Apple has unveiled its new 14-inch MacBook Pro with the M3 chip, a powerful processor that promises to deliver unprecedented performance and efficiency. The new laptop, which replaces the 13-inch MacBook Pro, also features a stunning Liquid Retina XDR display, a redesigned keyboard, and a new Space Black color option. Here’s everything you need to know about the new MacBook Pro M3.
The M3 chip is Apple’s latest and most advanced silicon, designed specifically for the MacBook Pro. It is based on a 5-nanometer process and has up to 16 CPU cores and 40 GPU cores, depending on the configuration. The M3 chip also supports hardware-accelerated ray tracing, mesh shading, and a 16-core Neural Engine for machine learning tasks. The M3 chip has two variants: the M3 Pro and the M3 Max.
The M3 Pro has 11 or 12 CPU cores, 14 or 18 GPU cores, and 150GB/s of memory bandwidth. It can handle up to two external displays with up to 6K resolution at 60Hz over Thunderbolt, or one external display with up to 6K resolution at 60Hz over Thunderbolt and one external display with up to 4K resolution at 144Hz over HDMI.
The M3 Max has 14 or 16 CPU cores, 30 or 40 GPU cores, and 300GB/s or 400GB/s of memory bandwidth. It can handle up to four external displays with up to 6K resolution at 60Hz over Thunderbolt, or two external displays with up to 6K resolution at 60Hz over Thunderbolt and two external displays with up to 4K resolution at 144Hz over HDMI.
Both variants of the M3 chip have a Media Engine that can handle hardware-accelerated H.264, HEVC, ProRes, and ProRes RAW video encoding and decoding, as well as AV1 decoding. They also have a ProRes encode and decode engine that can handle up to 8K resolution at 30fps.
What is the Liquid Retina XDR display?
The Liquid Retina XDR display is a 14.2-inch screen with a native resolution of 3024 by 1964 pixels and 254 pixels per inch. It has a 1,000,000:1 contrast ratio and can reach up to 1,000 nits of sustained brightness and 1,600 nits of peak brightness for HDR content. It also supports a wide color gamut (P3), True Tone technology, and ProMotion technology for adaptive refresh rates up to 120Hz.
The Liquid Retina XDR display is designed to deliver a stunning visual experience for creative professionals and enthusiasts. It can show more than 1 billion colors and has a mini-LED backlight system with 10,000 local dimming zones for precise control of brightness and contrast. It also has an anti-reflective coating and a low-power mode for battery saving.
What are the other features of the new MacBook Pro M3?
The new MacBook Pro M3 has a redesigned keyboard that features a physical escape key, full-size function keys, and a Touch ID sensor. It also has a Force Touch trackpad and a Touch Bar that can show context-specific controls and shortcuts. The keyboard has a new mechanism that reduces key wobble and provides a more satisfying typing experience.
The new MacBook Pro M3 also has a new port layout that includes a MagSafe 3 charging port, three Thunderbolt 4 ports, an HDMI port, a 3.5mm headphone jack, and an SDXC card slot. The MagSafe 3 port can deliver up to 96W of power and has a magnetic connector that can detach easily if the cord is pulled. The Thunderbolt 4 ports can support charging, data transfer, and display output with a single cable.
The new MacBook Pro M3 also has a 1080p FaceTime HD camera, a six-speaker sound system with force-canceling woofers, a three-microphone array with beamforming and noise reduction, and a 72.4-watt-hour battery that can last up to 18 hours of video playback or 12 hours of web browsing. The laptop also supports Wi-Fi 6e, Bluetooth 5.3, and spatial audio with Dolby Atmos.
How much does the new MacBook Pro M3 cost and when is it available?
The new MacBook Pro M3 starts at $1,599 / £1,699 / AU$2,699 for the base model with the M3 Pro chip, 18GB of unified memory, and 512GB of SSD storage. The price goes up depending on the configuration, with the most expensive model costing $4,299 / £4,399 / AU$7,249 for the M3 Max chip, 128GB of unified memory, and 8TB of SSD storage.
The new MacBook Pro M3 is available for pre-order now on Apple’s website and will start shipping on November 15. It is also available in select Apple Stores and authorized resellers.