4 ms·

How many people actually need the perf of an M1 or M2-based laptop? I see a lot of excited stuff about running ML models on Apple silicon, but not much about ho

How many people actually need the perf of an M1 or M2-based laptop? I see a lot of excited stuff about running ML models on Apple silicon, but not much about how it benefits ordinary tech users running compile workloads or whatever, and nothing at all about people running standard applications. The hardware is great, I'm just not convinced that the price/performance delivers a big enough market.

rjzzleep 4y ago
I got my wife to upgrade to an M1. I still have a haswell i7 and responsiveness of on a different scale. But to be fair, I had to use a ROG zen machine while my Lenovo was in repair and it felt close in responsiveness.
matwood 4y ago
When I went from my Intel MBP (was the prior gen) to my first M1 MBA it cut my java test suite times in 1/2. I dug in thinking something was broken, but nope, it was that much faster. As another poster said, I bought a M1 Max, 64gb when they came out and it still feels new speed wise. Unless something breaks, this computer should last a really long time.
maven29 4y ago
Perhaps non-tech corporations without the means to implement CI/CD would appreciate end-device performance gains? Regardless, other laptop vendors have mostly caught up in performance anyway. Mobility might have a better case to be made.
- threeseed 4y ago
  For developers who use languages that are compiled/strongly typed CI/CD won't help. And no other laptops vendors haven't caught up. Their efficiency is still way lower.
Eric_WVGG 4y ago
It was pointed out to me about a decade ago that is actually the “normies” who need higher-performance computers than seasoned professionals. Folks who know how computers work tend to subliminally optimize it, knowing when go quit apps, how to manage windows, patience with processes that logically take extra time, etc. It’s the neophytes and dilettantes that run all their apps at the same time, have dozens of windows with hundreds of tabs open all the time, and are prone to freaking out when their system “beachballs”. I coaxed my CEO — a business guy who happens to be in tech - into getting the M2 Air, watched a lot of his frustrations melt away. Between all the performance and battery life, it was a slam dunk. Meanwhile, I was running “compile workloads” on a wimpier 8gb M1 Air and sailing!
- ask_b123 4y ago
  > have dozens of windows with hundreds of tabs open all the time Sigh, seems like I'm a dilettante.
- maximus-decimus 4y ago
  I agree, all the anti-virus stuff my father installs on his laptops makes it virtually unusable.
saagarjha 4y ago
My M1 Pro builds LLVM about as fast as my 64 core cloud workstation. This is pretty neat.
marcinzm 4y ago
The battery life is really nice even if you don’t need the full power.
- andyjohnson0 4y ago
  Good point. Having cpu cores that are optimised for efficiency is a nuce feature.
ceejayoz 4y ago
> How many people actually need the perf of an M1 or M2-based laptop? Give it a few years. Browsers and apps will expand to fill the available performance, as they always have.
- CoastalCoder 4y ago
  "What Andy giveth, Bill taketh away."
threeseed 4y ago
I had the previous MacBook Pro i7 which was using for normal compile workloads. It ran so hot that I needed to put an ice brick underneath it in order to stop it from aggressively throttling and sounding like a jet engine going off. With my M1 the fan rarely spins up at all and the efficiency/battery life makes a massive difference.
illiarian 4y ago
> How many people actually need the perf of an M1 or M2-based laptop? Think of it as an investment. If it's tour personal laptop, you can buy a maxed-out M1/M2 and use it for the next decade (while throwing random shit at it like the occasional video editing, or streaming, or a side project...)
Dalewyn 4y ago
>How many people actually need the perf of an M1 or M2-based laptop? All of them; the battery life of an M1/2 Macbook should be the minimum bar that all other laptops should strive to meet, let alone beat.

rjzzleep 4y ago

I got my wife to upgrade to an M1. I still have a haswell i7 and responsiveness of on a different scale. But to be fair, I had to use a ROG zen machine while my Lenovo was in repair and it felt close in responsiveness.

matwood 4y ago

When I went from my Intel MBP (was the prior gen) to my first M1 MBA it cut my java test suite times in 1/2. I dug in thinking something was broken, but nope, it was that much faster. As another poster said, I bought a M1 Max, 64gb when they came out and it still feels new speed wise. Unless something breaks, this computer should last a really long time.

maven29 4y ago

Perhaps non-tech corporations without the means to implement CI/CD would appreciate end-device performance gains? Regardless, other laptop vendors have mostly caught up in performance anyway. Mobility might have a better case to be made.

threeseed 4y ago
For developers who use languages that are compiled/strongly typed CI/CD won't help. And no other laptops vendors haven't caught up. Their efficiency is still way lower.

Eric_WVGG 4y ago

It was pointed out to me about a decade ago that is actually the “normies” who need higher-performance computers than seasoned professionals. Folks who know how computers work tend to subliminally optimize it, knowing when go quit apps, how to manage windows, patience with processes that logically take extra time, etc. It’s the neophytes and dilettantes that run all their apps at the same time, have dozens of windows with hundreds of tabs open all the time, and are prone to freaking out when their system “beachballs”. I coaxed my CEO — a business guy who happens to be in tech - into getting the M2 Air, watched a lot of his frustrations melt away. Between all the performance and battery life, it was a slam dunk. Meanwhile, I was running “compile workloads” on a wimpier 8gb M1 Air and sailing!

ask_b123 4y ago
> have dozens of windows with hundreds of tabs open all the time Sigh, seems like I'm a dilettante.
maximus-decimus 4y ago
I agree, all the anti-virus stuff my father installs on his laptops makes it virtually unusable.

saagarjha 4y ago

My M1 Pro builds LLVM about as fast as my 64 core cloud workstation. This is pretty neat.

marcinzm 4y ago

The battery life is really nice even if you don’t need the full power.

andyjohnson0 4y ago
Good point. Having cpu cores that are optimised for efficiency is a nuce feature.

ceejayoz 4y ago

> How many people actually need the perf of an M1 or M2-based laptop? Give it a few years. Browsers and apps will expand to fill the available performance, as they always have.

CoastalCoder 4y ago
"What Andy giveth, Bill taketh away."

threeseed 4y ago

I had the previous MacBook Pro i7 which was using for normal compile workloads. It ran so hot that I needed to put an ice brick underneath it in order to stop it from aggressively throttling and sounding like a jet engine going off. With my M1 the fan rarely spins up at all and the efficiency/battery life makes a massive difference.

illiarian 4y ago

> How many people actually need the perf of an M1 or M2-based laptop? Think of it as an investment. If it's tour personal laptop, you can buy a maxed-out M1/M2 and use it for the next decade (while throwing random shit at it like the occasional video editing, or streaming, or a side project...)

Dalewyn 4y ago

>How many people actually need the perf of an M1 or M2-based laptop? All of them; the battery life of an M1/2 Macbook should be the minimum bar that all other laptops should strive to meet, let alone beat.