Apple announces M3 chip family, updates to MacBook Pro, iMac

During ‘Scary fast’ Special Event Apple unveiled new Apple Silicon chips – M3, M3 Pro and M3 Max. First Macs to get these – MacBook Pro and iMac. No updates for Mac mini, Mac Studio, MacBook Air or iPads were announced so far.

M3 chip family

Apple announces first 3nm chip family – M3, M3 Pro and M3 Max. Chips introduce GPU improvements including Dynamic Caching. Dynamic Caching allows better memory management allowing more RAM for CPU when needed and improving overall app performance.

Hardware accelerated ray tracing comes to M3 (following A17 Pro chip in iPhone 15 Pro models).

M3 Pro has different core configuration compared to M2 Pro – 6 performance and 6 efficiency cores. Also, M3 Pro has 25% less memory throughput compared to M2 Pro.

M3 Max though focuses on performance with 12 performance and 4 efficiency cores.

M3 Pro supports up to 36 GB of RAM, while M3 Max – 128 GB.

This decision differentiates chips more with Pro being more “portable” yet capable and Max more focused on computational tasks.

MacBook Pro

Apple discontinues MacBook Pro 13″ (also killing Touch Bar). Base MacBook Pro with M3 chip is now 14″ model. Base model features two Thunderbolt 3 ports, and could only power one external display up to 6K.

Update also brings WiFi 6E and Bluetooth 5.3 to MacBooks.

New MacBooks should have increased autonomy adding more hours to expected battery life.

Also, Space Black color option is now replacing Space Gray for MacBook models with Pro and Max chips.

Updates also included tweaks of the displays making them 20% brighter than previous models.

iMac

iMac 24″ gets “spec bump” update with M3 chip. iMac also gains Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth 5.3 support.

No other changes are introduced. Magic Keyboard, Trackpad and Mouse are also still using Lightning connector.

Other details

Interesting aspect of this event is that it was shot on iPhone 15 Pro Max and edited on Mac.

Apple Newsroom:

• Apple unveils M3, M3 Pro, and M3 Max, the most advanced chips for a personal computer
• Apple unveils new MacBook Pro featuring M3 chips
• Apple supercharges 24-inch iMac with new M3 chip
• Behind the scenes at Scary Fast: Apple’s keynote event shot on iPhone

References:

• 14-Inch MacBook Pro With M3 Chip Has Only Two Thunderbolt 3 Ports
• M3 iMac Gains More Maximum Memory, Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth 5.3
• Everything Apple Announced During Monday’s ‘Scary Fast’ Event
• First M3 MacBook Pro hands-on videos show off new Space Black color
• New 14-Inch and 16-Inch MacBook Pros Feature 20% Brighter Displays
• Here’s how the new entry-level M3 MacBook Pro compares to more expensive models
• Apple’s October 2023 Scary Fast Event: By the Numbers
• Apple’s October 2023 Scary Fast Event: All The Small Things
• Here’s what changes from the M1 iMac to the new M3 iMac
• Apple M3 Pro Chip Has 25% Less Memory Bandwidth Than M1/M2 Pro
• A closer look at how the new M3 chip line-up compares
• Touch Bar Fully Discontinued on New MacBooks After Seven Years
• A magic number: New MacBook Pros and iMacs usher in the M3 era