PC vs. Mac
In the real-world, a PC with an 11th Gen Intel® Core™ mobile processor offers users more and we’ve got real research and test results that prove it. Many Apple M1 claims don’t translate to real-world usage and appear questionable. When compared to a PC with the 11th Gen Intel® Core™ mobile processor, the M1 MacBook features just don’t stack up.
See the Difference
There’s no comparison between the Mac and the PC with the Intel Core processor when it comes to design innovation. PCs can be personalized to fit a user’s specific hardware and software needs so they work how the user likes to work. The bottom line is a PC offers users choice, something users don’t get with a Mac.
A PC Gives Users a Complete Touch Screen vs. the Constrained Mac Touch Bar
A PC offers more intuitive interactions with a full touchscreen—in brilliant 4K and OLED options. The keyboard is the only area that provides versatile functionality on an M1 Mac and the screen has a 2K option only.
A PC Offers Users 2 for 1 Form Factor Options vs. Paying Apple for Multiple Devices and Gear
Many PCs offer 2-in-1 PC tablet and laptop capabilities in a single device and include a bundled stylus. If a user wants a tablet with their Mac laptop they have to purchase yet another device from Apple.
Dig into Data
At Intel, we push the boundaries by testing performance with a real-world approach based in research. Data transparency is important when choosing hardware that meets the demands of day in and day out usage. We believe it is a best practice to disclose testing information sufficient to enable intended audiences to understand the bases of our performance and power claims. We challenge Apple to do the same.
Content Creation Performance vs. an M1 Mac
New AI-based content creation tools from Topaz Labs perform up to 3.5x faster1 with the new 11th Gen Intel® Core™ mobile processors than on an M1 Mac. And when using native versions of Adobe Premier Pro, the PCs revealed up to 1.36x performance advantages in some export functions.2 Our tests also reported 1.62x performance advantages when using Lightroom’s Photo Merge HDR Panorama workloads.3
Productivity Performance vs. an M1 Mac
A PC powered by a new 11th Gen Intel® Core™ mobile processor delivers faster web productivity than on an M1 Mac. Comparing the most popular web browser (Chrome), running native versions on both systems, the 11th Gen system performs up to 41% faster4 across subtests like organize album using AI, online photo enhancements, and creating sales graphs. And comparing Microsoft Office 365 on both systems, a PDF export is up to 2.4x faster than on an M1 Mac.5
Battery Life Reality
Apple boasts their new M1 laptop has an 18hr battery life. But the truth behind the claim reveals that the screen brightness does not represent what a user would do in the real world (Apple had the brightness set low at 150 nits). We ran a parity test with an M1 Mac against an Acer Swift 5 with an Intel Core i7 processor. We didn’t change the test to win, we changed it to make it real. The truth is that both systems delivered roughly the same 10hr battery life.6
Everything Just Works
A PC is built for the user. They can run whatever software and games users want to run and accommodate all plug-ins you love. The possibilities are endless with a PC versus Apple’s rigidly controlled walled garden.
A PC Supports as Many as Three 4K Screens vs. Only One with an M1 Mac
A PC enables connection to as many as three 4K monitors when you have Intel® Iris® Xe graphics. The M1 Mac is limited to a singular external display even when using a Thunderbolt™ dock.
A PC Lets Users Plug in What They Want vs. the Non-Native Uncertainty with a Mac
A PC is compatible with most of the popular apps and plug-ins—especially in music creation such as Abelton and Serato. With an M1 Mac users have to check to see if their current headset or favorite app will work.
A PC Supports Hundreds of Games That Won’t Even Run on an M1 Mac
Cyberpunk, Grand Theft Auto V, EA FIFA, Halo MCC, Apex Legends and countless more games are all supported on a PC but will not run on an M1 Mac. In fact, the M1 Mac supports an extremely limited number of game titles.
Shop Top PC Designs
Find your next Intel-based PC at the following retailers—including new Intel® Evo™ laptops verified for an exceptional experience.
The New ASUS ZenBook Duo (14”): Dual Touchscreen Display
Unplug while staying connected and productive with this Touchscreen Notebook. The ASUS ZenBook is effortlessly portable and has a battery designed to last.
