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The first reviews of MacBooks with the new M1 chipset are already very promising. The performance of the laptops is significantly better than the models with a chip from Intel.
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Apple officially presented its new chip technology at the event One More Thing. The M1 is an ARM-structured chipset that provides Apple will produce entirely in-house. After 15 years, Apple is breaking its ties with Intel, which was the regular chip manufacturer for Macbooks and Macs.
On paper, the M1 chipset promises nice specifications. M1 has an 8-core CPU consisting of four high performance cores and four high efficiency cores. Each high performance core delivers class-leading performance for single-threaded tasks while running at maximum efficiency. Due to the special structure, CPU, I / O and security can be combined in one SoC. That should result in faster response times and lower energy consumption. The macOS Big Sur operating system was also developed entirely in function of this new chip technology.
In practice
The first reviews that we can find show that the new Macbooks fully live up to those promises. TechCrunch got hold of the 13 ”Macbook Pro with M1 chipset. According to the findings of journalist Matthew Panzarino, the new Macbook will work with any model with chip technology from Intel, and the laptop will open the applications ‘even before you drag your cursor off the icon’. The battery life would also be extended up to three times by the M1 chip technology compared to earlier Macbooks.
Journalists from Engadget and The Verge are also generally enthusiastic about the new Macbook laptops. Engadget In their review also mentions the incredibly fast start-up and loading times, the improved battery life and the brightness of the display. We also read the same positive points in The hands-on tests Verge. That does not alter the fact that there are indeed also downsides. For example, the RAM is limited to 16GB and cannot be expanded. The new Macbooks also only have two USB ports, which may be little for some users, and the quality of the webcam is limited to 720p.
The downsides don’t seem to be more than minor inconveniences compared to the positive that the M1 chipset adds to the Macbook. Thanks to the choice of this new chip structure Apple has succeeded in taking its laptops to the next level, and software and hardware are even better aligned. The first M1 models will be available in stores soon. The Macbook Air M1 is the cheapest model with a price of 1359 euros. The Macbook Pro 13 ”M1 costs 1449 euros if you opt for the edition with 256GB storage and 8GB RAM, and 2599 euros with 2TB storage and 16GB RAM.
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Good! to have a collected view from reviewers