Are Macs actually good now?

I’m not a terribly big fan of Apple’s products. Oh sure, I used to be back when I first started this website. However, that view soured following the death of Steve Jobs. This is when the company’s computer lineup shifted from being innovative tech to little more than expensive fashion accessories. Though in fairness, they’ve long had a reputation for being overpriced and underpowered compared to the competition. However, recent changes are finally giving Cupertino a big upper hand in the home PC space.

It’s been about a year since Apple announced their M1 system-on-a-chip. A desktop class ARM processor based on the A14 Bionic chip used in the iPhone 12. This marked the fourth major architectural change for the Macintosh since 1984, and a return to RISC based computing, which the company had ditched in 2006.

ARM is actually a very old computing architecture, dating back to 1981. Developed by Acorn Computers, sometimes referred to as the “British Apple”, the design was largely based on the MOS 6502 and featured in early home systems like the Archimedes and BBC Micro. It was faster than a lot of its contemporaries. However, once Acorn went bust in the late 90’s, ARM was largely relegated to mobile systems thanks to its low power requirements.

While it has seen some server applications, Apple is the first home computing company in over 20 years to implement ARM for performance class desktop and laptop systems. And given it’s mobile reputation, a lot of us were initially skeptical about its claims. Yet the fact is that the M1 is able to go toe-to-toe with the best chips being offered by AMD and Intel, with speeds often matching top tier mobile Core i7 chips, while offering significantly longer battery life. Exceeding even AMD’s power sipping mobile Ryzen processors.

This is a game changer when it comes to mobile performance computing. Something which PC manufacturers are taking note of. Unfortunately, not all ARM processors are created equal. Due to the tight integration between software and hardware, Apple Silicon has a certain special sauce that competitors like Samsung and Qualcomm have thus far been unable to replicate.

I was recently watching Linus’s recent (sponsored) unboxing of HP’s answer to the MacBook Pro. A 2-in-1 business class system called the Elite Folio. This laptop comes with Qualcomm’s 8cx Gen 2 processor, which boasts four performance cores running at 3.15 GHz, and an additional four lower power cores for background tasks. For graphics you get an Adreno 690 capable of 1.8 TFLOPS on boost.

This is a computer that’s obviously intended to be a direct competitor to the 13” MacBook Pro. So I kitted out the Elite Folio to match the specs for the base model Apple laptop, and I think the results are pretty staggering. With the same 8GB of RAM and 256GB SSD, with the cellular connectivity option removed, the Folio costs $1895 USD. The MacBook? $1299.

Granted, the Folio does come with a touch screen, and converts into a tablet. But is that really worth the $600 price hike? Probably not. HP’s big selling point is a 24-hour battery life. The MacBook gets a claimed 17-20 hours, while offering roughly double the performance. Which is more than enough to get you through a couple work days. You also get a higher resolution display, Thunderbolt connectivity, and far better support for native ARM based software than Windows has. All in a package that’s roughly the same size. So Apple has the clear winner here.

In fact, Apple’s entire M1 lineup is actually very price competitive when compared to PCs with similar performance specs. Which is certainly odd for a company that sells a $999 monitor stand, and a $349 tablet keyboard. Of course this value is predicated on the notion that you don’t mind owning a computer that can never be upgraded. But when it comes to laptops, that’s most these days. Desktops are a rougher proposition, but with the current high prices of PC components, maybe you are better off buying a Mac in the short term. Well, if gaming’s not your priority. And the best part is that ARM support is only going to get better over time, which cannot be said for Windows.

It’s been about, oh, six years since I’ve actively used any Apple products. Nine since I actually bought one. Don’t get me wrong, I still have some pretty big beefs with their locked down mobile ecosystem. Especially when it comes to the iPad Pro’s massive limitations for something that’s supposedly a computer replacement. Yet this is the first time in a long long time that I may actually consider going back to the dark side. At least once my Surface Pro finally wears out.