Apple’s M1 Chip: What you Need to Know
“Mac has led the industry of customer satisfaction for over a decade. Its business has grown by nearly 30% last quarter, which also mark its best year. Mac changes the world. As announced in June, Mac is ready to take another huge leap forward with its Apple Silicon.”- (Tim Cook at the Apple Event, November 10)
November 10 marked the start of — quoting Johny Srougi (Apple’s SVP of Hardware Technologies) — a “breakthrough” for the Mac. Tim Cook also mentions that the date is “historical” for Apple. On that date, Apple launched the M1 Chip and the latest edition of MacBook Air, MacMini, and MacBook Pro. Which in two days later, Apple also released the latest macOS called the Big Sur.
For the first time, Apple delivered its own designed processor — Apple Silicon — for the Mac. It is a System on a Chip (SoC) and System in Package (SiP) mainly using the ARM architecture. This product has actually been on Apple’s iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, and other products but the Mac.
This article would discuss the “breakthrough” Apple has claimed as we gather different views while observing the hype. Eventually, this would help you shed light on whether you should adopt it as soon as now, or maybe later.
The Claims
Apple did make some improvements to their latest Mac with the M1 Chip, which comes with some “world’s best” claims, which are as follows.
World’s fastest CPU Core
The M1’s CPU features two types of cores that support both high performance and high efficiency. It consists of 4 high-performance cores with ultra-wide execution architecture. Each performance core is designed to run a single task, or thread, as efficiently as possible while maximizing performance. With these improvements, when it comes to low-power silicon, M1 claimed to has the world’s fastest CPU core.
M1 delivers up to two-times CPU performance compared to the Latest PC laptop chip while using only a ¼ of the power.
Word’s best CPU performance per watt
To handle lighter workloads more efficiently, M1 uses another four high-efficiency cores for the Mac. They use only a tenth of the power while still delivering outstanding performance. These E-cores are the most efficient place to run lightweight tasks and allow the prior performance cores to be used for the most demanding tasks. It delivers the same performance as the current generation of dual MacBook Air at much lower power. M1 also has the latest performance controller that determines in real-time where code runs for maximum performance and efficiency. Altogether, Apple stated that the M1’s eight-core CPU is the highest performance CPU ever created, delivering the lowest possible power performance. Hence, it is claimed as the World’s best CPU performance per watt.
M1 has three times improvement in CPU performance per watt compared to former Apple’s PC.
Word’s fastest integrated graphics
Apple claimed to design GPUs that deliver the maximum graphic execution in the thermal envelope, resulting in a balanced system with GPU that complements the CPU complex’s incredible performance. Typically, a regular PC cannot achieve this balance with integrated graphics to get outstanding graphics performance. It needs a discrete chip, which consumes a lot of power. In M1, integrated graphics allow excellent graphic performance in low power. It claimed to have the most advanced graphics processor with its 8 cores capable of executing nearly 25,000 threads from teraflops to texture bandwidth to fill rate, still with its efficiency.
M1 delivers two times more than the latest PC laptop chip while using just a ⅓ of the power.
The Facts and Things to Consider
Apple did claim significant improvements on the M1 that are worth considering as the “pro” side. However, it will always be two sides to the coin. According to observers, there are some things worth considering. I won’t categorize them as the “cons” as it only affects some specific needs.
The Shift from Intel
Mac has run for fifteen years using the processor from Intel. Thanks to its x86 architecture, which allows varied productive software, such as Adobe, Slack, etc., to run seamlessly on Mac.
With the use of M1 with its ARM architecture, it is worth noting that experts doubted the processor would be able to run smoothly to the most app used to handle Intel’s x86. Hence, many apps need to be redesigned to enjoy this entirely new architecture in Mac. Nevertheless, during the event, Apple also tells the plan of popular software developers, such as Omni Group and Adobe, to release the “universal app” which can run natively both on macOS and Intel in the meantime. For instance, Photoshop universal version would be available early next year.
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About Rosetta 2
Apple overcame the aforementioned issue by advancing its dynamic binary translator, Rosetta 2, along with the M1. It is an update from Rosetta’s first version, released in 2006 as a macOS X Tiger component. Rosetta 2 in macOS Big Sur is an advanced compatibility mechanism developed for the PowerPC-to-Intel x86 transition. As an emulator, it “translates” instructions written for Intel processors into a language that Apple’s processor can understand. So, the app would work with no problem.
However, there is a classical problem when something such emulator runs an app rather than a native language that can run instantly. It is about speed. According to The Verge, Softwares that run under Rosetta typically would run slower than those who work natively on Intel. Other than that, if we look at the past, Rosetta is never intended to be a long-term solution. Once it was released along with the macOS Tiger X, it was discontinued on the macOS X Lion Three version (2010). As Apple is encouraging software developers to create the native version, Rosetta 2, again, seems to be just an interim solution.
There is no room for an upgrade.
Due to its ARM architecture, which has gathered all essential parts in a single chip, it made no possibilities to do the partial update on the M1-powered Mac. It worth considering for those who love to do either RAM or SSD upgrades for their PC.
No external GPU is allowed.
Apple PC has long been famous for its powerful rendering capabilities for the visual and video creator. Which sometimes, for a better editing experience, the creator plug in an external GPU. Unfortunately, this latest version of Mac did not allow us to do that.
The ‘base’ model
Yes, this is an incredible invention for the Macintosh. Yet, as technology is growing fast, it is worth noting that the near advancement would appear just in a near time. Apart from that, major software/applications are yet available in the native version for M1, as priorly mention. The fastest possible launch is still on the next year.
Conclusion and Forecasts
Finally, we need to admit that Apple deserves kudos for their ‘huge’ leap in M1 Chip. It took years for Apple to made it to November 10, when they can proudly release their own chip in the best possible version.
If you’re reading this article to get an answer to whether you should buy the Mac with the M1 Chip or not? Of course, the answer is up to you. It’s a highly recommended device if we look at its specifications and features. My favorite is especially the advancement in its performance per watt, which results in super-long battery life compared to the previous version of mac — also, the incredible testimonials from customers who are already using it.
However, if the aforementioned facts are bothering you, it’s fine. Those are gathered from a range of perceptions we noted during this hype. Additionally, there is a strong rumor about the release of M1 next generation called the M1x shortly, yet it is still unofficial. In response to this, in our opinion, be patient to wait for certainty is also a great choice to make.
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Contributor : Rachmadita Kusumastiti
