Apple M5 Loses Up to 40% FPS Without Active Cooling in MacBook Air
Apple M5 Loses Up to 40% FPS Without Active Cooling in MacBook Air
https://www.eteknix.com/apple-m5-loses-up-to-40-fps-without-active-cooling-in-macbook-air/
Publish Date: 2026-04-03 11:57:00
Source Domain: www.eteknix.com
Apple’s M5 chip continues to show strong power efficiency, but major differences are becoming clear between the devices that use it, mainly because of their cooling systems. In particular, the comparison between the MacBook Air M5 and the MacBook Pro M5 shows how passive cooling can heavily reduce performance during long workloads.
According to several tests, the M5 chip can lose up to 40% of its FPS when it is used in a device without a fan, such as the MacBook Air. This happens especially during gaming sessions or demanding applications, where the processor quickly reaches thermal limits that reduce its operating speed.
MacBook Pro M5 Delivers More Stable FPS Than MacBook Air
A clear example comes from Cyberpunk 2077, one of the most demanding games in terms of graphics. On the MacBook Pro M5, the chip can run with a power limit of around 20W, reaching up to 76 FPS with upscaling enabled. By contrast, on the MacBook Air M5, which is limited to around 9W, performance drops to 54 FPS under the same conditions.
The difference is also clear without upscaling. The MacBook Pro reaches an average of around 51 FPS, while the MacBook Air stops at 36 FPS. This shows how the presence of a fan allows the chip to keep higher performance for longer, avoiding thermal throttling.
Similar situations can also be seen in games such as Baldur’s Gate 3 and Elden Ring. In these cases, the MacBook Air initially delivers similar performance, but then suffers a gradual drop as temperatures rise, while the MacBook Pro remains more stable.
Even so, the MacBook Air M5 is far from unusable. Compared to the previous M4 generation, performance is still improved, making it suitable for most daily tasks and even demanding work sessions, although with some compromises.
