Apple Unveils MacBook Pro With M4 Chips – What You Need to Know

Today is day 3 of Apple’s Mac announcements and the excitement continues to be palpable. Apple has finally taken the curtain off their new MacBook Pro lineup along with M4 line up of chips. This comes just one day after they revealed Mac mini M4 lineup. Here’s everything you need to know about the MacBook Pro series and the M4 chips that power them.

M4 MacBook Pro – Specifications and Price

There is little change design wise. M4 MacBooks Pro models look pretty much the same as the M3 Pro MacBooks. So let’s directly jump to the highlight of the show – new M4 Pro processors.

Apple has released three new M4 processors – M4, M4 Pro, and M4 Max. Just like the new Mac mini, the M4 series is Apple Intelligence ready and yes, all the new MacBook Pro models come with 16GB RAM to meet the Apple Intelligence requirement with a max of 32GB RAM. Here is how the lineup looks:

• Entry level MacBook Pro 14″ with M4 chip
• MacBook Pro 14″ and 16″ with M4 Pro and M4 Max chips

Let’s start with the first one. The M4 processor that powers the entry level MacBook Pro 14″ features 10-core CPU and 10-core GPU. Yes, you will find the same chip in the M4 iPad Pro too but that’s not where the magic is happening. The new M4 chip adds neural engine performance. Apple says the jump is 3x when compared to the M1.

MacBook Pro with M4:

• Up to 7x faster image processing in Affinity Photo when compared to the 13‑inch MacBook Pro with Core i7, and up to 1.8x faster when compared to the 13-inch MacBook Pro with M1.
• Up to 10.9x faster 3D rendering in Blender when compared to the 13‑inch MacBook Pro with Core i7, and up to 3.4x faster when compared to the 13‑inch MacBook Pro with M1.
• Up to 9.8x faster scene edit detection in Adobe Premiere Pro when compared to the 13‑inch MacBook Pro with Core i7, and up to 1.7x faster when compared to the 13‑inch MacBook Pro with M1.

The M4 Pro powered MacBook Pro has a 14-core CPU and a 20-core GPU architecture boosting the memory bandwidth by 75% – a significant jump. Apple says this makes the M4 Pro chip 3x more powerful and faster than the M1 Pro chip.

MacBook Pro with M4 Pro:

• Up to 4x faster scene rendering performance with Maxon Redshift when compared to the 16-inch MacBook Pro with Core i9, and up to 3x faster when compared to the 16-inch MacBook Pro with M1 Pro.
• Up to 5x faster simulation of dynamical systems in MathWorks MATLAB when compared to the 16-inch MacBook Pro with Core i9, and up to 2.2x faster when compared to the 16-inch MacBook Pro with M1 Pro.
• Up to 23.8x faster basecalling for DNA sequencing in Oxford Nanopore MinKNOW when compared to the 16-inch MacBook Pro with Core i9, and up to 1.8x faster when compared to the 16-inch MacBook Pro with M1 Pro.

However, M4 Max has an insane 16-core CPU, up to a 40-core GPU architecture. You can upgrade up to 128GB RAM. That makes it the fastest Apple processor with some crazy performance prowess.

MacBook Pro with M4 Max:

• Up to 7.8x faster scene rendering performance with Maxon Redshift when compared to the 16-inch MacBook Pro with Intel Core i9, and up to 3.5x faster when compared to the 16-inch MacBook Pro with M1 Max.
• Up to 4.6x faster build performance when compiling code in Xcode when compared to the 16‑inch MacBook Pro with Intel Core i9, and up to 2.2x faster when compared to the 16‑inch MacBook Pro with M1 Max.
• Up to 30.8x faster video processing performance in Topaz Video AI when compared to the 16‑inch MacBook Pro with Intel Core i9, and up to 1.6x faster when compared to the 16-inch MacBook Pro with M1 Max.

Let’s take a look at the ports and connectivity:

M4 MacBook Pro

• Three Thunderbolt 4 ports
• 8K HDMI port
• SDXC card slot
• MagSafe 3 charging port
• Headphone jack
• Bluetooth 5.3
• Wi-Fi 6E

Note that the M4 Pro and M4 Max powered MacBook Pro models 14″ and 16″ come equipped with three Thunderbolt 5 ports. That means they can transfer data at 120 Gb/s. This is extremely useful for creators who often work with large video files.

The M4 Pro chip can drive up to three 6K displays at 60Hz over Thunderbolt or one 6K display at 60Hz and one 8K display at 60Hz or 4K at 240Hz over HDMI. On the other hand, the M4 Max chip can drive up to three 6K displays at 60Hz over Thunderbolt or one 6K display at 60Hz and one 8K display at 60Hz over HDMI. Alternatively, it can support two 6K displays at 60Hz over Thunderbolt and one 4K display at 240Hz over HDMI.

All the MacBook Pro models gets the same Liquid Retina XDR display. So what’s new? You get an ‘all-new nano-texture display’ option with 1000 nits of brightness for SDR content. There is also a normal display if you want. The camera is 12MP but Apple is calling it Center Stage camera. We will explore it more in our in-depth review so tuned for that.

The battery life gets a boost too with up to 24 hours claimed by Apple on a single charge. That should last you at least 2 days. There are two power adapters available – 70W and 96W.

Price and Sale Dates

The MacBook Pro 14″ with M4 base model pricing begins at $1,599 or ₹1,69,900 while the MacBook Pro 16″ with M4 Max starts at $3,499 or ₹3,49,900.

You can preorder the new M4 MacBook Pro models but shipping begins from November 8th. MacBook Pro is available in just two colors – space black and silver.

And that’s it, folks.

Gaurav Bidasaria

Gaurav is an editor here at TechWiser but also contributes as a writer. He has more than 10 years of experience as a writer and has written how-to guides, comparisons, listicles, and in-depth explainers on Windows, Android, web, and cloud apps, and the Apple ecosystem. He loves tinkering with new gadgets and learning about new happenings in the tech world. He has previously worked on Guiding Tech, Make Tech Easier, and other prominent tech blogs and has over 1000+ articles that have been read over 50 million times.