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This feels like something that should always be enabled when you're plugged into AC power (maybe only automatic when you're at 100% battery).

by mlex 5y ago

mbesto 5y ago
IIRC MBPs circa 2010ish would auto switch the GPU just like this.
killingtime74 5y ago
Lower heat lengthens battery life span
AuthorizedCust 5y ago
Some enjoy reduced fan noise, so lower power settings have value even when plugged in.
- gruez 5y ago
  To add to this, apple probably already tuned the chip so that any additional power wouldn't meaningfully improve performance. You're not trading 10% more power for 10% more performance, you're trading 50% more power for 5% more performance (numbers made up).
  - quitit 5y ago
    While the graphs are vague, apple’s performance v power graphs show this phenomenon. The highest performing laptops in the market are more like portable workstations rather than mobile devices - while on battery their performance is significantly throttled to provide a useful battery life. This contrasts from apple’s designs for the reason you’ve stated: they are capable performers while on battery.
Bud 5y ago
Not at all, actually. You're forgetting the heavy use of MacBook Pros by recording engineers and musicians. For them, having a machine that is fast without generating the incredibly annoying constant fan noise of the vast majority of PC laptops is a crucial feature. So no. Definitely not. The user should be able to toggle this. As Apple has wisely chosen.
- alx__ 5y ago
  Indeed, having this as a opt-in feature is best Nothing worse than trying to concentrate on something when "helicopter mode" suddenly kicks in :)
  - my_usernam3 5y ago
    I like the option for both! Or even customizable. I had a laptop with a dedicated Nvidia card, and I could tell which programs to run on it, or whether i wanted to always on or always off. I loved it, was super easy to configure out the box as well!
- stephencanon 5y ago
  Yeah, I kept my old fanless G3 PowerBook long beyond it’s apparent sell-by date for live performance stuff, where a fan was a non-option.
superjan 5y ago
Dunno, I think I’d rather wait in blissful silence.
- Marsymars 5y ago
  If you really want silence, you're best off with the fanless MBA. Though Apple noted that in non-intense use the MBP should be silent, you can also see from their performance graphs[1] that the M1 is more efficient than the M1 Pro and M1 Max at low power levels. (<12 watts or so, from eyeballing the chart.) Makes sense when you consider that the M1 has more efficiency cores than the M1 Pro/Max. I'd actually like to build myself a home NAS/server with only Gracemont cores if we ever see Alder Lake-L available in a mini-ITX form factor. (Was going to try with Jasper Lake, but that seems to have been effectively cancelled with the chip shortage.) [1]. https://www.anandtech.com/show/17019/apple-announced-m1-pro-m1-max-giant-new-socs-with-allout-performance https://www.anandtech.com/show/17019/apple-announced-m1-pro-...
msbarnett 5y ago
Most of the time I'd rather have lower fan noise and a less hot chassis when I'm plugged in.

This feels like something that should always be enabled when you're plugged into AC power (maybe only automatic when you're at 100% battery).

by mlex 5y ago

This feels like something that should always be enabled when you're plugged into AC power (maybe only automatic when you're at 100% battery).

mbesto 5y ago

IIRC MBPs circa 2010ish would auto switch the GPU just like this.

killingtime74 5y ago

Lower heat lengthens battery life span

AuthorizedCust 5y ago

Some enjoy reduced fan noise, so lower power settings have value even when plugged in.

gruez 5y ago
To add to this, apple probably already tuned the chip so that any additional power wouldn't meaningfully improve performance. You're not trading 10% more power for 10% more performance, you're trading 50% more power for 5% more performance (numbers made up).
- quitit 5y ago
  While the graphs are vague, apple’s performance v power graphs show this phenomenon. The highest performing laptops in the market are more like portable workstations rather than mobile devices - while on battery their performance is significantly throttled to provide a useful battery life. This contrasts from apple’s designs for the reason you’ve stated: they are capable performers while on battery.

Bud 5y ago

Not at all, actually. You're forgetting the heavy use of MacBook Pros by recording engineers and musicians. For them, having a machine that is fast without generating the incredibly annoying constant fan noise of the vast majority of PC laptops is a crucial feature. So no. Definitely not. The user should be able to toggle this. As Apple has wisely chosen.

alx__ 5y ago
Indeed, having this as a opt-in feature is best Nothing worse than trying to concentrate on something when "helicopter mode" suddenly kicks in :)
- my_usernam3 5y ago
  I like the option for both! Or even customizable. I had a laptop with a dedicated Nvidia card, and I could tell which programs to run on it, or whether i wanted to always on or always off. I loved it, was super easy to configure out the box as well!
stephencanon 5y ago
Yeah, I kept my old fanless G3 PowerBook long beyond it’s apparent sell-by date for live performance stuff, where a fan was a non-option.

superjan 5y ago

Dunno, I think I’d rather wait in blissful silence.

Marsymars 5y ago
If you really want silence, you're best off with the fanless MBA. Though Apple noted that in non-intense use the MBP should be silent, you can also see from their performance graphs[1] that the M1 is more efficient than the M1 Pro and M1 Max at low power levels. (<12 watts or so, from eyeballing the chart.) Makes sense when you consider that the M1 has more efficiency cores than the M1 Pro/Max. I'd actually like to build myself a home NAS/server with only Gracemont cores if we ever see Alder Lake-L available in a mini-ITX form factor. (Was going to try with Jasper Lake, but that seems to have been effectively cancelled with the chip shortage.) [1]. https://www.anandtech.com/show/17019/apple-announced-m1-pro-m1-max-giant-new-socs-with-allout-performance https://www.anandtech.com/show/17019/apple-announced-m1-pro-...

msbarnett 5y ago

Most of the time I'd rather have lower fan noise and a less hot chassis when I'm plugged in.