After several months without making any public statements about Apple’s new M1 chip, Intel has finally released its own speed test results for the ARM-based processor which displaced its own components. Surprisingly – or perhaps not – the results indicate that the M1 is inferior to Intel’s processors in several respects.
According to Intel, tests show that an eleventh-generation Core i7-1185G7 can match or exceed the M1’s performance in a MacBook Pro in both native and non-native applications. The tests also show that the M1 processor’s power consumption is inferior, that the MacBook Pro would not be certified as an Evo laptop, that the M1 simply cannot run a lot of software (for more detail, see Which apps work on M1 Macs?) and that the new MacBooks have several compatibility issues with things like monitors, game controllers and plugins.
This might not sound good for Apple’s (widely praised) new chip, but former Macworld editor and current columnist Jason Snell has criticised Intel’s tests for being deliberately “M1-unfriendly”.
Referring to “inconsistent test platforms, shifting arguments, omitted data, and the not-so-faint whiff of desperation”, Snell points out that the current M1 processor is a low-end chip for low-end systems.
“Intel only has a small window to compare itself favourably to these systems before higher-end Apple silicon Macs ship and make its job that much harder,” he explains.
Apple announced in 2020 that it would abandon Intel processors for its own ARM-based M1 processors. The first Macs with the M1 chip were released in the autumn of 2020; browse the lowest prices on our M1 Macs deals page.
This article originally appeared on Macworld Sweden. Translation by David Price.