The Apple MacBook Pro M3 is available in 14 and 16 inches – as well as the standard M3 together with the M3 Pro and also M3 Max. The 13-inch MacBook Pro is vanishing.
The new Apple M3 processors do not appear in a vacuum. At the same time, Apple launches new MacBook Pro M3 models. It is striking that – unlike last year – there is also a MacBook Pro M3 with a ‘normal’ M3 processor: There is no M3 Pro or the M3 Max. In parallel, the 13-inch MacBook Pro vanishes, which makes the separation a little more defined. The MacBook Air comes in 13 and 15 inches, and the MacBook Pro comes in 14 and 16 inches. In doing so, Apple is following up on a trend that is also visible in Windows laptops: the 14- and 16-inch models target (semi) professional users, while the 13 and 15-inch laptops seem to be targeted at the consumers. Although there are always exceptions.
Apple MacBook Pro M3: now also in black
Apple MacBook Pro M3 has a new color, which is ‘space black’. This is only true for the versions with M3 Pro and also M3 Max. This variation should be extremely fingerprint-proof, a problem that, for instance, the dark blue Air has. The MacBook Pro M3 variants with more power are available in silver, and the entry-level models with ‘standard’ M3 are also available in silver and space gray – but not in black. This year’s models are the same as the last year’s, in size and nearly the same in weight.
The 14-inch MacBook Pro M3 with the ‘regular’ M3 is the only option. All the 16-inch versions include either an M3 Pro or an M3 Max. The 14-inch with M3 should be up to 60 percent quicker than the 13-inch MacBook Pro with M1. It was, as it were, an Air with an active cooling by the decoration. As described by Apple, the cooling of the 14-inch MacBook Pro M3 is very sufficient to enable the chip to operate at full capacity even when it is used for a long time. It will be at least 2029 euros, much higher than the 13-inch MacBook Pro M2’s original price of around 1600 euros. Alternatively, it is much cheaper than the 14-inch MacBook Pro M2, which cost 2449 euros at the beginning.
The fact that the base 14-inch MacBook Pro M3 has only two USB-C ports instead of three is very remarkable. Apple also states this as Thunderbolt 3 / USB4 while the M3 Pro and M3 Max models also mention it as Thunderbolt 4.
It is interesting to note that the basic 14-inch MacBook Pro M3 does not have 3 but 2 USB-C ports. Apple also denotes this as Thunderbolt 3 / USB4, while the M3 Pro and M3 Max models define it as Thunderbolt 4.
Other information about the Apple MacBook Pro M3
The version with the M3 Max processor Apple offers 11 hours of battery life and a noise-free operation in most circumstances. Those are two areas where most of the rivals that use Windows struggle to match, even if they are stronger in terms of performance. Apple stresses that the MacBook Pro M3 performs equally well on the adapter as it does on the battery. All those who read the TechFi laptop reviews know that this is a rarity rather than the norm with Windows laptops.
Furthermore, Apple has boosted the brightness in the SDR display (standard display) of the ‘Liquid Retina XDR display’ by 600 nits. For HDR display, the company guarantees 1000 nits, with a 1600 nits peak brightness.
Prices and availability
The Apple MacBook Pro M3 is available for purchase. In its current form, the line begins with the MacBook Pro M3 with M3 processor, costing 2049 euros. The 14-inch MacBook Pro M3 with M3 Pro starts from 2549 euros and the 16-inch MacBook Pro M3 with M3 Pro starts at 3049 euros.
