NVIDIA DLSS 5 Shows Stunning Visual Gains on Apple M5 Pro, But Performance Takes a Huge Hit
NVIDIA’s latest DLSS 5 technology is already being tested in unofficial ways, and the early results are both impressive and concerning. While the new neural rendering features can dramatically improve image quality, the performance cost on Apple Silicon appears to be extremely high.
In a recent experiment, developers managed to get DLSS 5 neural rendering models running natively on Apple Silicon through Apple’s Metal framework. The work was reportedly handled by developer @iamwavecut, while @Mappsnet7 helped connect the Metal backend to Windows games using ReShade and Apple’s Game Porting Toolkit 4.0b2.
The test was carried out on Apple’s M5 Pro with a 16-core GPU, and the visual improvements were immediately noticeable. With DLSS 5 enabled, the game showed better surface lighting, stronger ambient occlusion, and improved depth realism. In simple terms, scenes looked more detailed, more natural, and more cinematic.
However, the performance results were far less encouraging.
According to the test shared by Reddit user AnyPomelo3352, the M5 Pro dropped to just 2.32 frames per second at 1440p when DLSS 5 was enabled. Input latency also climbed to around 240ms, making the experience nearly unplayable. For comparison, a desktop RTX 5050 was said to deliver roughly 10 times lower input latency under similar neural rendering demands.
The main issue appears to be hardware support. DLSS 5 heavily relies on FP8 acceleration, a feature that modern NVIDIA RTX GPUs are designed to handle far more efficiently. Apple’s M5 Pro does not appear to include dedicated FP8 hardware units for this kind of workload, meaning the neural rendering tasks are routed through an FP16 path instead.
That creates a major bottleneck.
The M5 Pro’s 16-core GPU reportedly reaches around 26 TOPS in FP8 performance, while a desktop RTX 5050 can deliver around 105 TOPS FP8. That gap explains why the Apple chip struggles so severely when dealing with DLSS 5-style neural rendering. On top of that, running the technology through ReShade and Game Porting Toolkit adds another layer of overhead, further reducing performance.
The results highlight an important point for the future of gaming on Apple Silicon. Apple has made visible progress in bringing more games to Mac through Metal and Game Porting Toolkit, but advanced neural rendering may become a key requirement for next-generation gaming visuals. If technologies like DLSS 5 become standard across major PC releases, Apple’s GPUs may need stronger dedicated AI and FP8 acceleration to keep up.
The M5 Pro and M5 Max are powerful chips in many areas, especially efficiency, CPU performance, and creative workloads. But this early DLSS 5 test suggests that when it comes to cutting-edge neural rendering in games, Apple Silicon still has a long way to go.
For now, DLSS 5 on the M5 Pro is more of a technical showcase than a practical gaming solution. The image quality improvements are impressive, but single-digit frame rates and high input latency make it unsuitable for real gameplay. The bigger question is whether Apple’s future M6 chips will introduce better hardware support for FP8 and neural rendering workloads.
If Apple wants to compete more seriously in high-end gaming, dedicated acceleration for these AI-driven graphics technologies may become essential.
