For years, the story of smartphone chips has been about a race to the top. Every new generation of silicon promises faster speeds, bigger numbers, and a higher spot on the leaderboard. But for most of us, a chip‘s true power isn’t about reaching the highest peak score; it’s about how efficiently it gets there. It’s about how much performance it can deliver without turning your phone into a portable hand warmer or draining the battery in a few hours. Now, it seems that Apple‘s latest A19 Pro chip has achieved new records in terms of energy efficiency while achieving high performance.
Meet “performance per watt,” a concept that is the real test of a chip’s engineering. Think of it like this: anyone can build a car with a massive engine, but the real innovation comes from making that engine powerful and fuel-efficient. That’s what allows you to travel further and enjoy a better, more consistent ride. In a new round of in-depth benchmark tests, Apple’s new A19 Pro chip has set a new standard for this efficiency. The latest iPhone 17 Pro models, and even the iPhone Air, benefit from this.
Apple’s A19 Pro just proved power and efficiency can go together
Early whispers and leaks suggested that the A19 Pro might not be as fast as some of the competition. However, those concerns were quickly put to rest. In the demanding Geekbench 6 benchmark, the A19 Pro delivered a powerful multi-core score of 11,054, a top-tier result that puts it ahead of every rival. This will be the case at least until the arrival of the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5—or perhaps the Exynos 2600.
What’s truly impressive, however, is that it did so while using a remarkably low 12.1W of power. To put that into perspective, other flagship chips from the Android camp had to push their power consumption much higher to even come close to its scores. The Snapdragon 8 Elite, for instance, had to use 17W of power to complete the same benchmark. Meanwhile, the Dimensity 9400 consumed a staggering 18.4W.
Overall, this makes the A19 Pro over 34% more power-efficient than its least efficient rival. So, there’s a massive leap forward that highlights Apple’s clear focus on both raw performance and power savings.
Up to 69% framerate boost over the A18 Pro
This achievement isn’t just a win in a benchmark test. For you, the user, this kind of efficiency translates directly to real-world benefits. A chip that consumes less power means better battery life, a phone that stays cooler to the touch, and, most importantly, sustained performance during intense tasks. In fact, a separate test shows the A19 Pro delivering up to a 69% framerate boost over its predecessor, the A18 Pro, in some demanding games.
The new A19 Pro leverages a new 3nm manufacturing process from TSMC. However, it’s clear that Apple had a lot more up its sleeve than just a process node update. This is a significant leap forward and a strong statement for what we can expect from flagship chips moving forward. It will be interesting to see what Apple will achieve when it adopts the 2nm process next year.