llama.cpp tops Ollama for power users

While Ollama is the "Docker for LLMs," power users stick to llama.cpp to squeeze every token per second out of their Apple Silicon hardware.

• –llama.cpp offers the most granular control over context length and quantization, which is critical for fitting large models into VRAM.
• –OpenCode serves as an open-source, local-first competitor to Claude Code, supporting bash execution and file operations without data leaving the machine.
• –For a 48GB M4 Pro, Qwen2.5-Coder-32B is the recommended model for Dart, offering a perfect balance of reasoning depth and local inference speed.
• –The shift toward local agentic tools highlights a growing developer preference for privacy and offline reliability over cloud-dependent subscriptions.