Apple today unveiled its new M2 chip at the company’s Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC). After the M1, M1 Pro, M1 Max and M1 Ultra chips, Apple is now ready to move to a more powerful M2 chip, with big promises of performance improvements.
Like the original M1 chip, the new M2 uses Apple’s custom silicon Arm and is based on a 5 nm process with 20 billion transistors, 25 percent more than the original M1. All of these transistors should increase performance, and Apple promises an 18 percent faster CPU and a 35 percent faster GPU on the M2 compared to the original M1.
Apparently, this performance is 1.9 times faster than the “latest 10-core portable PC chip,” according to Apple. For better performance on the M1, Apple is using new performance and efficiency cores in the M2, along with 100 Gbps of memory bandwidth and 24 GB of unified memory, which is 50 percent more than bandwidth than the M1. Apple is using four high-performance cores, with four high-efficiency cores in the M2, with a 16 MB shared cache in the performance cores and a 4 MB shared cache in the efficiency cores.
Apple’s M2 also includes a secure interlock and next-generation neural engine, and an upgraded multimedia engine that supports 8K H.264 and HEVC video. This actually means that systems running M2 chips will be able to play multiple 4K and 8K video streams simultaneously.
The new features of Apple’s M2 processor. Image: Apple
The first Mac to get the M2 chip is one of Apple’s most popular laptops, the MacBook Air. The wedge shape of the MacBook Air has been changed to a thinner profile this time around, and the M2-equipped laptop also includes MagSafe charging. The new MacBook Air also comes with a larger 13.6-inch screen, a better camera and promises of an 18-hour battery. More details on the new MacBook Air right here.
In development … we are adding more to this post, but you can follow it with our live WWDC 2022 blog to get the news even faster.