As Apple is replacing the Intel processors in the Mac lineup with its own Apple Silicon chips, Intel has been getting quite aggressive in its recent advertisement campaigns against M1 Macs. Intel’s newest ad campaign stars Justin Long, Apple’s “I’m a Mac” actor, who is singing the praises of PC laptops and comparing them to MacBooks. However, while trying to mock Apple, Intel actually made the MacBook Pros in its commercials look better than they do in real life and showed exactly what we expect from the next-generation MacBook Pro: an edge-to-edge display.
As spotted by tech YouTuber Rene Ritchie, take a look at these two photos. The one on the left is a photo of a MacBook Pro with an M1 chip taken and the one on the right is taken from this Intel ad.
Intel’s version of the MacBook Pro has much thinner screen bezels, an edge-to-edge display. If the MacBook’s bezels were this thin, it would look much better. (Though Intel’s version of a MacBook Pro doesn’t have a webcam.)
But Intel’s fabled all-screen MacBook Pro also made an appearance in this ad, which attempts to ding the MacBook Pro for not being a 2-in-1. Look at that Mac — all screen!
Intel did confirm to The Verge on Friday that real MacBook Pros with an M1 chip were used in the commercials, but they wouldn’t initially say what it may or may not have changed about the device: “With respect to filming and showcasing details, we’re not commenting at this time,” an Intel spokesperson said.
However, Intel’s Ryan Shrout confirmed a likely theory on Saturday: the look of the MacBook Pros’ screens in post-production was changed, which had the happenstance effect of making their screens look better than they do in real life. It was apparently a rush job and mistakes were made when compositing.
These ads, however, seem to miss the point of how Intel’s chips can compete with the MacBook Pro’s real advantage: Apple’s speedy and battery-efficient M1 chip. So far, Intel’s ads are only producing cherry-picked benchmarks to try and hit back at the M1. And by trying to dunk on the MacBook Pro, Intel is also, in a way, dunking on itself, considering it still provides chips for some models of the Apple laptop.
