The Apple event is just a few hours away, but prior to the conference, a new report has revealed information related to the upcoming iPad Air. Apparently, the latest generation of iPad Air will feature the company’s proprietary silicon, the M1 series chipset.

For those unaware, the Cupertino based giant is set to unveil a number of new products during its March 8 event. This includes its newest affordable iPhone, the iPhone SE 3, a new Mac mini, 5th gen iPad Air, and possibly even a new external display as well. Now, a new MacRumors report revealed more information regarding the upcoming iPad model. Similar to the 2021 iPad Pro, the fifth gen iPad Air will also launch with an M1 chip.

As per previous rumors, the new iPad Air was initially believed to arrive with the A15 chip that supports 5G networking, like the iPad mini. Although, it seems that the brand may just launch it with an M1 chip, bringing it more in line with its higher end iPad models. However, Apple could skip some of the features on the premium iPad. In other words, the upcoming iPad Air won’t feature the Pro variant’s ProMotion display technology and LiDAR sensor on the rear camera module.

Talking about the chip itself, the M1 chipset features an 8 core CPU compared to the 6 cores on the A15 SoC. So, the iPad Air will offer improved performance over any A15 based iPad models. The company is set to begin its “Peek Performance” at 10 am Pacific Time today (8th March 2022), so stick around as we will be covering the conference.

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There are no boundaries, no limitations when you truly desire something and it has recently been proved by Colby Sheets, an Apple fan and an iOS developer, who paid tribute to Steve Jobs on his 10th death anniversary by turning a 20-year old Apple iMac G4 into an M1 Mac machine.

Sheets posted a video of his M1 iMac G4 on October 5 and shared how he went on to build this. He says, “I’ve always wanted the iMac G4 since I was a kid and I knew a few people made some hackintosh’s with them but I didn’t want that, I wanted a real Mac. I always thought about putting the Mac mini internals in it but with intel chips, it wouldn’t work for a couple of reasons (size, heat/airflow). Well now with the M1 how thermally cool it runs, I thought I’d give it another shot!”

In celebration of Steve Job’s life and his inspiration to many, I wanted to show a passion project I’ve been working on that I think Steve would be proud of. Something that wasn’t possible 20 years ago but is now.

Hello, iMac G4 with an M1 chip. pic.twitter.com/q6zUpyFrwu

— Colby Sheets (@ColbySheets) October 5, 2021

Not being an engineer, he had to reach out to a lot of people including YouTuber Pendleton115’s video of how to turn the iMac G4 into an external monitor. In his tweet, Colby explained that he how combined together the Apple M1 Mac components to create an iMac G4 with 8GB of RAM powered by the M1 processor. There was also a scope to replace the display but he chose to stick with the stock one as it had nothing wrong with it.

A little history, The iMac G4 was officially launched in January 2002 powered by a PowerPC chip, and carried SDRAM of up to 256MB, 80GB of storage. Nicknamed as iLamp, iMac G4 was discontinued after two years.

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(via)

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The M1 chip based 2020 MacBook Air‘s refurbished models have just been spotted on the official Apple Store in China. The laptops have been found in three different variants including the MacBook Air, Mac Mini, and even the MacBook Pro models.

According to an iFeng report, these are the first M1 chipset based refurbished Mac models that are available in the country. In other words, prospective buyers can now find the new M1 based MacBooks at a discounted price on the official Chinese website of the Cupertino based giant. In comparison to new units, the refurbished models offer discounts up to 15 percent across the three variants and are available in gold, silver, and space gray as well in China. Earlier this week, the M1 based Mac models have also been listed internationally as well.

Looking at the pricing, the refurbished M1 based Apple Macs were up to more than 1,000 Yuan (roughly 154 US Dollars) cheaper than new units. For those unaware, refurbished products are cheaper because they can be either slightly used or initially faulty products that are returned to the company, which renews them to a better condition or fixed any faults or issues. These are then repackaged and resold at a discounted price later on.

Furthermore, Apple promises that its officially certified refurbished products have undergone strict processing procedures that have the same strict functional testing standards as brand new products. In other words, they are virtually new and are even offered with a one year warranty, along with free delivery without missing any of the usual accessories found in the regular packaging. Unfortunately, every M1 based model is already sold out, as of right now. The models were listed this morning, but can no longer be found on the website.

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Back in November 2020, Apple launched its latest MacBook series of laptops, which featured its new proprietary M1 chipsets. This marked a departure from processors made by Intel, which has recently also released an advertising campaign that highlights all the shortcoming of the new M1 chip.

