIntel Core i5Apple Apple M-Series
Power efficiency16.73no data
Architecture codenameCoffee Lake-U (2018−2019)no data
Release date5 April 2018 (6 years ago)17 January 2023 (1 year ago)
Launch price (MSRP)$320no data

Detailed specifications

Core i5-8259U and M2 Pro basic parameters such as number of cores, number of threads, base frequency and turbo boost clock, lithography, cache size and multiplier lock state. These parameters indirectly say of CPU speed, though for more precise assessment you have to consider their test results.

Physical cores4 (Quad-Core)12 (Dodeca-Core)
Threads812
Base clock speed2.3 GHz2.424 GHz
Boost clock speed3.8 GHz3.5 GHz
Bus typeOPIno data
Bus rate4 GT/sno data
Multiplier23no data
L1 cache64K (per core)3.3 MB
L2 cache256K (per core)36 MB
L3 cache6 MB (shared)24 MB
Chip lithography14 nm5 nm
Die size126 mm2no data
Maximum core temperature100 °Cno data
Maximum case temperature (TCase)72 °Cno data
Number of transistorsno data40000 Million
64 bit support++
Windows 11 compatibility+no data

Compatibility

Information on Core i5-8259U and M2 Pro compatibility with other computer components: motherboard (look for socket type), power supply unit (look for power consumption) etc. Useful when planning a future computer configuration or upgrading an existing one. Note that power consumption of some processors can well exceed their nominal TDP, even without overclocking. Some can even double their declared thermals given that the motherboard allows to tune the CPU power parameters.

Number of CPUs in a configuration1 (Uniprocessor)no data
SocketFCBGA1528no data
Power consumption (TDP)28 Wattno data

Technologies and extensions

Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Core i5-8259U and M2 Pro. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.

Instruction set extensionsIntel® SSE4.1, Intel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX2no data
AES-NI+-
AVX+-
Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST)+no data
eDRAM128 MBno data
Speed Shift+no data
My WiFi+no data
Turbo Boost Technology2.0no data
Hyper-Threading Technology+no data
Idle States+no data
Thermal Monitoring+-
Flex Memory Access+no data

Security technologies

Core i5-8259U and M2 Pro technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.

TXT-no data
EDB+no data
Secure Key+no data
MPX+-
Identity Protection+-
SGXYes with Intel® MEno data
OS Guard+no data

Virtualization technologies

Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Core i5-8259U and M2 Pro are enumerated here.

AMD-V+-
VT-d+no data
VT-x+no data
EPT+no data

Memory specs

Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Core i5-8259U and M2 Pro. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.

Supported memory typesDDR4no data
Maximum memory size32 GBno data
Max memory channels2no data
Maximum memory bandwidth38.397 GB/sno data

Graphics specifications

General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.

Integrated graphics card
Compare
Intel Iris Plus Graphics 655Apple M2 Pro 19-Core GPU
Max video memory32 GBno data
Quick Sync Video+-
Clear Video+no data
Clear Video HD+no data
Graphics max frequency1.05 GHzno data
InTru 3D+no data

Graphics interfaces

Available interfaces and connections of Core i5-8259U and M2 Pro integrated GPUs.

Number of displays supported3no data
eDP+no data
DisplayPort+-
HDMI+-
DVI+no data

Graphics image quality

Maximum display resolutions supported by Core i5-8259U and M2 Pro integrated GPUs, including resolutions over different interfaces.

4K resolution support+no data
Max resolution over HDMI 1.44096x2304@30Hzno data
Max resolution over eDP4096x2304@60Hzno data
Max resolution over DisplayPort4096x2304@60Hzno data

Graphics API support

APIs supported by Core i5-8259U and M2 Pro integrated GPUs, sometimes API versions are included.

DirectX12no data
OpenGL4.5no data

Peripherals

Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Core i5-8259U and M2 Pro.

PCIe version3.0no data
PCI Express lanes16no data

Synthetic benchmark performance

Various benchmark results of the processors in comparison. Overall score is measured in points in 0-100 range, higher is better.


Combined synthetic benchmark score

This is our combined benchmark performance rating. We are regularly improving our combining algorithms, but if you find some perceived inconsistencies, feel free to speak up in comments section, we usually fix problems quickly.

i5-8259U 4.95
Apple M2 Pro 13.73
+177%

Passmark

Passmark CPU Mark is a widespread benchmark, consisting of 8 different types of workload, including integer and floating point math, extended instructions, compression, encryption and physics calculation. There is also one separate single-threaded scenario measuring single-core performance.

i5-8259U 7867
Apple M2 Pro 21806
+177%

Cinebench 15 64-bit multi-core

Cinebench Release 15 Multi Core is a variant of Cinebench R15 which uses all the processor threads.

i5-8259U 615
Apple M2 Pro 2069
+236%

Cinebench 15 64-bit single-core

Cinebench R15 (standing for Release 15) is a benchmark made by Maxon, authors of Cinema 4D. It was superseded by later versions of Cinebench, which use more modern variants of Cinema 4D engine. The Single Core version (sometimes called Single-Thread) only uses a single processor thread to render a room full of reflective spheres and light sources.

i5-8259U 149
Apple M2 Pro 230
+54.7%

Geekbench 5.5 Multi-Core

i5-8259U 3607
Apple M2 Pro 15010
+316%

WebXPRT 3

i5-8259U 176
Apple M2 Pro 386
+119%

CrossMark Overall

i5-8259U 954
Apple M2 Pro 1805
+89.2%

WebXPRT 4 Overall

i5-8259U 140
Apple M2 Pro 253
+80.3%

Gaming performance

Pros & cons summary


Performance score 4.95 13.73
Recency 5 April 2018 17 January 2023
Physical cores 4 12
Threads 8 12
Chip lithography 14 nm 5 nm

Apple M2 Pro has a 177.4% higher aggregate performance score, an age advantage of 4 years, 200% more physical cores and 50% more threads, and a 180% more advanced lithography process.

The M2 Pro is our recommended choice as it beats the Core i5-8259U in performance tests.


Should you still have questions on choice between Core i5-8259U and Apple M2 Pro, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.

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Intel Core i5-8259U
Core i5-8259U
Apple M2 Pro
M2 Pro

Similar processor comparisons

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Community ratings

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Questions & comments

Here you can ask a question about Core i5-8259U or M2 Pro, agree or disagree with our judgements, or report an error or mismatch.