Tim Cook is the keynote speaker at the 2020 Apple Worldwide Developers Conference.
This year, Apple's decision to ditch Intel paid off.
The pivot allowed Apple to completely rethink the Mac, which had started to grow outdated with an aging design and iterative annual upgrades. Apple has launched more exciting computers after the divorce from Intel and this has sent the Mac business soaring.
It was not always a given. It was fair to question how well Apple could power laptops and desktop computers when it decided to leave Intel. Apple had been selling Intel-powered computers for 15 years. It wasn't clear how well its macOS desktop software would work with apps designed to run on Intel chips, or whether its processors would offer any consumer benefits and keep up with intensive tasks that people turned to MacBooks to run.
Those fears were quickly put to rest.
The first M1 Apple chip was launched in 2020. It was more powerful than Intel's chip, and it also had a fanless design, which helped keep Apple's new MacBook Air even quieter. It was an early success.
During the company's fiscal second-quarter earnings call in April 2021, CEO Tim Cook said that the M1 chip helped fuel the 70.1% growth in Apple's Mac revenue.
Mac revenue was up 16% in the third quarter. The all-new iMac had a metal body that looked like a screen propped up on a stand. It is slimmer than the Intel models that came before it, and it also has better speakers, a sharper display, and a better webcam. The launch was more exciting because Apple had not offered an array of colors for the iMac since 1999.
Mac revenue grew just 1.6% in the fourth quarter of fiscal Q4 as Apple saw a slowdown from the burst of sales driven by the start of the Pandemic. Fiscal Q4 sales did not include revenue from the most exciting new computer of the year.
The 14-inch MacBook Pro proved that Apple's processors are capable of serving its most demanding customers.
The new laptop runs on Apple's latest M1 Pro and M1 Max processors, which are even more capable of handling intensive tasks such as video editing multiple high-resolution video files at the same time. It has the best screen on an Apple laptop that is brighter, sharper and smoother than previous Intel models. Thanks to the more power efficient design of Apple's processors, the laptops still offer long battery life. It is easily the best laptop on the market because it has plenty of ports that allow you to attach high-speed accessories, additional displays or more storage.
Apple will give an indication of how well its new computers are doing in January.
It is clear that the move from Intel has allowed Apple to move ahead with its own chip development, much like it did for the iPad, which has yet to be matched by any other tablets on the market. It is no longer beholden to the delays that plagued Intel, which started to lag behind. Apple has full control over its stack, which means it can design new computer hardware and software together, instead of letting the power of another company's chips dictate what its computers can and can't do.
M1 is able to improve the quality of theWebcam on its computers even though it is the same image sensor used in prior Intel models. The hardware and software have other benefits.
The new macOS Monterey will allow you to control multiple devices at the same time, for example, by sharing a single keyboard and mouse with an iPad. M1 Macs have other exclusive features, such as on-device voice dictation, improved Siri text-to-speech, more detailed Maps and portrait mode in FaceTime, which blurs the background behind you. Some of the same apps that you run on your iPad and iPhone can be run on M1 Macs.
The trend will continue next year. Reports suggest we will see a new MacBook Air, updates to the most powerful iMac Pro and Mac Pro and more in the year 2022. M1 may be in new product categories.
The chip may be used in Apple's augmented reality headset. A report from a top Apple analyst in November said that Apple's upcoming augmented reality glasses will be just as powerful as its Macs. The headset will be able to run intensive graphics tasks without being connected to a computer or phone, which will help it stand out against the competition.
You can subscribe to CNBC on the internet.
