In one of the biggest backflips in their time, Apple has re-introduced some of the most loved features of their Pro laptops which disappeared several years ago, with the announcement today of new MacBook Pro laptops.
Back is the HDMI port, which hasn’t been seen on a MacBook since 2015. Likewise, the SD Card slot, which was removed when Apple said the world was going wireless with some of the latest cameras (at the time) using wireless transfers.
Fact is, that didn’t really take off other than for quick mobile sharing.
Additionally, the MagSafe power charger was much loved. Snap in and charge it was simple and safe, but in recent years replaced by the Thunderbolt/USB-C adaptor.
Apple’s new 14 inch and 16 inch MacBook Pros will feature these connectors with the widest range of connectivity ever in a MacBook.
Three thunderbolt USB-C connections – which can also be used for power if you like. A 3.5mm headphone jack, as well as the SD card, HDMI and MagSafe power connection.
MacBook gets a Notch
The Liquid Retina XDR display features the Mini LED technology introduced in the iPad Pro.
The 14 inch display has 5.9million pixels on a 3024×1964 display, while the 16 inch has a 3456×2234 resolution screen.
Up the top, Apple has integrated a notch into the top of the display, which will fit into the top menu bar and features an improved 1090p camera.
The top border is 60% thinner, with the side border around the display just 3.5mm wide.
Performance and Battery Life
With a brand new M1 processor (M1 Pro or M1 Max) performance is out of the park on the new MacBook Pro.
With more and more apps supporting the Apple Silicon it’s fast becoming the powerhouse production device of choice.
Because of the efficiency of the Apple M1 Processor (see below), there’s also some pretty impressive battery life to speak of too
M1 Pro & M1 Max Apple Silicon
Apple’s latest Silicon is designed entirely for their Pro computing devices. With 200 and 600GB/s memory bandwidth, it’s remarkable performance
M1 Max has a 32 core GPU and up to 10 Core GPU, while the Pro has a 16 Core GPU.
Essentially, this is the powerful M1 Apple Silicon taken to the extreme. Using the same architecture concepts and expanding their performance capabilities.
Apple’s biggest selling point outside of performance, is power consumption. Using less power, to get more performance means these processors are not just powerful, but they are efficient and in a laptop that’s critical.
This means less fan noise from the cooler system, and longer battery life. All in all, this is a story of speed, and efficiency, with some of the best battery life on a laptop, let alone one with these level performance specs.
The 14 inch with M1 Pro starts at $2,999 with an 8 Core CPU and 14 Core GPU (512GB Storage), or $3,749 with 16 Core GPU and 10 Core CPU (1TB storage)
A 16 inch MacBook pro will set you back $3,749 with a 10 Core CPU and 16 Core GPU and goes to a base price of $5,249 with a 32 Core GPU and 32GB of unified memory.
The 13 inch MacBook Pro with touchbar remains on sale starting at $1,899.
