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AMD Instinct MI250 vs Apple M4 Max GPU: Comparison
What is the difference between AMD Instinct MI250 and Apple M4 Max GPU?
The gap that matters here is memory bandwidth: AMD Instinct MI250 3200 GB/s against Apple M4 Max GPU 546 GB/s, which puts AMD Instinct MI250 83% ahead. They differ on gpu brand too, AMD on the AMD Instinct MI250 versus Apple on the Apple M4 Max GPU. There is a split on product type as well, Datacenter Accelerator on the AMD Instinct MI250 versus SoC GPU on the Apple M4 Max GPU. Tier is not the same on both, Datacenter on the AMD Instinct MI250 versus High End on the Apple M4 Max GPU. Memory type is closer, HBM2E on the AMD Instinct MI250 versus Unified LPDDR5 on the Apple M4 Max GPU. Architecture is not the same on both, CDNA2 on the AMD Instinct MI250 versus Apple Silicon on the Apple M4 Max GPU. They differ on pcie generation too, PCIe 4.0 on the AMD Instinct MI250 versus Not Applicable on the Apple M4 Max GPU.
Which should you buy, AMD Instinct MI250 or Apple M4 Max GPU?
Buy the AMD Instinct MI250 for buyers comparing AMD's official reference specifications and researching a chip before choosing a board-partner card, though it is not the pick for overclocking-focused enthusiasts (reference clocks only). It is not the one for buyers wanting a specific retail card with cooler and warranty details. it is the wrong buy for native Windows gaming or workloads outside the Metal/macOS ecosystem. It also earns its place with professional creative and technical workloads on macOS needing Apple's largest laptop GPU and memory pool. Our rating of the Apple M4 Max GPU (8.5/10): Apple's largest laptop GPU, genuinely competitive in Metal workloads at a fraction of discrete-GPU power draw.
Specs and benchmarks
GPU Brand
- AMD Instinct MI250
- AMD
- Apple M4 Max GPU
- Apple
Product Type
- AMD Instinct MI250
- Datacenter Accelerator
- Apple M4 Max GPU
- SoC GPU
Series
- AMD Instinct MI250
- Instinct
- Apple M4 Max GPU
- Apple Silicon
Tier
- AMD Instinct MI250
- Datacenter
- Apple M4 Max GPU
- High End
Memory Type
- AMD Instinct MI250
- HBM2E
- Apple M4 Max GPU
- Unified LPDDR5 (shared with CPU)Best
Architecture
- AMD Instinct MI250
- CDNA2
- Apple M4 Max GPU
- Apple Silicon (3rd-gen, 3nm)
Memory Bandwidth
- AMD Instinct MI250
- 3200 GB/sBest
- Apple M4 Max GPU
- 546 GB/s-83%
PCIe Generation
- AMD Instinct MI250
- PCIe 4.0
- Apple M4 Max GPU
- Not Applicable
Which one should you pick?
Choose AMD Instinct MI250 if you want the higher memory bandwidth (3200 GB/s vs 546 GB/s).
Choose Apple M4 Max GPU if you already have it on hand or find it at a lower price.
Verdict
Apple M4 Max GPU
8.5 / 10 Expert Rating
Apple's largest laptop GPU, genuinely competitive in Metal workloads at a fraction of discrete-GPU power draw.