An M4 MacBook Professional vs. M3 MacBook Professional face-off is a should after Apple’s huge week of Mac bulletins.
The brand new M4 MacBook Professional is right here, unsurprisingly together with a extra highly effective M4 chip than final yr’s M3 mannequin. Nonetheless, there are additionally bonuses to port choice, RAM, and even coloration alternative this yr. This is how the M4 MacBook Professional stacks as much as the M3 model.
(Observe: We’ll be specializing in the 14-inch fashions for this comparative evaluation.)
M4 MacBook Professional vs. M3 MacBook Professional: Value and specs
Just like the M3 MacBook Professional at launch in 2023, the 14-inch M4 model begins at $1,599.
Credit score: Apple
Listed below are the essential specs that you just get for that worth:
The most important distinction between M3 and M4 that ought to be famous instantly is the RAM. Final yr’s MacBook Professional provided 8GB RAM within the base mannequin, placing it behind some rivals. This yr, there aren’t any 8GB fashions; you get 16GB at minimal, which may go as much as 24GB should you really feel like paying extra. Storage choices haven’t modified from final yr to this yr, nonetheless.
On high of that, the brand new M4 chip ought to give efficiency boosts to the 2024 MacBook Professional, however since we’ve not examined it but, it is unattainable to say for positive.
M4 MacBook Professional vs. M3 MacBook Professional: Show
These two shows are almost equivalent:
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3,024 x 1,964-pixel decision
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16:10 facet ratio
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254 pixels per inch
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ProMotion (i.e., as much as 120Hz refresh fee)
Just like the M3 MacBook Professional, the brand new M4 MacBook Professional continues to sport a notch (that also does not have Face ID).
M3 MacBook Professional
Credit score: Kimberly Gedeon / Mashable
Nonetheless, there are two variations to notice. The height SDR brightness on the M4 mannequin is 1,000 nits, whereas the identical metric got here in at 600 nits on the M3 MacBook Professional. Plus, the M4 MacBook Professional gives the nano-texture show possibility that is additionally accessible on the iPad Professional, Professional Show XDR, Studio Show, and iMac.
What’s a nano-texture show? It is designed to dramatically scale back glare. As such, this feature is greatest for customers who usually cope with difficult lighting situations like sun-drenched workplaces.
I’ve had some expertise with the nano-texture show on the iPad Professional, and whereas it does, certainly, considerably scale back glare and manages vivid lighting situations like a champ, there’s an opportunity that you could be discover a drop within the panel’s vividness.
M4 MacBook Professional vs. M3 MacBook Professional: Design
So far as visible design, the largest distinction between these two MacBooks is that you could get the brand new one in Area Black in addition to silver.
M4 MacBook Professional
Credit score: Apple
In contrast, the M3 mannequin is silver or bust. Listed below are the bodily dimensions of the brand new M4 MacBook Professional:
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Peak: 0.61 inches
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Width: 12.31 inches
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Depth: 8.71 inches
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Weight: 3.5 kilos
These are, actually, the very same dimensions because the M3 mannequin. You could be pondering, “So that they actually simply modified some internals, added a brand new coloration, and known as it a day, huh?” Nicely, not precisely.
M4 MacBook Professional vs. M3 MacBook Professional: Ports
One other bodily differentiator between the M3 and M4 MacBook Professionals is the addition of a 3rd Thunderbolt 4 port.
M3 MacBook Professional ports
Credit score: Kimberly Gedeon / Mashable
The M3 mannequin solely had two, whereas the M4 mannequin has three, giving customers extra flexibility with exterior shows. Other than that, the port choice is identical throughout each units: an SD card slot, a 3.5mm headphone jack, an HDMI port, and a MagSafe port for charging.
No, there aren’t any USB type-A ports.
M4 MacBook Professional vs. M3 MacBook Professional: Efficiency
We examined the 14-inch M3 MacBook Professional’s Geekbench rating, which checks for CPU efficiency, and it notched a multi-core rating of 11,998, which provided an 18% efficiency uptick over the M2 chip.
M4 MacBook Professional
Credit score: Apple
Apple did not reveal efficiency delta figures between the M2 and M4 chips, nevertheless it did examine the M4 chip to the M1 chip. The Cupertino-based tech big claims that the M4 chip is 1.8 occasions sooner than the M1 chip for duties like “modifying gigapixel photographs.” With regards to rendering complicated scenes through Blender, the M4 chip is reportedly 3.4 occasions sooner.
For AI workloads (e.g., Apple Intelligence), the M4 chip is 3 occasions extra highly effective, in response to Apple.
M4 MacBook Professional vs. M3 MacBook Professional: Battery life
As famous earlier, the M4 MacBook Professional guarantees 24 hours of battery life on a single cost.
M4 MacBook Professional
Credit score: Apple
It is a score by Apple that may’t be verified but, as we’ve not gotten the brand new MacBook in for testing on the time of writing. Nonetheless, Apple rated final yr’s mannequin for 22 hours, that means the M4 MacBook Professional ought to theoretically beat the M3 mannequin by way of battery longevity.
We examined the 14-inch M3 MacBook Professional and it lasted 16 hours and 23 minutes. As soon as we check the battery lifetime of the 14-inch M4 MacBook Professional, we’ll replace this face-off.
M4 MacBook Professional vs. M3 MacBook Professional: Which do you have to purchase?
Battery life is a vital facet of creating a purchase order resolution concerning shopping for laptops. We do not know the runtime of the 14-inch M4 MacBook Professional simply but, however even with out this determine, the M3 MacBook Professional is spectacular at 16 hours and 23 minutes.
If snagging a nano-texture show, getting three Thunderbolt 4 ports, and having a minor enhance in energy is not sufficient to sway you, the M3 MacBook Professional ought to be adequate sufficient to fulfill your wants.
