A18 vs. A18 Pro: What's the Difference?

[MacRumors]

Apple introduced new second-generation 3-nanometer chips for both the iPhone 16 and the iPhone 16 Pro models, bringing notable improvements in performance. The iPhone 16 and 16 Plus have an A18 chip, while the iPhone 16 Pro and Pro Max have an A18 Pro chip.

The chips are similar, but there are some differences to be aware of, along with differences in the iPhone 16 and 16 Pro thermal design.
A18 and A18 Pro Shared Features

• Built on second-generation 3-nm process with smaller transistors.
• 6-core CPU with four performance cores and two efficiency cores.
• Upgraded 16-core Neural Engine optimized for running large generative models.
• Upgraded memory subsystem with 17 percent more memory bandwidth.

A18/iPhone 16 Features

The A18 has a 5-core GPU rather than the 6-core GPU in the A18 Pro.

The iPhone 16 models have a new thermal design. Apple says that it updated the main logic board, centralizing chip placement and optimizing the surrounding architecture. There's a recycled aluminum substructure that dissipates heat for 30 percent higher sustained performance for gaming.

The A18 also adds hardware accelerated ray tracing, a feature that was available in the iPhone 15 Pro models with A17 Pro, but is new to the standard iPhone lineup. Hardware accelerated ray tracing is useful for gaming, and the iPhone 16 models can run all of the console-quality games that Apple touted for the iPhone 15 Pro models last year.

A18 Pro/iPhone 16 Pro Features

The A18 Pro has the same 6-core CPU as the A18, as well as the same Neural Engine, but it has one more GPU core for a 6-core GPU instead of a 5-core GPU.

According to Apple, the iPhone 16 Pro maximizes thermal capacity with a machined chassis that uses 100 percent recycled aluminum. It is bonded to the titanium frame using solid state diffusion, and it is combined with a graphite clad aluminum substructure. The new thermal architecture enables a 20 percent improvement in sustained gaming performance compared to the A17 Pro.

A18 Performance

Compared to the A16 Bionic chip, the A18's CPU is 30 percent faster, and it offers the same performance while using 30 percent less power.

The GPU is 40 percent faster than the A16 Bionic GPU, and it is also more efficient. It offers the same performance using 35% less power.

The new Neural Engine is 2x faster for machine learning than the Neural Engine in the A16 Bionic chip.

A18 Pro Performance

The 6-core A18 Pro CPU is 15 percent faster than the A17 Pro CPU, and it delivers the same performance using 20 percent less power. Apple says that it is the fastest CPU in any smartphone, with next-generation ML accelerators that are directly programmable for high-efficiency, high throughput and low latency computations.

The 6-core GPU is 20 percent faster than the GPU in the A17 Pro, and hardware accelerated ray tracing is 2x faster.

The upgraded Neural Engine is faster and more efficient than the Neural Engine in the A17 Pro. Apple says that Apple Intelligence features run 15 percent faster on the A18 Pro than the A17 Pro.

There is a new advanced display engine for ProMotion, a new video encoder, and a new image signal processor. Combined, they process twice the amount of data for fast video encoding and improved efficiency.

Article Link: A18 vs. A18 Pro: What's the Difference?

 

[sublunar]

Great, now put it in iPad mini and Apple TV 😀

 

[displayblock]

Compared to the standard A18, the A18 Pro also includes wider memory bandwidth and larger caches, enabling support for some "Advanced media" features, including always-on display and ProRes video recording.

 

[bradman83]

This is similar to what Apple did with the iPhone 13 series; the regular 13 and mini had a 4 core GPU and the Pro had a 5 core GPU. It makes sense that Apple would at least give the two chips distinct names to imply the difference, though I don’t know if a single GPU core elevates the chip to being “Pro” versus the base chip.

 

[Smittywerben]

I think this could be the first time in a while that Snapdragon takes the lead in CPU performance since %15 is basically nothing and they were super close even using 4nm silicon.
And I would take their efficiency claims with grain of salt, they claimed A17 Pro would be significantly more efficient as well, and battery life was barely better than two years old 13 Pro Max.

