The newest MacBook Professional laptops are powered by the brand new M3, M3 Professional, and M3 Max Apple Silicon. Along with extra highly effective and environment friendly CPUs and GPUs, these MacBook Professional machines assist as much as 128GB of reminiscence, have brighter screens, improved battery life, and a brand new House Black end. Comply with alongside for for an in-depth take a look at what’s completely different and new with the M3 MacBook Professional vs M2 MacBook Professional lineup.
M3 MacBook Professional vs M2 MacBook Professional laptops
CPU, GPU, reminiscence, neural engine
The brand new M3 Apple Silicon household options choices starting from 8 to 16-core CPUs, 10 to 40-core GPUs, and eight to 128GB of unified reminiscence.
Right here’s the breakdown of the brand new Apple Silicon specs vs the M2 Professional/Max:
| M3 MacBook Professional | M2 MacBook Professional | |
| Processor | M3, M3 Professional, or M3 Max – as much as 16-core | M2 Professional or M2 Max – as much as 12-core |
| Storage | As much as 8TB | As much as 8TB |
| Unified reminiscence | As much as 128GB | As much as 96GB |
| Reminiscence bandwidth | As much as 400GB/s reminiscence bandwidth | 400GB/s reminiscence bandwidth |
| Graphics | As much as 40-core with hardware-accelerated ray tracing | As much as 38-core |
| Media engine | {Hardware}-accelerated H.264, HEVC, ProRes, and ProRes RAW, Video decode engine, 2x video encode engines, 2x ProRes encode and decode engines, AV1 decode | {Hardware}-accelerated H.264, HEVC, ProRes, and ProRes RAW, Video decode engine, 2x video encode engines, 2x ProRes encode and decode engines |
| Neural engine | 16-core | 16-core |
Apple says the M3 chip effectivity cores are as much as 30% sooner than the M2 household, and as much as 50% sooner than the M1 household.
For efficiency cores, the M3 household is 15 and 30% sooner than M2 and M1, respectively.
And Apple says rendering on M3 is as much as 1.8x sooner than M2 and as much as 2.5x sooner than M1.
Apple additionally says the M3 chips symbolize the “Largest leap ahead in graphics structure” with Dynamic caching, hardware-accelerated ray tracing, and hardware-accelerated mesh shading.
We’ll have to attend and see how real-world checks prove compared to Apple’s numbers, however the brand new M3 chips provide what seems to be one other sturdy step up in efficiency and capabilities.
Show
The M2 Professional/Max MacBook Professional laptops featured the identical show because the 2021 M1 Professional/Max fashions with the Liquid Retina XDR Show, ProMotion with as much as 120Hz refresh charges, an elevated decision/pixel per inch density, and slimmed down bezels.
Now the M3 MacBook Professional fashions function one primary enchancment – a 20% brighter display screen that shows SDR content material at as much as 600 nits. Apple highlights that matches the Studio Show for constant brightness.
| 14″ M3 MacBook Professional | 14″ M2 MacBook Professional | 16″ M3 MacBook Professional | 16″ M2 MacBook Professional | |
| Precise display screen dimension | 14.2″ | 14.2″ | 16.2″ | 16.2″ |
| Decision | 3024 x 1964 | 3024 x 1964 | 3456 x 2234 | 3456 x 2234 |
| Facet Ratio | 16:10 + notch | 16:10 + notch | 16:10 + notch | 16:10 + notch |
| PPI | 254 | 254 | 254 | 254 |
| Nits (brightness) | 1000 sustained, as much as 1600 peak HDR; SDR 600 | 1000 sustained, as much as 1600 peak HDR; SDR 500 | 1000 sustained, as much as 1600 peak HDR; SDR 600 | 1000 sustained, as much as 1600 peak HDR; SDR 500 |
| Liquid Retina XDR show | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| ProMotion (as much as 120Hz) | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| mini-LED backlit | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| True Tone | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| P3 huge coloration | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
The newest MacBook Professionals include a notch on the prime heart of the show for the 1080p FaceTime digicam identical to the 2021 fashions.
Identical because the M2 (and M1) fashions, the newest MacBook Professionals include a notch on the prime heart of the show for the 1080p FaceTime digicam.
