Former 'I'm a Mac' Actor Justin Long Throws Shade at M1 Apple Silicon in New Intel Ad Campaign

Intel has called on the services of former "I'm a Mac" actor Justin Long in a series of new ads in which Apple's latest custom-made M1 processors are cast as inferior to newer laptops powered by Intel processors.

justin long intel mac ad 2021
Well known for his role in Apple's popular "Get a Mac" TV ad campaign from the 2000s, Long stars in a series of ads called "Justin Gets Real" on Intel's YouTube channel, beginning each video by introducing himself as "... a Justin – just a real person doing a real comparison between Mac and PC."


In one ad, Long promotes the flexibility of Windows laptops, specifically the Lenovo Yoga 9i versus a MacBook Pro. In another video, Long meets a PC user gaming on the MSI Gaming Stealth 15M laptop, powered by a Intel Core i7. Long then asks for a Mac, before swiftly agreeing with the PC user that "no one games on a Mac."

Other ads include Long throwing shade on Intel's behalf towards Apple's lack of touchscreen Macs, the inability to plug more than one external display into ‌M1‌ Macs, and the variety of different options available for laptops powered by Intel.

Intel undertook a similar marketing campaign in February with a series of tweets highlighting the "shortcomings" of Apple's ‌M1‌ powered-Macs compared to Intel-powered computers. In November, Apple released its first Apple Silicon and is expected to fully transition its entire lineup away from Intel over the next couple of years.

This isn't the first time Long has featured in ad campaigns for Apple rivals. In 2017, the actor starred in a series of Huawei commercials promoting the company's Mate 9 smartphone.

Popular Stories

iOS 26

iOS 26.4 and iOS 27 Features Revealed in New Leak

Friday December 12, 2025 10:56 am PST by
Macworld's Filipe Espósito today revealed a handful of features that Apple is allegedly planning for iOS 26.4, iOS 27, and even iOS 28. The report said the features are referenced within the code for a leaked internal build of iOS 26 that is not meant to be seen by the public. However, it appears that Espósito and/or his sources managed to gain access to it, providing us with a sneak peek...
Apple Foldable Thumb

Leak Reveals Foldable iPhone Details

Monday December 15, 2025 9:09 am PST by
The first foldable iPhone will feature a series of design and hardware firsts for Apple, according to details shared by the Weibo leaker known as Digital Chat Station. According to a new post, via machine translation, Apple is developing what the leaker describes as a "wide foldable" device, a term used to refer to a horizontally oriented, book-style foldable with a large internal display....
iOS 26

Apple Releases iOS 26.2 With Alarms for Reminders, Lock Screen Changes, Enhanced Safety Alerts and More

Friday December 12, 2025 10:10 am PST by
Apple today released iOS 26.2, the second major update to the iOS 26 operating system that came out in September, iOS 26.2 comes a little over a month after iOS 26.1 launched. ‌iOS 26‌.2 is compatible with the ‌iPhone‌ 11 series and later, as well as the second-generation ‌iPhone‌ SE. The new software can be downloaded on eligible iPhones over-the-air by going to Settings >...
iOS 26

iOS 26.2 Coming Soon With These 8 New Features on Your iPhone

Thursday December 11, 2025 8:49 am PST by
Apple seeded the second iOS 26.2 Release Candidate to developers earlier this week, meaning the update will be released to the general public very soon. Apple confirmed iOS 26.2 would be released in December, but it did not provide a specific date. We expect the update to be released by early next week. iOS 26.2 includes a handful of new features and changes on the iPhone, such as a new...
macOS Tahoe 26 Thumb

Apple Releases macOS Tahoe 26.2 With Edge Light

Friday December 12, 2025 10:08 am PST by
Apple today released macOS Tahoe 26.2, the second major update to the macOS Tahoe operating system that came out in September. macOS Tahoe 26.2 comes five weeks after Apple released macOS Tahoe 26.1. Mac users can download the macOS Tahoe update by using the Software Update section of System Settings. macOS Tahoe 26.2 includes Edge Light, a feature that illuminates your face with soft...
AirPods Pro Firmware Feature

Apple Releases New Firmware for AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods Pro 3

Thursday December 11, 2025 11:28 am PST by
Apple today released new firmware designed for the AirPods Pro 3 and the prior-generation AirPods Pro 2. The AirPods Pro 3 firmware is 8B30, up from 8B25, while the AirPods Pro 2 firmware is 8B28, up from 8B21. There's no word on what's include in the updated firmware, but the AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods Pro 3 are getting expanded support for Live Translation in the European Union in iOS...
airpods max 2024 colors

AirPods Max 2 Likely to Offer These 10 New Features

Monday December 15, 2025 7:41 am PST by
Apple released the AirPods Max on December 15, 2020, meaning the over-ear headphones launched five years ago today. While the AirPods Max were updated with a USB-C port and new color options last year, followed by support for lossless audio and ultra-low latency audio this year, the headphones lack some of the features that have been introduced for newer generations of the regular AirPods and the ...
apple beta 26 lineup

Apple Leak Confirms Work on Foldable iPhone, AirTag 2, and Dozens More Devices

Monday December 15, 2025 2:05 pm PST by
Last week, details about unreleased Apple devices and future iOS features were shared by Macworld. This week, we learned where the information came from, plus we have more findings from the leak. As it turns out, an Apple prototype device running an early build of iOS 26 was sold, and the person who bought it shared the software. The OS has a version number of 23A5234w, and the first...

Top Rated Comments

AlexESP Avatar
62 months ago
It’s hilarious that they promote features that have nothing to do with the processor. Like a car engine maker promoting the soft material of the seats.
Score: 175 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Wanted797 Avatar
62 months ago
This is going to age like milk.
Score: 131 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Dwalls90 Avatar
62 months ago
Intel is afraid, and has every reason to be.
Score: 123 Votes (Like | Disagree)
HeavenDynamic Avatar
62 months ago
Treason.
Score: 116 Votes (Like | Disagree)
FSMBP Avatar
62 months ago
Ugh...that seems desperate on both Justin & Intel's part.

EDIT: I get that he's just making a living; so are the folks at Intel.

My point with Justin's flip-flopping is that seems desperate (like when the Verizon spokesperson moved to Sprint; it is hard to tell if the move is genuine in those scenarios.). I have nothing against Justin Long - may he have a long and flourishing career!!!
Score: 103 Votes (Like | Disagree)
yesyesyes Avatar
62 months ago

Ugh...that seems desperate on both Justin & Intel's part.
The dude's just making a living, man ?
Score: 103 Votes (Like | Disagree)