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Topic: iPad

iPad 4 benchmark leaks into the wild, shows 1.4GHz processor

Summary: Apple promised that the iPad 4's new A6X processor would be twice as fast as that of the iPad 3, and if a new leaked benchmark is real, it seems that the new tablet lives up to these expectations.

Adrian Kingsley-Hughes

By for Hardware 2.0 |

Apple's new iPad 4 won't start appearing in people's hands for a few days, but it seems that someone who has one already has benchmarked it using the Geekbench Browser benchmark tool.

The benchmark shows that the iPad 4 has a dual-core processor running at 1.4GHz, up from the 1.0GHz of the iPad 3. The new iPad also has 1GB of RAM, the same as the iPad 3 and iPhone 4, but twice as much as the iPad 2.

The iPad 4 achieved a Geekbench score of 1757, putting it ahead of the iPhone 5 with a score of 1571, and well ahead of the iPad 3 and iPad 2, which scored 791 and 780 respectively.

The iPad 4 is powered by the new A6X SoC (System-on-a-Chip) processor that features a dual-core CPU combined with quad-core graphics. According to Apple, it is up to twice as fast as the previous-generation A5X chip.

The performance boost indicated here should pave the way for next-gerneration apps -- from games to medical to business -- to leverage this extra horsepower.

Is this real? It seems so. Not only do the scores fall in line with what Apple told us about the A6X when the iPad 4 was unveiled, but John Poole, the founder of Primate Labs, the company that develops Geekbench, says that "there's nothing in the result that indicates it's a fake".  

The iPad mini and the new iPad 4

Image source: Primate Labs.

Topics: iPad, Apple, iOS, Tablets

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8 comments
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  • Not sure if exact frequency should be trusted, though

    Geekbench people had to update their tests because those originally reported very distorted frequencies for A6.
    DDERSSS
    Reply 1 Vote

  • I thought we were in the post PC era, where devices do not matter?

    If that were actually true, then this processor bump would not really be news.
    happyharry_z
    Reply 1 Vote

    • Apple spent like 40 seconds on iPad 4, so it is not really news

      However, processor bump means something for Retina-class devices, since they must have the power to move 12 megabytes per image frame, which is big. Graphics especially important -- and iPad 4 is twice faster than any rival in that. In three weeks, we will know how well Mali-604 will do.
      DDERSSS
      Reply 1 Vote

    • Games

      It is mostly games that gains from processor and graphics bumps. Still, it can also be used to replace desktops for a few more tasks than before.
      Oden79
      Reply Vote

      • No Way!

        The apps are way too gimped to replace a desktop! Even the Apple apps have way more functionality to them.
        slickjim
        Reply Vote

        • A few more tasks

          I said for a few more tasks, not for all tasks known to mankind...

          iPad 4:
          Resolution better than standard desktop: Check!
          Processor power: Low-end desktop
          Graphics: As normal office desktop
          Connect screen: Yes
          Connect keyboard: Yes
          Connect mouse: No


          Also tablets with hybrid interface as Windows 8/RT offer alternative inputs the few times touch won't do it.
          Oden79
          Reply Vote

          • Productive apps?

            Productive apps on iOS? zilch.
            kstap
            Reply 1 Vote

          • You have basic productivity apps

            if your job is typing, that is.
            Michael Alan Goff
            Reply Vote
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