Apple's M4 iPad Pro Breaks Geekbench 6 Record with Liquid Nitrogen Cooling

In a groundbreaking feat of technological prowess, Apple's latest M4 chip, housed in the newly released iPad Pro, has shattered performance records, thanks to an unconventional cooling method: liquid nitrogen. This achievement, spearheaded by the tech review team at Geekerwan, has propelled the M4 chip to surpass the 4,000-point barrier in Geekbench 6’s single-core benchmark, a milestone that places it ahead of some of the most powerful processors on the market.

The experiment, detailed by multiple tech publications including Digital Trends, Tom's Hardware, and TweakTown, involved attaching a Kingpin Cooling T-Rex Rev 4 CPU LN2 pot to the back of the iPad Pro. Liquid nitrogen, a substance commonly used in high-end overclocking to drastically reduce temperatures, was then poured into the pot. This extreme cooling method allowed the M4 chip to maintain higher clock speeds without overheating, thus unlocking its full performance potential.

Despite the M4’s performance cores already running at a robust 4.40GHz, the liquid nitrogen overclocking only increased the performance cores to 4.41GHz—a mere 10MHz boost. However, this slight increase was sufficient to push the M4 past the 4,000-point milestone in Geekbench 6, setting a new world record. This achievement underscores the M4 chip’s potential, even though such a cooling setup is not feasible for everyday users.

The M4 chip, a product of TSMC's N3E process node, comes in two configurations: a 10-core version with four performance cores and six efficiency cores, available in the 1TB and 2TB iPad Pro models with 16GB of unified memory, and a nine-core version with three performance cores and six efficiency cores, found in the 256GB and 512GB models with 8GB of unified memory. The specific iPad Pro used in Geekerwan’s experiment featured the nine-core configuration.

While the single-core performance of the M4 chip is impressive, its multi-core performance did not fare as well. According to Tom's Hardware, the M4’s multi-core score was 54% slower than the M3 Max and fell behind the M2 Ultra by up to 57%. This discrepancy highlights the limitations of the iPad Pro’s passive cooling system compared to the active cooling systems found in MacBook Pro and Mac Studio devices.

The implications of this achievement extend beyond mere numbers. The M4 chip’s performance, even in its standard state, is already high, with single-core scores in the 3,000s. The liquid nitrogen cooling merely pushed it over the edge, suggesting that the M4 chip has untapped potential that could be fully realized in future devices with better cooling solutions and more optimized software.

This experiment also raises questions about the future of Apple’s silicon and its applications. As noted by Wccftech, the M4’s performance might be constrained by software limitations in iPadOS, preventing it from operating at higher frequencies. This suggests that the true capabilities of the M4 chip might only be fully realized when it is integrated into devices running macOS, such as future MacBook Pro or Mac Studio models.

The use of liquid nitrogen in this context is reminiscent of historical overclocking endeavors in the PC hardware world, where enthusiasts have long used extreme cooling methods to push the limits of processor performance. This experiment by Geekerwan is a modern iteration of that tradition, demonstrating the lengths to which individuals will go to achieve new technological milestones.

In conclusion, the M4 chip’s record-breaking performance in the iPad Pro, achieved through liquid nitrogen cooling, is a testament to the chip’s potential and the innovative spirit of the tech community. While this method is not practical for everyday use, it highlights the impressive capabilities of Apple’s latest silicon and sets the stage for future advancements in processor technology.