Sadly, Face ID has nonetheless not arrived with the M3 MacBook Professional laptops.
MacBook Professional I/O
The M3 Professional and Max MacBook Professional laptops function the identical ports with the identical format because the M2 Professional and Max MacBook Professional.
That features an HDMI port, SDXC card reader, and MagSafe. There are additionally 3 Thunderbolt 4/USB-C 4 ports.
Nonetheless, the M3 MacBook Professional comes with one much less Thunderbolt 4 port – the one on the fitting aspect has been eliminated.
| 14″ M3 MacBook Professional | 14″ M2 MacBook | 16″ M3 MacBook Professional | 16″ M2 MacBook Professional | |
| Magic Keyboard | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| Contact ID | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| FaceTime digicam | 1080p | 1080p | 1080p | 1080p |
| USB-C/Thunderbolt ports | 3 (2 for M3 fashions) | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| HDMI | ✅ 2.1 | ✅ 2.1 | ✅ 2.1 | ✅ 2.1 |
| SDXC card reader | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| MagSafe charging | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| Bluetooth | 5.3 | 5.3 | 5.3 | 5.3 |
| Wi-Fi | Wi-Fi 6E (802.11ax) | Wi-Fi 6E (802.11ax) | Wi-Fi 6E (802.11ax) | Wi-Fi 6E (802.11ax) |
| Exterior show assist | M3: One exterior show at as much as 6K/60Hz
M3 Professional: As much as 2 exterior shows at 6K/60Hz over Thunderbolt, or 1 at 6K/60Hz over Thunderbolt and 1 at 4K/144Hz over HDMI, or 1 at 8K/60Hz or 1 at 4K/240Hz over HDMI M3 Max: As much as 4 exterior shows: 3 at 6K/60Hz over Thunderbolt and 1 at 4K/144Hz over HDMI, or |
M2 Professional: As much as 2 exterior shows at 6K/60Hz, 1 exterior show at 8K/60Hz, or 1 show at 4K/240Hz over HDMI
M2 Max: As much as 4 exterior shows, 3 at 6K/60Hz and 1 at 4K/60Hz or 3 whole with 2 at 6K/60Hz and 1 exterior show at 8K/60Hz or 1 show at 4K decision at 240Hz over HDMI |
M3 Professional: As much as 2 exterior shows at 6K/60Hz over Thunderbolt, or 1 at 6K/60Hz over Thunderbolt and 1 at 4K/144Hz over HDMI, or 1 at 8K/60Hz or 1 at 4K/240Hz over HDMI
M3 Max: As much as 4 exterior shows: 3 at 6K/60Hz over Thunderbolt and 1 at 4K/144Hz over HDMI, or |
M2 Professional: As much as 2 exterior shows at 6K/60Hz, 1 exterior show at 8K/60Hz, or 1 show at 4K/240Hz over HDMI
M2 Max: As much as 4 exterior shows, 3 at 6K/60Hz and 1 at 4K/60Hz or 3 whole with 2 at 6K/60Hz and 1 exterior show at 8K/60Hz or 1 show at 4K decision at 240Hz over HDMI |
Like their predecessors, the M3 Professional and Max assist HDMI 2.1 with as much as 8K output at 60Hz. That additionally permits for multichannel audio output.
Colours, dimension, and weight
Bodily dimensions are the identical between the M3 and M2 MacBook Professional laptops. However new this time round for the M3 Professional and Max fashions is a brand new House Black coloration obtainable alongside Silver.
Leaving the brand new coloration for the high-end, the M3 MacBook Professional is just obtainable in House Grey and Silver.
