MacBook Pro 2021: Wi-Fi is slower than Intel Macs
Apple has not only improved its new 14 and 16-inch MacBook Pros over the previous generation, since they offer much lower Wi-Fi speeds than their predecessors.
Apple has just published the precise technical specifications of the modems integrated into the new 14 and 16-inch MacBook pro it presented two weeks ago, and these will not delight all users.
Indeed, the support page reveals that the M1 Pro and M1 Max chips do not offer no improvement in Wi-Fi compared to the M1 chip in the 2020 MacBook Air. These are even less powerful than the modems built into the computers of the previous generation, which were equipped with Intel processors.
Also read : Apple explains why the 2021 MacBook Pros don’t have Face ID despite the notch
Make sure to use Wi-Fi 6 with the new MacBook Pro
The new MacBook Pros are compatible with the Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax) standard like the MacBook Air and their M1 chips. They offer a maximum throughput of 1200 Mbps using this standard on the 5 GHz band, but see the maximum speed drop to just 866 Mbps if using Wi-Fi 5.
In comparison, previous Intel Macs were not compatible with Wi-Fi 6, but offered a theoretical maximum speed of 1300 Mbps in Wi-Fi 5 (802.11ac) on the 5 GHz band. Intel Macs connected via Wi-Fi 5 therefore offer better speed than the new 14 and 16-inch MacBook Pro connected via Wi-Fi 6.
It is likely that the speed difference is due to the MacBook Pro M1 Pro and M1 Max supporting a maximum of two MIMO spatial streams, compared to three for Intel models. You probably won’t notice the difference on a daily basis, but it’s astonishing to see Apple reducing speeds in Wi-Fi 5 on its new generation MacBook Pro, since not all users have adopted a Wi-Fi 6 capable router yet.
Still, Wi-Fi 6 is known to better manage connections in a household, so even if the theoretical speeds are slower on the newer MacBook Pros, you will probably get better speeds and better stability in Wi-Fi 6 than in Wi-Fi 5 on Intel Macs. In addition, we know that this new standard is more energy efficient, and that the transition from 3 to only 2 MIMO spatial streams has the effect of increasing the autonomy of the devices. It is therefore an excellent compromise.
Source: Apple