Is it worth buying a Mac with Intel in 2023?

The Mac ecosystem is radically different from what we had a few years ago. With the transition to Apple Silicon, apple computers have improved in all aspects. Now, some people may have doubts about whether it is worth (or not) buying a Mac with Intel in 2023. And in this post, we are going to clear up the doubt.

Apple wins the battle against Intel

Is it worth buying a Mac with Intel in 2023

Apple’s main objective with the M chips, in addition to gaining independence in the design, production, and manufacturing chain, has been to make a significant leap in quality in Macs. Intel processors are very powerful and capable chips, and in many teams, continue to be the benchmarks. However, in the optimization that Apple carries out on its equipment, these had reached their peak.

With Apple Silicon, the Mac ecosystem has become more energy efficient, which translates into lower electricity consumption and longer battery life. It has also gained compatibility with iOS and iPadOS applications, and therefore, an ecosystem of devices designed entirely in hardware and software. Now, the matter of Intel in Macs, when buying, can be analyzed from two different points of view .

If you have a Mac with Intel and want to renew

You may have a Mac with Intel that is recent. For example, the 2019 models or the latest ones that were launched in 2020. Not enough time has passed yet to consider a change, especially if you invested in i7 or i9 processors, and if you bought computers with a lot of RAM (16GB , 32GB or more). Now, if you have a Mac with an Intel i3 or i5 , and also, with fair RAM (8GB, the most basic that could be configured), and you want to renew it in 2023, go directly to Apple Silicon.

Apple Silicon

The change you will notice will be impressive. The fluidity in the applications, when executing simultaneous tasks, the battery life… will be everything. Even if you buy an Apple Silicon with 8GB of unified memory (the RAM on the chip), performance is going to be significantly better than a Mac with an Intel processor and 8GB of RAM.

If you don’t have a Mac and want to get started in the ecosystem

If you are coming from the Windows + Intel combination, surely you have had a very good experience. With Apple Silicon on the table, thinking about a computer is completely different from thinking about a Mac. Both, first of all, are personal computers. But the Mac stops being a computer, to become “the Mac” . Therefore, we encourage you to buy Apple Silicon directly, and not only for the reasons that we have mentioned before.

Review MacBook Air M1 Apple Silicon

There is also the money factor. Proportionately, a second-hand Mac with Intel is more expensive than a Mac with Apple Silicon, both for the time that you will be able to enjoy updates (a much longer lifespan), and for the performance that you will get at when performing the same functions, installing applications and running tasks in the background. So if you get the chance, Apple’s M chips are the best option in Macs.