Apple M2 Max vs i9-10900KF

Primary details

Comparing processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.

Place in the ranking	701	539
Place by popularity	not in top-100	not in top-100
Cost-effectiveness evaluation	11.52	no data
Market segment	Desktop processor	Laptop
Series	no data	Apple M-Series
Power efficiency	4.28	8.19
Designer	Intel	Apple
Manufacturer	Intel	no data
Architecture codename	Comet Lake (2020−2025)	no data
Release date	30 April 2020 (6 years ago)	17 January 2023 (3 years ago)
Launch price (MSRP)	$509	no data

Cost-effectiveness evaluation

Performance per price, higher is better.

Performance to price scatter graph

Detailed specifications

Basic parameters of Core i9-10900KF and M2 Max: 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 cores	10 (Deca-Core)	12 (Dodeca-Core)
Threads	20	12
Base clock speed	3.7 GHz	2.424 GHz
Boost clock speed	5.2 GHz	3.7 GHz
Bus rate	8 GT/s	no data
L1 cache	64 KB (per core)	3.3 MB
L2 cache	256 KB (per core)	36 MB
L3 cache	20 MB (shared)	48 MB
Chip lithography	14 nm	5 nm
Maximum core temperature	100 °C	no data
Maximum case temperature (TCase)	72 °C	no data
Number of transistors	no data	67000 Million
64 bit support	+	+
Windows 11 compatibility	+	no data
Unlocked multiplier	+	-

Compatibility

Information on Core i9-10900KF and M2 Max 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 configuration	1	no data
Socket	FCLGA1200	no data
Power consumption (TDP)	125 Watt	79 Watt

Technologies and extensions

Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Core i9-10900KF and M2 Max. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.

Instruction set extensions	Intel® SSE4.1, Intel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX2	no data
AES-NI	+	-
AVX	+	-
Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST)	+	no data
Turbo Boost Technology	2.0	no data
Hyper-Threading Technology	+	no data
Idle States	+	no data
Thermal Monitoring	+	-
Turbo Boost Max 3.0	+	no data

Security technologies

Core i9-10900KF and M2 Max technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.

TXT	+	no data
EDB	+	no data
Identity Protection	+	-
SGX	Yes with Intel® ME	no data
OS Guard	+	no data

Virtualization technologies

Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Core i9-10900KF and M2 Max are enumerated here.

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

Memory specs

Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Core i9-10900KF and M2 Max. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.

Supported memory types	DDR4-2933	no data
Maximum memory size	128 GB	no data
Max memory channels	2	no data
Maximum memory bandwidth	45.8 GB/s	no data

Graphics specifications

General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.

Integrated graphics card

N/A

Apple M2 Max 38-Core GPU

Peripherals

Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Core i9-10900KF and M2 Max.

PCIe version	3.0	no data
PCI Express lanes	16	no data

Synthetic benchmarks

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

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Combined synthetic benchmark score

This is our combined benchmark performance rating.

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Pros & cons summary

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Performance score	12.69	15.34
Recency	30 April 2020	17 January 2023
Physical cores	10	12
Threads	20	12
Chip lithography	14 nm	5 nm
Power consumption (TDP)	125 Watt	79 Watt