The New M3-Powered MacBook Pros are Ridiculously Impressive

In terms of premium laptops, Apple’s MacBook line is definitely up there with the top players thanks to a combination of internal and external hardware specs which are fine-tuned for performance, making them a consistently popular choice for creators and developers, die-hard Apple fans, and even folks looking for a great-quality laptop for everyday tasks. Alongside the debut of its newest M3-series processors, Apple also announced that it was launching a new lineup of its ever-popular MacBook Pro series, which all feature the M3 series chips inside.

With that in mind, what can we expect from Apple’s new laptop lineup? Let’s take a look.

Design and Hardware

In terms of design, Apple has stuck to a mostly familiar look for the MacBook Pro 2023 series – after all, it’s a very recognisable design and there’s not much to change about it. For this year, the M3 Pro and M3 Max MacBooks are available in Space Black, although they also come in a silver variant. Meanwhile, the 14‑inch MacBook Pro with the regular M3 chip is available in silver and space grey.

Apple has packed some rather impressive hardware into its new MacBook Pro models, which include a Liquid Retina XDR display with a 3024×1964 native resolution at 254 ppi for the 14-inch variant, 3456×2234 resolution at 254 ppi, and refresh rates of up to 120Hz. There’s also a built-in SDXC card slot, HDMI port, 3.5mm headphone jack, and MagSafe 3 port for connectivity options – additionally, you get two Thunderbolt / USB 4 ports on the regular M3 MacBook Pro, and three Thunderbolt 4 ports on the M3 Pro and Max.

Other details include a 1080p front-facing camera, and a six-speaker sound system with force-cancelling woofers. For the M3 MacBook Pro, there’s a 70-watt-hour lithium-polymer battery inside, while the M3 Max and M3 Pro models come with a slightly larger 72.4-watt-hour lithium-polymer battery.

Display Support

For display compatibility, Apple has beefed up its new laptops, which are able to support multiple displays at once. The M3 MacBook Pro can support a single external display with up to 6K resolution at 60Hz. Meanwhile, the M3 Pro MacBook can support up to two external displays with up to 6K resolution at 60Hz over Thunderbolt, or one external display with up to 6K resolution at 60Hz over Thunderbolt and one external display with up to 4K resolution at 144Hz over HDMI, or one external display supported at 8K resolution at 60Hz or one external display at 4K resolution at 240Hz over HDMI.

For the M3 Max MacBook Pro, there’s support for up to four external displays: up to three external displays with 6K resolution at 60Hz over Thunderbolt and one external display with up to 4K resolution at 144Hz over HDMI, or up to three external displays: up to two external displays with 6K resolution at 60Hz over Thunderbolt and one external display with up to 8K resolution at 60Hz, or one external display with 4K resolution at 240Hz over HDMI.

Pricing and Availability

Buyers can pre-order the new MacBook Pro beginning today, which starts at £1,699 for a model with an 8GB RAM and 512GB storage configuration. The new MacBook Pros arrive on 7th November.