Only a PC can power scientists and gamers alike. #GoPC

— Intel (@intel) February 10, 2021

According to a MacRumors report, the ad from the chip maker also signifies that it is threatened by the move from the Cupertino based giant. In the recent ad shared on Twitter, Intel shared a link to a YouTube video that called out all the shortcomings of the new Apple chip. The company also stated that “Only a PC can power scientists and gamers alike” and that “if you can power a rocket launch and launch Rocket League (a popular online multiplayer game), you’re not on a Mac. Go PC.”

Furthermore, the chip making giant also pointed out the lack of a touchscreen on the Apple Mac laptops, saying that “Only a PC offers tablet mode, touch screen and stylus capabilities in a single device.” The video linked by the company is to a video made by Jon Rettinger, which compares the MacBooks powered by Intel chips and the new M1 chipsets. Furthermore, Intel had recently shared benchmarks as well, to prove that its chips are better than the Apple M1 processor.

Although, these benchmarks were carefully crafted by the company and ran software that did not favor the M1 chip. The company’s anti-Mac ad is likely just one of many to come as well in the future as Apple is slowly moving away from Intel chips and plans to completely supply its PCs with its self developed chips within the next two years. Soon, Apple Silicon chips will power the MacBook Pro, and even the next refreshed iMacs as well.

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Apple launched its M1 chipset recently. The new processor, which replaces Intel’s own chipsets, which have powered Apple computers for years, is also one of the most powerful in a computer. The processor comes with 8 CPU cores but a new report says Apple is working on a much more powerful one that will have up to 32 cores.

Details of the new processor were first reported by Bloomberg and they say Apple engineers are working on multiple successors to its M1 processor. Some of these processors are expected to launch as early as next year.

Apple’s plan is to phase out completely Intel processors from its products by 2022 and its next-generation chips should help it achieve that goal. Some of these next-gen chips in development have been reported to have as many as 16 performance cores and four efficiency cores! However, it is said that Apple may first launch models with 8 or 12 performance cores depending on fabrication results.

The report says that Apple is also working on more powerful GPU processors and has begun testing 16-core and 32-core versions for its high-end laptops and mid-range desktops. It is also working on GPUs with 64 and 128 cores for its top-end computers. These chips are expected to arrive in late 2021 or even 2022.

Apple’s most powerful Mac Pro can be configured with up to 28 cores, so if it plans to replace the Intel Xeon W chips with its own, it must offer something significantly powerful.

There is a bit of waiting before these chips launch but it has been reported that Apple may announce the first successor to the M1 early next year alongside new MacBooks with MiniLED displays.

Bloomberg adds that news of these new chipsets caused Intel’s shares to drop by 1.7% earlier today.

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A teardown of the newly launched Apple Mac Mini offers a real world look at the company’s new custom made M1 chip. The new Apple Silicon is soldered onto a smaller logic board than its 2018 counterpart.

The teardown had just recently surfaced and was shared on Reddit. Looking at the images, the M1 is the silver chip as seen in the images. It is labeled with APL1102 and features a 8 core CPU and 8 core GPU along with a 16 core Neural Engine, I/O controllers, and more. Furthermore, the unified system memory is also visible on the right side of the chip, which takes up lesser space than a traditional RAM stick used in previous Mac mini models that helps in making the logic board smaller, as per the MacRumors report.

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Although the smaller size also has its own issues. With the unified system memory, users can no longer consider upgrading their RAM, which was possible in the previous Mac mini. Thus, customers would have to make a more thought after choice between the 8GB and 16GB memory variants when buying the latest Apple Mac mini model. Similarly, the SSD storage is also soldered to the logic board, so internal storage is not upgradeable either.

So, it is advised that one should carefully choose the different memory and storage configuration based on their personal and professional workload. Apple is seemingly unifying its product portfolio even further, with the new chips being based on ARM that is a common architecture for smartphones. This move would also help them better optimize their new Macbooks and Mac mini lineups since they are behind both the hardware and software.

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Apple has already announced its new M1 chipset as a part of Apple Silicon and with that, it has officially begun the process of transitioning from Intel to its own chipsets for the Mac devices. This seems to be a move that could help Samsung Electronics as well.

According to the report coming via BusinessKorea, there’s a strong possibility that the South Korean giant Samsung Electronics could become the manufacturer for the M1 chipset. If this turns out to be true, then Samsung will be making chipsets for Apple after about five years.

Currently, the M1 chips are being manufactured by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC). But since the company is having difficulty meeting the demand for the while order volume, Apple could shift some of the orders to Samsung.

It’s noteworthy that the newly launched M1 chipset is made using the 5nm process and TSMC and Samsung are the only two companies in the world right now that have the capabilities to manufacture 5nm chips.

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The M1 chipset packs a staggering 16 billion transistors, which is significantly higher than the 11.8 billion used in the iPhone 12’s A14 Bionic. The CPU core has an eight-core arrangement, which includes four high-performance cores for heavy-duty work and four high-efficiency cores for low-priority tasks.

