iPad 4 GPU Performance Analyzed: PowerVR SGX 554MP4 Under the Hood
As always, our good friends over at Kishonti managed to have the first GPU performance results for the new 4th generation iPad. Although the new iPad retains its 2048 x 1536 “retina” display, Apple claims a 2x improvement in GPU performance through the A6X SoC.
Context & Ripple Effects
Apple's fourth-generation iPad arrived only days after MacRumors' early benchmarks pegged its 1.4GHz dual-core processor and 1GB of RAM, and this AnandTech piece closes the loop on the silicon story: Kishonti's first GPU runs put numbers behind Apple's claim that the A6X doubles graphics throughput while driving the unchanged 2048 x 1536 retina panel. The PowerVR SGX 554MP4 is the part doing that work.
The pickup was broad for a component-level analysis — iFixit's teardown, CNET, Ars Technica, Engadget and others all covered the new iPad on or about November 2, 2012 — reflecting how much weight the enthusiast press puts on Apple's in-house SoC cadence, a thread going back to AnandTech's iPhone 4S benchmark work a year earlier comparing the A5's GPU against the iPad 2.
First-order effects
- Buyers considering the new iPad get independent confirmation of Apple's 2x GPU claim from Kishonti's results, turning a marketing number into a measured spec for the SGX 554MP4.
- Rival tablet makers shipping at iPad prices face a wider measured graphics gap at retina-class resolutions, since the A6X is Apple-designed rather than licensed off the shelf.
Second-order effects
- Android tablet vendors leaning on merchant silicon are pushed to source or commission faster GPUs to keep spec sheets competitive against a vertically integrated Apple roadmap.
- Game developers gain headroom to target richer effects at full retina resolution on iPad, raising the visual baseline their titles are judged against across platforms.
Third-order effects
- If Apple keeps pairing each display generation with a doubled GPU, tablet competition consolidates around who designs their own SoC versus who licenses one — a structural split between Apple and the rest of the market.
- Sustained annual GPU leaps also shorten the practical upgrade cycle for iPad owners, pressuring the used-tablet market and carrier/retail refresh economics.
The trend: As tablet displays hit retina resolutions, GPU throughput becomes the primary battleground, favoring vendors like Apple that design their own SoCs over those assembling licensed parts.