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Ask HN: Why hasn't x86 caught up with Apple M series?

447 points stephenheron | 3 comments | 25 Aug 25 21:50 UTC | HN request time: 0s | source

Hi,

My daily workhorse is a M1 Pro that I purchased on release date, It has been one of the best tech purchases I have made, even now it really deals with anything I throw at it. My daily work load is regularly having a Android emulator, iOS simulator and a number of Dockers containers running simultaneously and I never hear the fans, battery life has taken a bit of a hit but it is still very respectable.

I wanted a new personal laptop, and I was debating between a MacBook Air or going for a Framework 13 with Linux. I wanted to lean into learning something new so went with the Framework and I must admit I am regretting it a bit.

The M1 was released back in 2020 and I bought the Ryzen AI 340 which is one of the newest 2025 chips from AMD, so AMD has 5 years of extra development and I had expected them to get close to the M1 in terms of battery efficiency and thermals.

The Ryzen is using a TSMC N4P process compared to the older N5 process, I managed to find a TSMC press release showing the performance/efficiency gains from the newer process: “When compared to N5, N4P offers users a reported +11% performance boost or a 22% reduction in power consumption. Beyond that, N4P can offer users a 6% increase in transistor density over N5”

I am sorely disappointed, using the Framework feels like using an older Intel based Mac. If I open too many tabs in Chrome I can feel the bottom of the laptop getting hot, open a YouTube video and the fans will often spin up.

Why haven’t AMD/Intel been able to catch up? Is x86 just not able to keep up with the ARM architecture? When can we expect a x86 laptop chip to match the M1 in efficiency/thermals?!

To be fair I haven’t tried Windows on the Framework yet it might be my Linux setup being inefficient.

Cheers, Stephen

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munchlax ◴[26 Aug 25 11:09 UTC] No.45024957[source]▶
I can build myself a new amd64 box for just under €200. Under €100 with used parts. Some older Dell and Lenovo laptops even work with coreboot.

An Airbook sets me back €1000, enough to buy a used car, and AFAICT is much more difficult to get fully working Linux on than my €200 amd64 build.

Why hasn't apple caught up?

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atonse ◴[26 Aug 25 11:44 UTC] No.45025205[source]▶
When netbooks ($400 notebooks) were all the rage, Steve Jobs was asked why Apple didn’t make one. And he said they didn’t know how to make a cheap laptop that didn’t suck.

And he was right. Netbooks mostly sucked. Same with Chromebooks.

There’s nothing to be gained by racing to the bottom.

You can buy an m1 laptop for $599 at Walmart. That’s an amazing deal.

replies(1): >>45027560 #
1. munchlax ◴[26 Aug 25 15:01 UTC] No.45027560[source]▶

    > You can buy ... for $599
Not sure why you'd think any random nerd has that kind of money. And Walmart isn't exactly around the corner for most parts of the world.
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2. atonse ◴[27 Aug 25 13:21 UTC] No.45039328[source]▶
I don't follow, is that a counter-argument to my statement? That there exist people that can't afford that, so that makes it not a good deal?
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3. munchlax ◴[28 Aug 25 11:40 UTC] No.45050946[source]▶
Not saying it's not a good deal. Linux drivers are pretty good AFAIK.

I'm saying I can't afford it even if I could visit a Walmart.