Apple cemented its move away from Intel on Monday with the revealing of two high-end laptops powered by its own “Apple Silicon” chips.
Apple has been designing its own processors for the iPhone and iPad for the past decade and its rapid progress there, both on fast speeds and low energy consumption, has allowed it to begin powering its own laptops and desktops.
The move gives Apple an even deeper integration of its hardware and software, an arrangement that rivals struggle to match. This allows developers to create apps that Apple promises will function seamlessly across smartphones, laptops and desktops.
The performance specs are “a major endorsement of Apple’s investment in custom silicon”, as the chipsets showcased big improvements in graphics processing, speed and energy efficiency, said Ben Wood, chief analyst at CCS Insight.
Wedbush analyst Dan Ives was impressed Apple could release these products just ahead of the holiday season “despite the chip shortage”.
Julie Ask, analyst at Forrester, called the event “solid” and said Apple’s higher-end demographic should be expected to buy these new products for the holiday season.
“Certainly among Apple’s core base — they are still optimistic, employed and spending money,” she said.
Read more on Apple’s latest product launch here.