Right here’s the complete breakdown of colours, dimension, and weight:
| 14″ M3 MacBook Professional | 14″ M2 MacBook Professional | 16″ M3 MacBook Professional | 16″ M2 MacBook Professional | |
| Weight | M3: 3.4 kilos (1.55 kg) M3 Professional: 3.5 kilos (1.61 kg) M3 Max: 3.6 kilos (1.62 kg) |
3.5 kilos (1.6 kg) | M3 Professional: 4.7 kilos (2.14 kg) M3 Max: 4.8 kilos (2.16 kg) |
4.7 kilos (2.1 kg) |
| Thickness | 0.61 inch (1.55 cm) | 0.61 inch (1.55 cm) | 0.66 inch (1.68 cm) | 0.66 inch (1.68 cm) |
| Width | 12.31 inches (31.26 cm) | 12.31 inches (31.26 cm) | 14.01 inches (35.57 cm) | 14.01 inches (35.57 cm) |
| Depth | 8.71 inches (22.12 cm) | 8.71 inches (22.12 cm) | 9.77 inches (24.81 cm) | 9.77 inches (24.81 cm) |
| Show dimension | 14.2 inches | 14.2 inches | 16.2 inches | 16.2 inches |
| Finishes | Silver or house grey for M3, House Black or Silver for M3 Professional and M3 Max | Silver or house grey | Silver or house grey for M3, House Black or Silver for M3 Professional and M3 Max | Silver or house grey |
Battery life
- The brand new 16-inch M3 Professional and Max MacBook Professional laptops provide 22 hours of video playback on a single cost (up from 21 hours with M2 Professional/Max)
- The brand new 14-inch M3 MacBook Professional provides 22 hours of video playback on a single cost (up from 17 hours with the M2 Professional or Max MacBook Professional)
- The brand new 14-inch M3 Professional and Max MacBook Professional provide 18 hours of video playback on a single cost (up from 17 hours with the M2 Professional or Max MacBook Professional)
- The brand new MacBook Professional fashions proceed to function quick charging – as much as 50% cost in half-hour (with 96 W brick for 14-inch and 140W for 16-inch)
Listed here are extra particulars on the battery lifetime of the brand new MacBook Professional laptops:
| | 14″ M3 MacBook Professional | 14″ M3 Professional or Max MacBook Professional | 14″ M2 Professional or Max MacBook Professional | 16″ M3 Professional or Max MacBook Professional | 16″M2 Professional or Max MacBook Professional |
| Wi-fi net battery | 15 hours | 12 hours | 11 hours | 15 hours | 14 hours |
| Video playback | 22 hours | 18 hours | 17 hours | 22 hours | 21 hours |
| Included energy adapter | 70W or 96W | 70W or 96W | 67W or 96W | 140W | 140W |
| Battery capability | 70Wh | 70Wh | 70Wh | 100Wh | 100Wh |
| Quick charging | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
Value
The bottom configurations are cheaper with the M3 possibility this time round and close to the identical for the M3 Professional/Max vs M2 Professional Max builds.
However customized builds are dearer with as much as 128GB reminiscence and upgraded chips which suggests the M3 MacBook Professional machines may be maxed out at as much as $7,199 – $700 above the M2 MacBook Professional top-end.
| Mannequin/value | 14″ M3 MacBook Professional | 14″ M2 MacBook Professional | 16″ M3 MacBook Professional | 16″ M2 MacBook Professional |
| Base | From $1,599 | From $1,999 | From $2,499 | From $2,499 |
| Customized builds | As much as $6,899 | As much as $6,299 | $7,199 | As much as $6,499 |
M3 MacBook Professional vs M2 conclusion
Causes to purchase
In the event you’re knowledgeable (or aspiring professional) who wants the newest and biggest from Apple, the improve could also be price it. And the M3 MacBook Professional laptops shall be very spectacular for individuals who are coming from an Intel MacBook.
Causes to go
However for individuals who have already got an M2 Professional/Max MacBook Professional and/or don’t have workflows that require the best possible efficiency, it’s doubtless one of the best match to maintain what you may have or go for a MacBook Air.
Deciding on specs
For these not sure about which M3 MacBook Professional specs to choose, you may get the identical 11, 12, 14, or 16-core processor with the M3 Professional and M3 Max in each the 14 and 16-inch fashions. The primary distinction in price is the upgraded GPU energy together with the extra succesful media engine and elevated exterior show assist with the M3 Max chip.
In relation to unified reminiscence, if in case you have medium to heavy workflows and/or plan to maintain your new MacBook Professional for a number of years (or extra), going with 36GB or extra will doubtless be definitely worth the improve.
You could find the brand new MacBook Professional at Apple, Amazon, and different retailers quickly.
Thanks for studying our M3 MacBook Professional vs M2 MacBook Professional comparability!
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