 

[Mac Fly (film)]

Why does this article seem way more confusing than it needs to be?

 

[iSmoggie]

The gaming bits of the keynote looked impressive. I was struck by how good the lighting and rendering of vegetation looked in one of the games shown.

 

[Chuckeee]

So 1 GPU, promotion & AOD support, USB3. And some nebulous words About fast video encoding and bigger cache.

Lots of mixed comparisons (some compared to A16 and other to A17 pro) to hide direct comparisons between A18 and A18 Pro.

 

[Chuckeee]

bonded to the titanium frame using solid state diffusion

Good for a physical strength, but not so much for thermal dissipation. Aluminum is a much better thermal conductor than titanium. And there’s a CTE mismatch too, But probably not a big concern for typical iPhone operating temperatures.

 

[aloyouis]

This is similar to what Apple did with the iPhone 13 series; the regular 13 and mini had a 4 core GPU and the Pro had a 5 core GPU. It makes sense that Apple would at least give the two chips distinct names to imply the difference, though I don’t know if a single GPU core elevates the chip to being “Pro” versus the base chip.

The difference is likely binning being turned into a marketing difference. Still, I ordered the 16 Pro Max. I had been a buying a pro version every other release but went with the 15 max last time. Wife needs a new phone so I will "upgrade her 12 Pro" to the 15 max and take advantage of the 0% interest via the Apple Card.

 

[chucker23n1]

I think this could be the first time in a while that Snapdragon takes the lead in CPU performance

With what SoC?

Why does this article seem way more confusing than it needs to be?

Because the author isn’t really sure how the two differ, but wants the click nonetheless.

 

[freezelighter]

A17 Pro is faster than A18.

Instead of buying iPhone 16, you should go for iPhone 15 Pro and get 120Hz display and 1 more GPU core.

 

[ProbablyDylan]

Can't wait to play Minecraft on A18 Pro. Maybe it'll look less pixelated. /s

 

[onepoint]

I feel whelmed.

 

[mazz0]

• 6-core CPU with two performance cores and two efficiency cores.

And one normal core and one anti-core which cancel each other out.

 

[onepoint]

Great, now put it in iPad mini and Apple TV 😀

rather see an M-series in the iPad mini so that it can run an external monitor correctly

 

[Smittywerben]

With what SoC?




Because the author isn’t really sure how the two differ, but wants the click nonetheless.

8 gen 4.
if 15% is correct A18 Pro should be around 8200ish.

 

[Markwebbvt]

It's all marketing and advertising speak. 99% of the users won't notice, if true.

 

[Chailey]

Article needs a tweak to fix “6-core CPU with two performance cores and two efficiency cores” 2+2≠6! Should say “…four efficiency cores”.

 

[lowkey]

• 6-core CPU with two performance cores and two efficiency cores.

And two more efficiency cores as well.

 

[klasma]

A17 Pro is faster than A18.

Instead of buying iPhone 16, you should go for iPhone 15 Pro and get 120Hz display and 1 more GPU core.

But thicker and heavier weight, less scratch-resistant screen glass, no camera button.

 

[klasma]

And one normal core and one anti-core which cancel each other out.

Beware, the antimatter might cause a core breach.

 

[Andres Cantu]

This sort of means that the iPhone 13 Pro's A15 chip was more of an "A15 Pro" compared to the iPhone 13's A15 chip, due to the lower GPU core counts.

However, this would have made the iPhone 14 seem weird for having that "A15 Pro" chip in a non-Pro iPhone. This would have also made the iPhone 14 Pro having a regular A16 chip vs. the iPhone 14's "A15 Pro" seem even weirder, so they decided to avoid having those names since back then.

This at least finally rights that wrong. Finally, a win for consistency.

 

[Mac Fly (film)]

Beware, the antimatter might cause a core breach.

View attachment 2415593

Brother back in the day suggested “Warp Core Breach Is Imminent” as a potential name for our band 😝

 

[HylianKnight]

since %15 is basically nothing

I’m sorry, what?!?!