It also has dedicated circuitry for graphics and artificial intelligence processing. The memory chips are also housed within the same chip package alongside the processor, which should result in better speed.

Apple Silicon’s M1 chipset-powered Mac devices are claimed by the company to be three and a half times faster than the previous Intel-based models. The graphics speed also comes in five times faster, according to Apple.

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Yesterday, Apple unveiled the MacBook Pro, MacBook Air, and Mac mini powered by the custom-made M1 chip. The 5nm ARM-based chip is equipped with 16 billion transistors, a 16-core neural engine, an eight-core GPU, and an eight-core CPU with four high-performance cores for heavy-duty tasks and four high-efficiency cores for low-priority tasks. India will be also receiving the newly unveiled M1 powered Mac devices. Here is all the information on the pricing of the new Macs for India.

Mac mini with M1 chip

The 8 GB RAM variant of the Mac mini has arrived in India in following variants in SSD storage options such as 25 6GB, 512 GB, 1 TB SSD storage, and 2 TB SSD storage. They are priced at Rs 64,900 (~$874), Rs 84,900 (~$1,143), Rs 1,04,900 (~$1,412), and Rs 1,44,900 (~$1,951), respectively.

The 16 GB RAM variant also comes in four SSD storage versions such as 256 GB, 512 GB, 1 TB, and 2 TB. They are priced at Rs 84,900 (~$1,144), Rs 1,04,900 (~$1,412), Rs 1,24,900 (~$1,682), and Rs 1,64,900 (~$2,220), respectively. It comes in a Silver color version only.

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MacBook Air with M1 chip  

The 13-inch MacBook Air comes in 8 GB and 16 GB RAM editions. The 8 GB RAM model can be purchased in SSD storage options like 256 GB, 512 GB, 1 TB, and 2 TB. They are priced at Rs 92,900 (~$1,251), Rs 1,12,900 (~$1,520), Rs 1,32,900 (~$1,790), and Rs 1,72,900 (~$2,328).

On the other side, the 16 GB RAM variant comes in SSD editions such  as 256 GB, 512 GB, 1 TB, and 2 TB and they cost 1,12,900 (~$1,520), Rs 1,32,900 (~$1,790), Rs 1,52,900 (~$2,059), and Rs 1,92,900 (~$2,598), respectively. It comes in three colors like Space Gray, Gold, and Silver.

MacBook Pro with M1 chip

The more powerful 13-inch MacBook also comes in 8 GB and 16 GB RAM options. The 8 GB RAM variant with SSD storage choices like 256 GB, 512 GB, 1 TB, and 2 TB are priced at 1,22,900 (~$1,655), Rs 1,42,900 (~$1,924), Rs 1,62,900 (~$2,194), and Rs 2,02,900 (~$2,732), respectively.

The 16 GB RAM variant with 256 GB, 512 GB, 1 TB, and 2 TB SSD storage options are priced at 1,42,900 (~$1,924), Rs 1,62,900 (~$2,194), Rs 1,82,900 (~$2,463), and Rs 2,22,900 (~$3,001), respectively. It comes in Space Grey and Silver colors.

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Apple has introduced a new-generation M1 chip for its latest Mac computers built on a 5nm process. The chipset is the US tech giant’s first ARM-based chip and brings improved performance and better battery life to its personal computers.

The new chip was unveiled alongside the MacBook Air and MacBook Pro notebooks and the Mac mini desktop computer, all of which are powered by the powerful chipset. Apple’s senior vice president of hardware technologies, Johny Srouji disclosed during the event that the company’s goal in creating the chip was to achieve “industry-leading performance and features while relentlessly focusing on performance efficiency.”

The company seems to have achieved that goal as the new M1 chip onboard the Macbook Air aids the provision of a good battery life which is said to be capable of withstanding up to 15 hours of web browsing and 18 hours of video. In terms of speed, the new processor is also touted to be three and a half times faster than the previous Intel-based model. The graphics speed also comes in five times faster, accoding to Apple.

In terms of specs, the new M1 chip has a staggering 16 billion transistors, which is significantly higher than the 11.8 billion used in the iPhone 12’s A14 Bionic. The CPU core is also increased from six to an eight-core arrangement in order to boost the performance. Additionally, the M1 has four high-performance cores for heavy-duty work, compared to two on the iPhone 12, and four high-efficiency cores for low-priority tasks.

Just like the chipsets on the iPhones and iPads, the Mac’s M1 chip features dedicated circuitry for graphics and artificial intelligence processing. These modules are linked with a unified memory architecture, eliminating the need for the PC to spend time copying data internally as it switches processing approaches. The memory chips, while separate from the brains of the operation, are housed within the same chip package alongside processor for better speed.

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