by Jim Lundy
While the press is raving about the return of the MagSafe charging port on its newly announced 14 and 16 Inch MacBook Pro Models, that is really just part of the story. The bigger story is a completely redesigned platform – powered by the updated Apple Silicon – the M1 Pro and M1 Max ARM based processors. Magsafe is the highlight, but the new 1080P Camera is the winner for remote and hybrid work.
Apple had a winning formula a few years ago for its MacBook Pro line and then drifted off course. They dumped MagSafe for Thunderbolt ports, they added an innovative touch bar that no one used, and in doing so, took away some of the mystique of the MacBook.
This blog breaks down the key takeaways from the new Apple MacBook Pros.
Is the MacBook Pro redesign the change we’ve been waiting for?
New Apple MacBook Pros – Blowing Away Your Expectations
The new MacBook Pros are completely redesigned in nearly every aspect. These are now truly Pro models that will make people that got the first-generation M1 MBP units jealous with envy.
So what is the big deal? A few not-so-minor upgrades to the new MBP units:
- Larger Displays with brighter colors
- Updated tactile keyboard
- 1080P Video Camera – this will be one of the biggest factors to drive upgrades
- Access Ports
- MagSafe Charging Port
- Thunderbolt Ports
- HDMI Port
- Upgraded 3.6mm headphone jack supports high-impedance headphones.
The MacBook Pro Experience Is All About Speed and Power
While the MBP is now back to where it should have been – before the off-road design diversion – the real story is with the M1 Pro and M1 Max Processors, upgrades from the 2020 launch of the Apple M1 Chipset.
The new design can support up to 64GB of Memory and has throughput of 200 GB/s (M1 Pro) or 400 GB/s for the M1 Max. But as with the M1, the stunning performance of the system on a chip means less heat and much higher performance. It isn’t just the 10 Core CPU – there is now a 16 core GPU for the M1 Pro and a 32-core GPU, which means 2-4x faster performance over last year’s Apple M1 models. When comparing the MBPs to PCs, Apple is claiming that the new MBPs are 7x faster.
A Machine Designed for Video – Including HD Meetings
With the M1 Pro and M1 Max Processors, these new MBPs are designed to be able to process videos with high performance. Video Processing has been significantly improved with the addition of dedicated acceleration for the ProRes video codec. What this means is that 4k and 8k videos can be played on the units and use very little power.
The performance improvements also includes better video meetings with the new 1080P Camera offering a new standard for video meetings. We’d note that last year, many 1080P cameras were out of stock as people searched for better video resolution for their daily video meetings.
The camera alone will drive an upgrade demand for people who were waiting. Apple is even giving up to $1000 trade-in for M1 units.
Bottom Line – The MacBook Pro We All Wanted
MacBook Pro laptops have always been good – but in an era where the world is going visual, video is becoming increasingly important to work. The new MacBook Pros have gotten their mojo back – and they are beasts when it comes to video. If you haven’t upgraded in a while, this is definitely an item to add to the enterprise holiday list.