Intel is back to bashing Apple with aggressive anti-MacBook ads

Intel is back to bashing Apple with its latest marketing efforts. Over on the Intel Twitter page you'll find the above tweet, claiming both scientists and gamers prefer PCs over Mac.

The tweet links to a video from YouTube channel Jon Rettinger, who touts the reasons why you might want to consider an Intel Evo laptop before buying an Apple M1-powered MacBook. The video is sponsored by Intel.

It wasn't that long ago that Intel CPUs were integral to every MacBook. In fact, many MacBooks today still have Intel Inside. But recently Apple has shifted away from the x86 chip company's processors in favour of one of its own bespoke design, the Apple M1.

The M1 has proven itself a worthy adversary to Intel's own x86 chips, too, with performance up there with the best of x86 in a range of workloads in a low-power envelope.

Apple is already committed to phasing out all of Intel's chips from its laptops by 2022.

Which has all clearly rubbed Intel the wrong way. It's not pulling any punches with such claims as a PC is the only device for rocket scientists and Rocket League gamers.

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It's true that many games don't run on Apple's new M1 chip—although some that do actually run at higher framerates than Intel's Core i7 1185G7, according to Intel's very own benchmarks. Those are benchmarks Intel published to prove Apple's M1 chip unsuitable for a range of games and workloads. Though these are widely-perceived to be cherry-picked in Intel's favour, of course.

Intel's incoming CEO, Pat Gelsinger, has already addressed Intel staff on the Apple problem

“We have to deliver better products to the PC ecosystem than any possible thing that a lifestyle company in Cupertino makes," Gelsinger is said to have told Intel employees. “We have to be that good, in the future.”

Which is all to say after a stint of quiet co-prosperity, it looks like the perennial PC vs. Mac argument is back and fierier than ever.

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Jacob Ridley
Managing Editor, Hardware

Jacob earned his first byline writing for his own tech blog. From there, he graduated to professionally breaking things as hardware writer at PCGamesN, and would go on to run the team as hardware editor. He joined PC Gamer's top staff as senior hardware editor before becoming managing editor of the hardware team, and you'll now find him reporting on the latest developments in the technology and gaming industries and testing the newest PC components.