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// RUN — FITS
Can the Apple M3 Max 64GB run SmolLM-1.7B?
Yes — here's how fast and up to what context, with real measured numbers.
SmolLM-1.7B on the Apple M3 Max 64GB
| Quant | Fits? | Max context | Speed | Beyond context |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FP16 | yes | 804k | 79.5-95.9 t/s | ~2-2.4 (slow) |
| Q8 | yes | 830k | 159.1-191.8 t/s | ~4-4.8 (slow) |
| Q4 | yes | 841k | 284-342.5 t/s | ~7.1-8.6 (slow) |
Estimate (memory-bound). Beyond "max context" the KV cache spills to SSD swap and speed drops to the "beyond" figure.
FAQ
Can the Apple M3 Max 64GB run SmolLM-1.7B?▶
Yes. At Q4 it generates ~284-342.5 tok/s and fits up to 841k context; beyond that it spills to SSD swap and slows to ~7.1-8.6 tok/s.
How much context fits?▶
At Q4, up to about 841k tokens stay in fast memory; longer context spills to SSD swap and throughput collapses.