The New Razer Book (13”): A Force of Productivity
Get to work with the new Razer Book. Its ultra-compact design is built for mobility and multitasking with focus, making this a light weight, connectivity packed, productivity powerhouse.
The New Dell XPS 2-in-1 (13”): Unfold Brilliance
Enjoy a new modern design with an edge-to-edge keyboard and a large display, all in a small laptop.
The New Lenovo Yoga 9i (13”): Stylish Sound
Featuring a rotating sound bar with a Dolby Atmos® speaker system, this stunning 2 in 1 lets you bring 360-degree sound with you anywhere.
The New Samsung Galaxy Book Pro 360 (13”/15”): Full HD Touch Screen
Experience the visual magic of an AMOLED display in a thin and light 2-in-1 design with split-second responsiveness, a full keyboard, and the new S pen stylus.
The New ASUS ZenBook Flip S (13”): Exquisitely Thin
Just 10.9mm thin, weighing at 1.1 kg, this ultra-sleek beauty brings elevated sophistication to a precision-engineered ErgoLift hinge.
The New Dell XPS (13”): A Cut Above
Crafted with premium materials—from its InfinityEdge display to the comfortable palm rest—every detail makes it ideal for a creator.
The New Acer Swift 5 (14”): A Clean, Clear Standout
Stay ahead of today’s environment with an antimicrobial surface coating and display that delivers color-rich visuals.
The New MSI Stealth 15M: Slim, Sharp, Stylish
Inspired by urban style, the new Stealth 15M is the thinnest and lightest 15” gaming Laptop letting users easily speed through games and daily tasks.
The New MSI Prestige 14: Elegant Design
Crafted with a diamond-cut edge and sand blasted texture the new Prestige 14 laptop is designed to be unique, modern and supremely powerful.
The New Acer Swift 3 (14”): Tough, Light and Thin
Slim, lightweight, stylish and affordable, the Swift 3 is the ideal laptop for working on the move.
The New VAIO Z (14”): Extreme Innovation
The world’s first three-dimensional molded full carbon body design makes the VAIO Z hyperlight while also maximizing the laptop’s rigidity and functional beauty.
To learn more about Intel’s performance testing, visit www.intel.com/performanceindex.
Performance results are based on testing as of dates shown in configurations and may not reflect all publicly available updates. See footnotes for configuration details.
Intel contributes to the development of benchmarks by participating in, sponsoring, and/or contributing technical support to various benchmarking groups, including the BenchmarkXPRT Development Community administered by Principled Technologies.
Intel does not control or audit third-party data. You should consult other sources to evaluate accuracy.
Product and Performance Information
Based on Topaz Labs GigaPixel AI – Batch 20 4x Enlargement workload, which measures the time it takes to process a 4X photo enlargement on 20 images in a batch process (on Topaz GigaPixel AI version 5.4.5). Comparing Intel-based system: Processor: 11th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-1185G7, 28W TDP, 4C/8T, 3.0GHz frequency, Memory: 2x8GB LPDDR4x-4267, OS: Windows 10 Pro 20H2 build 19042.867, Measured on Intel white-box system. With Apple M1-based system: Processor: Apple M1, 8C/8T, 3.2GHz frequency, Memory: 16GB LPDDR4x-4266, OS: MacOS Big Sur Build 11.2.3, Measured on Apple M1 MacBook Pro system. Testing as of 3/12/2021.
Based on Adobe Premiere Pro – Export 4K H.265 SW workload, which measures the time it takes to export a Premiere project timeline to 4K HEVC video using ‘Software Encoding’ (on version 15.0.0 Build 41 Premiere Pro 2021). Comparing Intel-based system: Processor: 11th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-1185G7, 28W TDP, 4C/8T, 3.0GHz frequency, Memory: 2x8GB LPDDR4x-4267, OS: Windows 10 Pro 20H2 build 19042.867, Measured on Intel white-box system. With Apple M1-based system: Processor: Apple M1, 8C/8T, 3.2GHz frequency, Memory: 16GB LPDDR4x-4266, OS: MacOS Big Sur Build 11.2.3, Measured on Apple M1 MacBook Pro system. Testing as of 3/12/2021.
