A new report from Geekbench has confirmed that Apple’s new M1 chip is faster than any previous Intel-based Mac in its first single-core tests.
The Mac mini comes out on top, whilst the MacBook Pro and MacBook Air sit in second and third places of the test, respectively.
The long-awaited Geekbench results reveal that the new M1 chip offers single-core and multi-core scores of 1,313 and 5,888 on the MacBook Air, but when you consider that this Geekbench is running on Rosetta 2, Apple’s new translation layer, performance impacts are likely. It seems like Rosetta 2 is currently achieving just under 80% of native Silicon apps.
Yet despite this significant impact on its performance, the single-core scores across all three new M1-powered devices outperform any previously-available Intel Mac.
This marks a huge feat of engineering and demonstrates the power Apple holds in its new M1-based devices.
The news does come with some caveats, though. First of all, the rankings can change greatly when running multi-core tests, with the new Mac mini dropping to 13th place in such tests.
Secondly, Rosetta 2 means that some apps will be slower than on previous Macs, though apps that run natively on the platform should see higher performance metrics.
It’s great news for those who are considering an upgrade to a new MacBook Pro, Air, or mini, and sets a precedent for the future of Mac computing. Are you pleased with the news? Let us know and check back soon for more details on macOS Big Sur and the new M1 chip.
