When Apple introduced the new computers last fall, it was primarily a demonstration of the performance of its own Apple M1 processor. This silicon replaced the original Intel processors in California computers and stamped them in the power / consumption ratio; even the basic MacBook Air suddenly gained as much power as the many-more expensive MacBook Pro with Intel processors.
Apple deployed the chip to both the MacBook Air and the MacBook Pro last year, partly erasing the reasons for spending on a more expensive model. A moment ago, however, a new generation of MacBook Pro was introduced, which again changes the rules of the game – not only did it get significantly more powerful insides, but it also underwent a major change in appearance.
MacBook Pro: two sizes and a cutout in the display
While last year’s MacBook Pro was only about replacing the processor in the older Intel version, this year’s model was built entirely from the floor. We saw two sizes; the smaller model has a 14.2 “display, the larger one a 16.2” screen. However, it should be noted that mainly due to the reduction of frames around the display, both computers have the physical dimensions of smaller machines.
The frames around the displays are even so thin that a webcam does not fit in them; for this reason, Apple has reached for the solution we know from iPhones – it has simply cut out the displays.
It’s a bit disappointing that Apple didn’t put a TrueDepth camera with advanced user recognition on the new MacBook Pro, but a fairly standard Full HD camera, which is supposed to capture twice as much light thanks to a larger image sensor.
Feast for the eyes
However, the new displays are not only about thinner frames, but above all about high display quality. In both cases, Apple has deployed Liquid Retina XDR displays, which are factory calibrated to reference professional modes. For the first time ever, Apple notebooks come with ProMotion technology, which means support for a refresh rate of up to 120 Hz, while the frequency is adaptively adapted to the user’s needs.
The smaller MacBook Pro has a 14.2 ″ miniLED screen with a resolution of 3024 × 1964 pixels, while the larger MacBook Pro has a 16.2 ″ miniLED display with a resolution of 3456 × 2234 pixels. In both cases, you get a fineness of 254 ppi.
Powerful audio
Apple also focused on working with sound. For example, he used six speakers in his computers – four woofers and two tweeters, which can mediate the reproduction of both deep tones and high vocals.
Sound recording is provided by three studio microphones, which are said to be able to capture even the faintest sounds. Thanks to the directional shaping of the rays, they will also find you wherever you are.
Two new processors with brutal performance
The new MacBook Pro drives the new Apple M1 Pro and Apple M1 Max chipsets, which are to be the first Apple processors designed for professional computers. Their great benefit is the shared memory between the processor and graphics unit, which eliminates the need to copy data and thus significantly increases memory throughput.
The Apple M1 Pro chipset can be equipped with up to 10 processor cores (8 powerful and 2 efficient), 16 graphics cores and 32 GB of unified memory with a throughput of up to 200 GB / s. Graphics performance is 5.2 teraflops, graphics can process up to seven 8K streams in Final Cut Pro at once. The chipset natively supports encoding and decoding of video in ProRes format and its power is to tighten two external displays.
The more powerful Apple M1 Max pushes the boundaries even further. Its graphics unit can have up to 32 cores, shared memory can have a capacity of up to 64 GB and throughput of 400 GB / s. The performance of the 32-core graphics chip is 10.4 teraflops, which is 4 times more than last year’s Apple M1. Thanks to this, you can connect up to 4 external monitors to computers with this chipset.
Of course, Apple did not avoid comparisons with previously used processors from Intel. The Apple M1 Pro and Max have 3.7x more processor performance than the Intel Core i7 and 2.1x more performance than the Intel Core i9 in the latest generation MacBook Pro.
The difference in graphics performance is even more pronounced, with 32-core graphics in the Apple M1 Max chip being 13.4x faster than the Intel Iris Plus and 2.9x faster than the AMD Radeon Pro 5600M.
The processors are actively cooled by a pair of fans, but due to high efficiency, the fans will sound only in case of high load.
The performance of the whole set is not reduced even by the internal storage, inside the new MacBooks you can fit up to an 8TB SSD disk with an incredible data loading speed of 7.4 GB / s.
TouchBar leaves, legends return
Apple took to heart most of the comments made by professionals using these computers in the design of this year’s MacBook Pro. For example, the TouchBar display strip was removed, which was an interesting element, but it just bothered users accustomed to keyboard shortcuts. Apple has fitted the new MacBooks with traditional function keys, with a power button with an integrated fingerprint reader on the far right.
While the TouchBar experienced its farewell on the MacBook Pro, Apple brought back some of the legendary features that the professionals mourned. We are talking mainly about a full-fledged HDMI port, a memory card reader and, last but not least, MagSafe magnetic charging. The connector looks the same as it did years ago before it was replaced by USB-C ports. There are three of them on the body of MacBook Pros and they work in the Thunderbolt 4 specification. There is also a headphone jack supporting headphones with high impedance.
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The larger model is 16.8 mm thick and weighs 2.13 kg, the smaller MacBook Pro is 15.5 mm at the waist and weighs 1.58 kg.
Incredible endurance
Despite the incredible performance, the new MacBook Pro has retained incredible endurance. The smaller 14 ″ model can handle 17 hours of video playback and 11 hours of web browsing. The larger 16 ″ model increases these values to 21 and 14 hours. Computers can be charged via both the MagSafe connector and the Thunderbolt 4. Fast charging of up to 140 watts is supported, but Apple adds slower 67W and 96W adapters to weaker configurations.
Price and availability
You can pre-order the new MacBooks today, availability varies by configuration; You can get some of them by the end of this month. Both computers will be available in space gray and silver.
If you want a new MacBook Pro, get at least 58,990 crowns. That’s how much the 14 ″ model with 8-core processor, 14-core graphics, 16 GB of single memory and 512GB of storage costs. For a better variant with a 10-core processor, 16-core graphics and a 1TB SSD, you will pay 72,990 crowns.
The 16 ″ variant starts at the same amount, specifically with a 10-core CPU, a 16-core GPU, 16 GB of memory and 512 GB of storage. The top variant with the Apple M1 Max chipset with a 10-core CPU, a 32-core GPU, 32GB of memory and 1TB of storage will cost 102,990 crowns.
However, the configurator allows you to go much further, by increasing the memory to 64 GB / 8 TB, you can get up to 180,990 crowns.
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