If it wasn’t already clear that Intel is anxious about Apple’s M1 chip, it’s now. PC World and Tom’s Hardware report that Intel has shared a legion of benchmarks claiming to indicate that 11th-generation Core i7 laptop computer processors are sooner than the M1. They do counsel there are areas the place Intel can declare victory, though there are additionally questions on Intel’s strategies.
The outcomes have Intel pulling forward of Apple in a Chrome shopping check, Workplace 365 duties, Adobe inventive apps and AI. Whereas gaming was one thing of a wash, Intel identified that sure video games merely aren’t obtainable on Macs. The chip big additionally argued that Apple’s battery life claims had been simply fluff — they weren’t any higher than a Core i7 in apply, Intel mentioned.
Intel was additionally eager to level out the higher help for exterior screens and a higher number of {hardware} in its camp, similar to touchscreen laptops.
Nevertheless, there are issues in regards to the methodology. For one, Intel switched {hardware} between assessments, each for its personal CPUs and Apple’s. It used a MacBook Air for the battery life check somewhat than the longer-lasting Professional, for instance. Intel additionally selected some assessments that favored its parts significantly properly, similar to a Topaz Labs AI check — one of many few to utilize Intel’s {hardware} acceleration. It’s protected to say these figures don’t solely line up with some opinions, together with ours.
Corporations routinely cherry-pick benchmarks that put their merchandise in the most effective gentle, after all, and it’s true that compatibility and selection skew in Intel’s favor. Nevertheless, the actual fact that Intel is providing these benchmarks speaks volumes. Intel sees Apple’s chips as sufficient of a menace that it feels compelled to launch a media offensive, and it’s unlikely to go delicate on its new rival sooner or later.
