From Intel to Apple Silicon

Mon, 11 Mar 2024 06:00:00 +0000

The transition is complete: since a few days, all the computers I use for work are running on Apple Silicon ARM processors. This includes a Mac Studio M2 Ultra, which I’ve already talked about extensively and which sits on my office desk; a Mac Mini M1 with 16 GB RAM and 1 TB SSD – previously neglected on a shelf for reasons I won’t go into here – now in my home office; and a very basic MacBook Air M1 (just 8 GB RAM and 256 GB SSD, half the specs of my wife’s) for light use and when I’m on the go.

Oh, and let’s not forget: since last summer, I’ve also been using an 11" iPad Pro M1, which is an absolute gem and deserves a post of its own.

The Mac Studio and Mini are running Sonoma, which I’m not thrilled about, but it’s here to stay. Meanwhile, the Air is still on Monterey. I’ll update it to Sonoma soon to ensure consistency across all my machines.

Needless to say, compared to the Intel models I’ve used up until now, the performance is on another level. The benchmarks already say a lot, but the daily experience speaks volumes more: programs that open instantly, the fluidity of even the most resource-hungry applications, Python or R scripts that used to take minutes now finishing almost before I can blink.

Another clear indication of the speed of these machines is the time it takes to install (as usual) the operating system and all the applications I need from scratch (and there are quite a few).

With the Mini, I completed everything in a single day (around 100 applications to download, register, and configure one by one). I spent a second day on finer details, such as transferring files between Macs, tweaking system settings (a rather complicated process that, thankfully, most users can skip), and installing essential command-line tools like homebrew and conda for my work.

Rosetta installed itself automatically the first time I opened an Intel-only application, and so far, all the apps I’ve installed run without issue – even the more niche ones that require specialized libraries. After all, it’s been over three years since the introduction of the first M1 Macs, and the early challenges should have been resolved long ago.

In short, the transition from Intel to Apple Silicon has been smooth – easier than I initially expected and perhaps even simpler than the previous switch from PowerPC to Intel. And in any case, much easier than crossing a busy street in Rome in the 1960s.

P.S. What about my old Macs? As I’ve mentioned elsewhere, I have a new project in mind to repurpose them effectively. The initial tests look very promising, but I’d rather be sure about certain details before writing about it. Stay tuned!

Arm on Melabit

From Intel to Apple Silicon