Monday at 5:00 p.m. Pacific Time, Apple showcased its brand-new M3 chip for Macbook Pro and iMac at a special video event. This comes less than a year after the company introduced the M2 semiconductor generation.
The new processors, which consist of the M3, M3 Pro, and M3 Max, will power a new lineup of MacBook Pro laptops. Space Black is a new addition to the inventory for MacBook Pros with Pro and Max chips.
Apple is also integrating the M3 processor into its popular 24-inch iMac, which the company claims is now up to twice as fast as the last iteration of the iMac, which the M1 processor powered.
Apple’s Latest M3 Chips
A trio of new Apple silicon chips topped the list of announcements made at the Scary Fast event. The M3, M3 Pro, and M3 Max, according to Apple, are “the industry’s first 3-nanometer chips for personal computers… that deliver dramatically increased performance and unleash new capabilities for Mac.”
The new M3 processors feature a new technology called dynamic caching, which increases GPU performance by using only the memory required for each task. This is the foundation of the latest GPU architecture, which includes mesh-shading acceleration, ray tracing, and enhanced performance.
The new M3 series processors also feature a new CPU that, according to Apple, is up to 50 percent faster than M1 chips while consuming less power; a unified memory architecture that provides high bandwidth and low latency; and support for up to 128 GB of memory.
Apple claims that the M3 family’s Neural Engine is up to 60 percent quicker than the Neural Engine found in M1 chips, and its media engine supports AV1 decoding.
Apple silicon has revolutionized the Mac experience in all aspects. Apple’s senior vice president of Hardware Technologies, Johny Srouji, stated in a blog post that the device’s architecture is optimized for both performance and power consumption. “With 3-nanometer technology, a next-generation GPU architecture, a higher-performance CPU, a faster neural engine, and support for even more unified memory, the M3, M3 Pro, and M3 Max are the most advanced chips ever built for a personal computer.”
M3 Chip for MacBook Pro
New processors have been added to the MacBook Pro line of laptops to attract professionals of all types. Apple claims that the latest computers, starting at $1,599 for the 14-inch MacBook Pro with an M3 processor, are nothing short of powerhouses. The 14-inch MacBook Pro is compatible with the M3, M3 Pro, and M3 Max processors, while the 16-inch model can only accommodate the Pro and Max chips. To demonstrate your advanced status, the M3 Advanced and M3 Max laptops come in a new space-black finish.
All models feature a Liquid Retina XDR display with even brighter standard resolution content, an integrated 1080p camera (similar to existing models), and six speakers for immersive audio. In addition to three Thunderbolt 4 ports, an HDMI port, an SDXC card slot, a headphone jack, and a MagSafe 3 port, they all feature the same assortment of interfaces. Apple also advertises a battery life of up to 22 hours.
The 14-inch MacBook Pro with M3 now begins at $1,599, and you can order the new models starting today; they will be available on November 7, with the exception of the Pro Max models, which are expected to arrive later in November.
Apple is really pushing the capabilities of these laptops when coupled with the new M3 line of processors by providing multiple examples of what is possible. Using the MacBook Pro with M3 Max, for instance, Apple asserts the following scenarios could occur for professionals:
- MathWorks MATLAB can simulate dynamical systems up to 5.5 times quicker than the fastest Intel-based MacBook Pro and up to 2 times faster than the 16-inch MacBook Pro with M1 Max.
- Maxon Redshift’s rendering performance is up to 5.3 times quicker than the most powerful Intel-based MacBook Pro and up to 2.5 times faster than the 16-inch MacBook Pro with M1 Max.
- Blackmagic DaVinci Resolve Studio’s noise reduction is up to 2.7x quicker than the most powerful Intel-based MacBook Pro and up to 65% faster than the 16-inch MacBook Pro with M1 Max.
“Nothing compares to the MacBook Pro. “With the power-efficient performance of Apple silicon, up to 22 hours of battery life, a stunning Liquid Retina XDR display, and advanced connectivity, the MacBook Pro empowers users to do their best work,” said Apple’s senior vice president of Hardware Engineering, John Ternus, in an announcement post. “With the next iteration of M3 chips, we are once again raising the bar for what a professional laptop can accomplish. We’re thrilled to introduce the MacBook Pro and its best-in-class capabilities to the largest audience yet, and for those upgrading from an Intel-based MacBook Pro, it’s a complete game-changer.”
Read: Apple Launches New M3 MacBook Air With Powerful Processor
Faster New M3 iMac
Apple completed its late-night video announcement with a special treat for its users. The ubiquitous, 24-inch iMac will also receive the new M3 processor. Apple claims that the new iMac will be up to twice as fast as the previous M1 iMacs while retaining all of its cool colors. If you’re upgrading from an Intel-based iMac, Apple claims the M3 models will be up to 2.5 times as fast as the previous 27-inch devices and four times as quickly as the 21.5-inch Intel iMacs. Furthermore, the new M3 iMac will come with a 4.5K Retina Display that supports more than a billion different colors and has 11.3 million individual pixels.
Apple also promises improved wireless connectivity and all the cool Sonoma features, such as continuity and desktop widgets.
The M3 iMac can be ordered today and will be available beginning November 7. The iMac with an 8-core GPU is available in green, pink, blue, and silver for a starting price of $1,299. It is equipped with 8GB of unified RAM, a 256GB SSD, two Thunderbolt connections, a Magic Keyboard, and a Magic Mouse. The 10-core GPU iMac with M3 is available in green, yellow, orange, pink, purple, blue, and silver, and it includes 8GB of unified memory, a 256GB SSD, and two Thunderbolt ports. For an additional cost, it also includes two additional USB 3 ports, a Magic Keyboard with Touch ID, a Magic Mouse, and Gigabit Ethernet.