New M1 MacBook Air smokes Core i9 16-inch MacBook Pro in Geekbench

Yes, you read that headline correctly: according to a new listing in the Geekbench 5 database, the M1 MacBook Air absolutely destroys the Core i9 16-inch MacBook Pro in both single- and multi-core tests. 

The scores apparently come from the MacBook Air 10,1. According to the Geekbench post, this MacBook Air runs macOS 11.0.1 and uses an “Apple Silicon” processor. The laptop posted an impressive 1687 and 7433 in the single- and multi-core tests, respectively.

Comparatively, the top-of-the-line 16-inch MacBook Pro with a Core i9-9880H performs about 35% worse in Geekbench 5’s single-core test and about 15% worse in the multi-core test. Average scores for the Core i9 16-inch MacBook Pro hover around 1100 for single-core and 6000-6500 for multi-core. 

This is quite the performance gap, especially considering this MacBook Air looks like the baseline model with 8 GB of RAM. Also, keep in mind that the M1 MacBook Air is fanless, suggesting that the new M1 13-inch MacBook Pro will perform significantly better than the best MacBook Pros currently on the market. The M1 MacBook Pro has active cooling, which should allow for longer sustained load operation.

The Geekbench post also shed some light on an M1 specification many have asked about: clock speed. According to the listing, the M1 has a base clock of 3.2 GHz. The Core i9-9880H, for comparison, has a base clock of 2.3 GHz. 

If this listing is legitimate, Apple has worked wonders with the M1 chip. That kind of performance in a passively cooled system with a TDP of 10 Watts is incredible, especially compared to an 8 core/16 thread 45 Watt monster like the Core i9-9880H. 

Apple’s statement that the M1 is the fastest CPU in the world may have been more than marketing fluff after all.