Based on Adobe Lightroom Classic Proto Merge HDR Panorama workload, which measures the time it takes Adobe Lightroom Classic to use the Photo Merge option to create an HDR Panorama image from 12 individual JPEG files (on version 10.1.1/Camera Raw 13.1). The workload consists of 12 bracketed photos shot on a Canon EOS R camera ranging in size of 6 .40 MB 15.3 MB. Comparing Intel-based system: Processor: 11th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-1185G7, 28W TDP, 4C/8T, 3.0GHz frequency, Memory: 2x8GB LPDDR4x-4267, OS: Windows 10 Pro 20H2 build 19042.867, Measured on Intel white-box system. With Apple M1-based system: Processor: Apple M1, 8C/8T, 3.2GHz frequency, Memory: 16GB LPDDR4x-4266, OS: MacOS Big Sur Build 11.2.3, Measured on Apple M1 MacBook Pro system. Testing as of 3/12/2021.
Based on WebXPRT 3, a benchmark from Principled Technologies that measures JavaScript/HTML5 performance using Google Chrome based on six real world usages. It produces results for each of the test scenarios plus an overall score. Comparing Intel-based system: Processor: 11th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-1185G7, 28W TDP, 4C/8T, 3.0GHz frequency, Memory: 2x8GB LPDDR4x-4267, OS: Windows 10 Pro 20H2 build 19042.867, Measured on Intel white-box system. With Apple M1-based system: Processor: Apple M1, 8C/8T, 3.2GHz frequency, Memory: 16GB LPDDR4x-4266, OS: MacOS Big Sur Build 11.2.3, Measured on Apple M1 MacBook Pro system. Results using Chrome version 89.0.4389.90: Organize Album Using AI (Intel 1.41x), Sales Graphs (Intel 1.36x), Photo Enhancement (Intel 1.32x), Stock Option Pricing (Intel .95x), Encrypt Notes and OC Scan (Intel .95x), Online Homework (Intel .84x), Overall Score (Intel 1.11x). Testing as of 3/12/2021.
Based on the PowerPoint PDF Export workload, which measures the time it takes Microsoft Office 365 PowerPoint to convert a 3.75 MB, 200 slide, PowerPoint presentation. The export is created with the Office built-in capability to create PDF files. It does not use any add-ins to create the PDF. Add-ins including Adobe PDF Maker will not work with this workload. Uses Microsoft Office 365 PowerPoint version 16.0.13801.20288 for Intel and version 16.46 (21021202) for Apple. Comparing Intel-based system: Processor: 11th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-1185G7, 28W TDP, 4C/8T, 3.0GHz frequency, Memory: 2x8GB LPDDR4x-4267, OS: Windows 10 Pro 20H2 build 19042.867, Measured on Intel white-box system. With Apple M1-based system: Processor: Apple M1, 8C/8T, 3.2GHz frequency, Memory: 16GB LPDDR4x-4266, OS: MacOS Big Sur Build 11.2.3, Measured on Apple M1 MacBook Pro system. Testing as of 3/12/2021.
Based on workload of Netflix playback under typical-use environment: through Chrome browser (PC) or Safari browser (Mac) with multiple additional webpages open in browser tabs, with panel brightness set to 250 nits (and auto display brightness turned off on Mac). Comparing Intel-based system: Processor: 11th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-1165G7, 28W TDP, 4C/8T, 2.8GHz frequency, Memory: 2x8GB LPDDR4-4267, OS: Windows 10 Home 20H2 build 19042.662, Measured on 14” Acer Swift 5 system. With Apple M1-based system: Processor: Apple M1, 8C/8T, 3.2GHz frequency, Memory: 8GB LPDDR4-4266, OS: Apple MacOS Big Sur Build 11.0.1, Measured on 13.3” Apple M1 MacBook Air system. Time taken to drain from 100% to critical battery: approximately 10.2 hours on Apple M1 MacBook Air and approximately 10.1 hours on 11th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-1165G7-based Acer Swift 5 (SF514-55TA). Testing as of January 8, 2021.