Apple kicked off itsScary Fastevent by announcing three M3 chip configurations, and the company followed it by announcing new MacBook Pro models featuring the speedy chips. Not only do these high-end laptops come with the new 3nm chips, but they also feature a Liquid Retina XDR display, which Apple calls the best laptop display available.
What’s new with Apple’s 2023 MacBook Pro lineup?
The most exciting aspect of the MacBook Pro is definitely the inclusion of the M3 chips. The new 14-inch model has the M3, M3 Pro, and M3 Max chips for those wanting more power. The new 16-inch laptop comes with the M3 Pro or the M3 Max chip, so it’s the model targeted at professionals looking for a high-end computing experience. The M3 Max configurations also support up to 128GB of unified memory, a first for MacBook.
Apple cited some performance benefits offered by the M3 compared to the Intel-based models, and the numbers are impressive. For example, the company says it can render in Final Cut Pro 7.4x faster than the 13-inch MacBook Pro with Core i7. Even compared to its own M1 chip, Apple cites a 60 per cent bump in rendering speed. The company didn’t say how much better it would be at rendering from an M2 to an M3 chip, which leads us to think the number is less impressive.
The 14-inch laptop features a 3024 x 1964 resolution, and the 16-inch model features a 3456 x 2234 resolution. Apple also touted a 1000-nit typical brightness and a 1600-nit peak with HDR content only. While the M3 chip does offer some huge benefits over the M2, one place that remains unchanged is the battery life, with both the new model and the older ones promising up to 22 hours of battery life. Apple also pushed a new color for the 14 and 16-inch models with M3 Pro and M3 Max called Space Black. It’s hard to get overly excited about a black laptop, but there’s nothing wrong with having more options.
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How much are Apple’s new MacBook Pros and when can you buy them?
Perhaps the best news about the latest MacBook Pro models is the price; the 14-inch model starts at $1,599 for the 512GB SSD model with M3, a significant drop from the $1,999 price of the M2-toting 14-inch laptop. For the 16-inch model, the starting price is $2,499, which is for the model with M3 Pro, as that laptop isn’t offered with the base M3 chip.
Apple MacBook Pro 14-inch (M3, 2023)
The latest MacBook Pro features the Apple M3 chip with an 8-core CPU, 10-core GPU, and 16-core Neural Engine.
The new MacBook Pro models are available to order now from Apple’s website. If you choose to order, the laptops will arrive on Tuesday, Nov. 7.
Apple MacBook Pro 16-inch (M3, 2023)
Apple’s latest high-end laptop starts with the M3 Pro chip with a 12‑core CPU, 18‑core GPU, and 16‑core Neural Engine but can be configured up to an M3 Max chip with a 14‑core CPU, 30‑core GPU, and 16‑core Neural Engine.
