API cost decision in 10 seconds

NewPerceptron Mk1 vs LFM2.5-1.2B-Thinking (free)

Pick LFM2.5-1.2B-Thinking (free) when budget is the priority.

Page updated:  Data confirmed:  Prices normalized to USD per 1M tokens Sample workload: 1M input + 500K output

Budget verdict

Pick LFM2.5-1.2B-Thinking (free) when budget is the priority.

On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, LFM2.5-1.2B-Thinking (free) is estimated at $0 vs $0.9 for Perceptron Mk1, saving $0.9 (100% lower).

Cost-first pickLFM2.5-1.2B-Thinking (free)
Context-first pickBoth models
Sample savings$0.9100%
10x traffic gap$9

The reported context window is tied, so cost and provider fit carry more weight. At 10x that traffic, the same price gap is about $9. Use the calculator below to replace the sample workload with your own token volume.

Cost sensitivity

Workload Sensitivity

Same prices, different token mixes.

LFM2.5-1.2B-Thinking (free) stays cheaper across input-heavy, balanced, and output-heavy sample workloads.

Workload shapeToken mixBetter pickPerceptron Mk1LFM2.5-1.2B-Thinking (free)
Input-heavy / RAG5M input + 500K outputLFM2.5-1.2B-Thinking (free)$1.5$0
Balanced workload1M input + 1M outputLFM2.5-1.2B-Thinking (free)$1.65$0
Output-heavy chatbot1M input + 5M outputLFM2.5-1.2B-Thinking (free)$7.65$0
Cheaper input LFM2.5-1.2B-Thinking (free) $0.15 vs $0 / 1M

LFM2.5-1.2B-Thinking (free) is free for input tokens while Perceptron Mk1 costs $0.15 per 1M tokens.

Cheaper output LFM2.5-1.2B-Thinking (free) $1.5 vs $0 / 1M

LFM2.5-1.2B-Thinking (free) is free for output tokens while Perceptron Mk1 costs $1.5 per 1M tokens.

Larger context Tie 32.77K vs 32.77K

Both models report the same context window at 32.77K tokens.

Sample workload LFM2.5-1.2B-Thinking (free) $0.9 vs $0

LFM2.5-1.2B-Thinking (free) is free for the standard workload while the other model is estimated at $0.9.

Estimate your workload cost

Your Workload Cost

Prices are normalized to USD per 1M tokens.
Perceptron Mk1 Calculating… Estimated API cost
LFM2.5-1.2B-Thinking (free) Calculating… Estimated API cost
Cheaper for this workload Calculating… Difference: calculating…

This estimate uses normalized public API pricing per 1M tokens. It is a planning aid, not a billing quote. Verify provider pricing, limits, and terms before production use.

Quick Decision

Verdict

LFM2.5-1.2B-Thinking (free) has the lower input price; LFM2.5-1.2B-Thinking (free) has the lower output price; both models report the same context window. For the 1M input plus 500K output sample, LFM2.5-1.2B-Thinking (free) is cheaper for the standard workload.

For a 1M input token plus 500K output token workload, the estimated API cost is $0.9 for Perceptron Mk1 and $0 for LFM2.5-1.2B-Thinking (free).

Best Fit

Choose Perceptron Mk1 when its provider, model quality, latency, or availability is more important than the numeric price/context winner.

Choose LFM2.5-1.2B-Thinking (free) when you care most about lower input-token price, and lower output-token price.

Decision Notes
  • On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, LFM2.5-1.2B-Thinking (free) is estimated at $0 vs $0.9 for Perceptron Mk1, saving $0.9 (100% lower).
  • LFM2.5-1.2B-Thinking (free) is free for the standard workload while the other model is estimated at $0.9.
  • LFM2.5-1.2B-Thinking (free) is free for input tokens while Perceptron Mk1 costs $0.15 per 1M tokens.
  • LFM2.5-1.2B-Thinking (free) is free for output tokens while Perceptron Mk1 costs $1.5 per 1M tokens.
  • Both models report the same context window at 32.77K tokens.
Head-to-Head Specs
FeatureNewPerceptron Mk1
(Perceptron)		LFM2.5-1.2B-Thinking (free)
(LiquidAI)
Input Price
prompt tokens per 1M		$0.15$0
Completion Price
per 1M tokens		$1.5$0
Sample Workload Cost
1M input + 500K output		$0.9$0
Context Window32.77K32.77K
Release Date

Use-Case Decision Matrix

Use caseBetter pickWhy
Budget-constrained productionLFM2.5-1.2B-Thinking (free)On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, LFM2.5-1.2B-Thinking (free) is estimated at $0 vs $0.9 for Perceptron Mk1, saving $0.9 (100% lower).
High-volume input processingLFM2.5-1.2B-Thinking (free)Lower prompt-token price matters most when prompts, retrieved passages, or documents dominate the bill.
Long responses and chatbotsLFM2.5-1.2B-Thinking (free)Lower output-token price matters most when assistants generate many completion tokens.
RAG or long-document workTieA larger context window leaves more room for retrieved passages, conversation history, or source files.

Related Alternatives

Same-provider lower-cost swaps
  • No lower-cost same-provider swap is currently tracked for this pair.
Larger context near this budget

Cheaper alternatives

Review low-cost models sorted by a standard 1M input plus 500K output workload.

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Larger context alternatives

Find models with larger context windows for RAG, long documents, and codebase review.

Open largest context models

Provider catalogs

Compare models within provider hubs before choosing a final API vendor.

Open provider hubs

Perceptron catalog

Review all tracked Perceptron models before deciding whether this matchup is the right shortlist.

Open Perceptron models

LiquidAI catalog

Check other LiquidAI models with comparable pricing, context, or release timing.

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Perceptron Mk1

Perceptron Mk1 (Mark One) is Perceptron's highest-quality vision-language model for video and embodied reasoning.** It accepts image and video inputs paired with natural language queries, and produces detailed visual understanding...

LFM2.5-1.2B-Thinking (free)

LFM2.5-1.2B-Thinking is a lightweight reasoning-focused model optimized for agentic tasks, data extraction, and RAG—while still running comfortably on edge devices. It supports long context (up to 32K tokens) and is...