23
submitted 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago) by misk@sopuli.xyz to c/apple_enthusiast@lemmy.world

One of the most distinctive features of Apple silicon chips is that they have two types of CPU core, E (Efficiency) cores that are energy efficient but slower than the P (Performance) cores, which normally run much of the code in the apps we use. Apps don’t decide directly which cores they will be run on, that’s a privilege of macOS, but they register their interest by setting a Quality of Service, or QoS, which is then taken into account when they’re scheduled to run. With the introduction of Game Mode in Sonoma, CPU scheduling can now work differently, with E cores being reserved for the use of games. This article looks at another atypical situation, when running a macOS virtual machine (VM) assigned a set number of virtual cores. How does macOS Sonoma handle that?

you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
[-] abhibeckert@lemmy.world 6 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago)

Just want to point out that this is far from unique to apple

It's worth noting that Apple's partnership with ARM goes back to the 1980's and included both resources and people all the way back to then (from memory I think the first CEO of ARM was an Apple employee). Your OnePlus 2 has efficiency cores because of Apple's investment in that architecture.

But this article is about Macs, not phones. Some Apple Silicon Macs would only last about 2 minutes if they ran on the battery in your OnePlus 2, and the "efficiency cores" aren't really there to reduce power consumption... it's more about producing less heat.

For example the M2 cores are more than capable of running high end PC games, and because they generate almost no heat at all even under full load you can push the GPU much harder than you could if the performance cores were active. Your entire cooling system only needs to keep the GPU cool.

[-] DJDarren@thelemmy.club 3 points 11 months ago

I'm consistently impressed with how relatively cool my M2 Air stays when I'm playing No Man's Sky. I was expecting the game to be throttled to death, but I never see any real performance drops, while still being able to play it on my lap.

this post was submitted on 23 Oct 2023
23 points (92.6% liked)

Apple

17241 readers
201 users here now

Welcome

to the largest Apple community on Lemmy. This is the place where we talk about everything Apple, from iOS to the exciting upcoming Apple Vision Pro. Feel free to join the discussion!

Rules:
  1. No NSFW Content
  2. No Hate Speech or Personal Attacks
  3. No Ads / Spamming
    Self promotion is only allowed in the pinned monthly thread

Lemmy Code of Conduct

Communities of Interest:

Apple Hardware
Apple TV
Apple Watch
iPad
iPhone
Mac
Vintage Apple

Apple Software
iOS
iPadOS
macOS
tvOS
watchOS
Shortcuts
Xcode

Community banner courtesy of u/Antsomnia.

founded 1 year ago
MODERATORS