This story is part of Apple event, our full coverage of the latest news from Apple headquarters.
Apple has always sold its computers like luxury cars to add sex appeal while also promising they can get their jobs done too. With new innards that it has made itself, Apple now hopes to bring this stimulus into full swing.
This week, Apple began pre-orders for its new MacBook Air laptops for $ 999 and MacBook Pro for $ 1,199, as well as the revamped no-frills MacBook Mini desktop for $ 699. The company says the new machines can run laps of their previous iterations and hit benchmarks that Apple claims make them the fastest PCs in the world. Plus, they can do this while also offering better battery life and, in the case of the MacBook Air, a sometimes noisy fan.
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All of these changes come from the company's new M1 silicon chip, which is specifically designed for the brain on its computers, according to Apple. The move is a seismic shift for the company, which has relied on processors from chip giant Intel for 14 years. Intel supplies a large part of the so-called central processing units that are used by PCs. But soon they will no longer be shipped to Apple.
Apple has spent more than a decade on research and development, spending at least $ 1 billion buying over half a dozen companies to create its own competing processor based on the well-respected A-series chips that make its Powering iPhones and iPads for a decade. The chip, which has now been transformed into the M1 for its computers, not only competes with processors from Intel, but outperforms them, according to Apple.
"Every Mac with M1 is transformed into a completely different product class," said Johny Srouji, Apple's senior vice president of hardware technologies, when discussing the chip at the company's online unveiling Tuesday. "With its unique combination of remarkable performance, powerful features and incredible efficiency, the M1 is by far the best chip we have ever developed."
Apple's move to redesign its computers follows a long-established trend of taking control of its devices and the components that power them. Apple has already created custom chips for security reasons, such as: B. with the functions for unlocking Face ID and Touch ID. Custom image processing chips have also been created to make photos taken with the phones look much better.
Apple also lets the iOS and iPadOS software power its devices, so the hardware and software can be fine-tuned for those devices like the iPhone 12, which CNET reviewer Patrick Holland says has received some of our highest ratings of all time. "5G support, a new striking design, improved cameras and four different models make the iPhone 12 a complete unit," he wrote.
For many people, it was a foregone conclusion that if Apple could adopt the chips in its Mac computers as well, it could offer a similarly human-friendly experience.
"The touted improvements are at the heart of PC buyers' concerns: performance and battery life," he said Ross Ruby, Analyst at Reticle Research.
More force
Apple's efforts to custom build almost every part of its devices have helped Apple become one of the largest phone manufacturers in the world. The App Store has similarly evolved into a central hub for innovation in the tech industry, though Apple tightly controls the behavior and content of the apps it sells. In addition, iPhone and iPad owners can only download approved apps from Apple's App Store, another form of control that other companies like Google and the competing Google Play Store don't have over devices powered by its Android software will.
Despite the tight grip on Apple, the App Store is thriving. Apple says there are more than a billion iPhones in use today, and many of those customers have proven more willing to pay for software than people who own other devices.
As a result, the App Store has helped companies like social networking sensation TikTok, hail giant Uber, and photo sharing service Instagram, which Facebook bought for $ 1 billion in 2012. According to a study by Apple, the App Store helped gross more than half a trillion dollars in retail last year.
Still, not everyone is convinced that Apple's approach will work every time.
All you can do ...
Apple says it will take about two years to move away from Intel chips and that Mac computers that run on the chips will have even longer support. It is unclear to what extent the tech industry will follow Apple's lead. According to analyst firm IDC, the company's computers only had a 7.4% market share in 2019.
However, there is enough reason to believe that Apple's moves could start a trend.
When Apple made big changes to its computers in 2006 by adding webcams to the MacBook Pro, developing a super-thin case for the MacBook Air in 2008, and releasing super-tough "Retina" screens in its MacBook Pro in 2015, other computer manufacturers followed suit. Today's PC laptops have largely dumped the bulky plastic from a decade ago and evolved into similarly thin, metal-clad designs. Sometimes they're even known for borrowing ideas from Apple so closely that at first glance, you might mistake them for Apple products.
With the new Mac computers, Apple's break with the industry isn't just about new materials or adding peripherals like better speakers or a new type of fingerprint sensor that other manufacturers can buy and add to their products. By redesigning the guts of machines, Apple is creating custom parts that few companies have the resources to make.
"This stuff is really hard," said Patrick Moorhead, Analyst at Moor Insights and Strategy and former manager at chip maker AMD. He said big PC makers like Dell and HP need to focus more on how their software works and take a closer look at what types of hardware they put into their computers. "Everyone will have to take silicon more seriously."
Of course, some companies have put their toes on using mobile chips to power computers.
Most notably, Microsoft tried to sell the Surface RT in 2012, a tablet-laptop hybrid powered by Nvidia mobile chips. However, the device couldn't run many standard apps, which was "limited and confusing" according to CNET reviewers. The drawbacks detracted so much from its appeal that Microsoft had to report an embarrassing loss of $ 900 million a year later.
In 2019, Microsoft launched a new effort, this time with its Surface Pro X., then for $ 999, powered by a chip it co-developed with Qualcomm. Reviewers say the design and features are much better this time around, although the gadget is still frustratingly unable to run popular apps like Adobe Photoshop.
"Everyone will have to take silicon more seriously."
Patrick Moorhead, Moor Insights and Strategy
"It is certainly closer to being the right product at the right time," wrote CNET editor Dan Ackerman in his review of the device in October.
Apple avoids these problems by working with developers like Microsoft and Adobe, as well as smaller ones, to help them redesign their apps to take advantage of the new chips.
A feature was also developed for his new Mac computers called Rosetta that would allow popular apps, including those from Adobe, to run on the devices. Apple didn't list all of the apps it tested, but it is recommended that the most popular apps work.
All of this can help Apple stay one step ahead of other computer manufacturers in making the transition.
"Progress on this scale can only be attributed to courageous changes," said Apple CEO Tim Cook when announcing the new devices on Tuesday. "This is exactly why we are converting the Mac to Apple Silicon."
