14" M1 Pro vs M1 Max

[project_2501]

Can someone point me to reviews and workload tests that compare the 14" MBP with M1 Pro and the M1 Max.

In particular I'm interested in thermals, fan noise, and throttling of performance.

I know there are lots of such comparisons for the 16" but I can't find those for the 14"

 

[project_2501]

I spent about 2 hours in total over the last week trying to find tests comparing a 14" M1 Pro with a 14" M1 Max... but with no success.

Anyone?

 

[James_C]

I have not seen any comparisons yet, however looking at comparisons pushing thermals on the 14" Pro compared to the 16". If you are worried about Fan noise is go for the 16". The 16" has a fans that are literally twice the size as well as the casing being significantly better. In thermal test comparisons the 16" and the 14" Pro performed almost identically ( for same spec apart from size) , but the fans under sustained load ( Video Export, Gaming etc ), where much more audible than the 16" which although the fans came on were not audible. In comparisons between the M1 Pro and the M1 Max on the 16", the Max can perform better under load, but again the fans are more audible on the Max than the Pro.

So in summary if you want best performance and don't care about fan noise under load, then go for the Max. If you do care about fan noise then your are better going for the 16" due to its better cooling system if you are going to be doing stuff that puts the M1 Max / Pro chip under sustained load. If you reduce fan noise by opting for the 16" M1 Pro, rather than the 16" M1 Max.

I should point out that most reviewers have indicated that while the 14" fans are audible under load, they are quieter than the 13" Intel models that they replace.

The 16" M1 Pro is probably the sweet spot for most users, unless you really need a smaller form factor for portability, or you need the extra performance of the M1 Max.

 

[project_2501]

I have not seen any comparisons yet, however looking at comparisons pushing thermals on the 14" Pro compared to the 16". If you are worried about Fan noise is go for the 16". The 16" has a fans that are literally twice the size as well as the casing being significantly better. In thermal test comparisons the 16" and the 14" Pro performed almost identically ( for same spec apart from size) , but the fans under sustained load ( Video Export, Gaming etc ), where much more audible than the 16" which although the fans came on were not audible. In comparisons between the M1 Pro and the M1 Max on the 16", the Max can perform better under load, but again the fans are more audible on the Max than the Pro.

So in summary if you want best performance and don't care about fan noise under load, then go for the Max. If you do care about fan noise then your are better going for the 16" due to its better cooling system if you are going to be doing stuff that puts the M1 Max / Pro chip under sustained load. If you reduce fan noise by opting for the 16" M1 Pro, rather than the 16" M1 Max.

I should point out that most reviewers have indicated that while the 14" fans are audible under load, they are quieter than the 13" Intel models that they replace.

The 16" M1 Pro is probably the sweet spot for most users, unless you really need a smaller form factor for portability, or you need the extra performance of the M1 Max.

Thanks James - that is useful.

I'll need to check how heavy the 16" is compared to my 2015 15" which is too heavy and bulky to be comfortably portable - it is an unpleasant experience.

I'm going to wait to see what the sweet spot for performance on the 14" is .. I do run data workloads as well as video exports and I am hoping the M1 Pro is enough of a benefit to be worth the price .. and yet also avoid fan noise which invades recording sessions.

My current 2015 15" fans go crazy when watching YouTube/other in an external display, or doing something simple like screen recording whilst using an external graphics tablet (Wacom).

 

[James_C]

I'll need to check how heavy the 16" is compared to my 2015 15" which is too heavy and bulky to be comfortably portable - it is an unpleasant experience.

I'm going to wait what the sweet spot for performance on the 14" is .. I do run data workloads as well as video exports and I am hoping the M1 Pro is enough of a benefit to be worth the price .. and yet also avoid fan noise which invades recording sessions.

I had the 2016 15" MBP, and I have had the 16" M1 Pro for a week now. I thought the 2016 MBP was the worst Mac laptop I ever bought ( I have been buying and using Mac Laptops since 2002). The reasons I did not like the 2016 MBP were:

The keyboard was horrible to type on (1st Generation Butterfly)

The fans would come on when exporting video or playing games

I did not like the Touch Bar as it was too easy to hit the virtual ESC key and lose what I was typing and I had to look at the keyboard to use it ( I can touch type).

Dongle hell - I had to use dongles to connect to video projectors, and external displays.

I had been using a M1 13" MBA for the last year, so I do understand the benefits of portability from a smaller laptop, and I take my laptop to work every day as well as use it in meetings and conferences.

The new M1 16" MBP solved all of the issues I had with the 2016 MBP, its the best Mac Laptop I have owned to date. However the 2016 is noticeably heavier than the 2016 MBP and obviously heavier than the 2020 M1 MBA. I do miss the portability of the MBA, but the screen and performance of the 16" M1 Pro outweigh the downside of the additional weight. I have not heard the fans once in the last two weeks.

You will probably be fine with the M1 Pro, here are my benchmarks comparing the 2021 MBP with my slightly newer that your 2015 MBP. You will notice a huge improvement in performance. I can remember when I got my M1 MBA, it really was night and day the difference in heat and performance with my Intel MBP 2016 that it replaced.

 

[project_2501]

I had the 2016 15" MBP, and I have had the 16" M1 Pro for a week now. I thought the 2016 MBP was the worst Mac laptop I ever bought ( I have been buying and using Mac Laptops since 2002). The reasons I did not like the 2016 MBP were:

The keyboard was horrible to type on (1st Generation Butterfly)

The fans would come on when exporting video or playing games

I did not like the Touch Bar as it was too easy to hit the virtual ESC key and lose what I was typing and I had to look at the keyboard to use it ( I can touch type).

Dongle hell - I had to use dongles to connect to video projectors, and external displays.

I had been using a M1 13" MBA for the last year, so I do understand the benefits of portability from a smaller laptop, and I take my laptop to work every day as well as use it in meetings and conferences.

The new M1 16" MBP solved all of the issues I had with the 2016 MBP, its the best Mac Laptop I have owned to date. However the 2016 is noticeably heavier than the 2016 MBP and obviously heavier than the 2020 M1 MBA. I do miss the portability of the MBA, but the screen and performance of the 16" M1 Pro outweigh the downside of the additional weight. I have not heard the fans once in the last two weeks.

You will probably be fine with the M1 Pro, here are my benchmarks comparing the 2021 MBP with my slightly newer that your 2015 MBP. You will notice a huge improvement in performance. I can remember when I got my M1 MBA, it really was night and day the difference in heat and performance with my Intel MBP 2016 that it replaced.

View attachment 1903835

That M1 MBA looks pretty good by itself!

 

[Fomalhaut]

I spent about 2 hours in total over the last week trying to find tests comparing a 14" M1 Pro with a 14" M1 Max... but with no success.

Anyone?

I found a couple of Reddit threads that I’ve posted on other Macrumors threads. Have a look at my previous postings.

There are a few YouTube videos that review either the 14” M1 Pro or M1 Max and you can get so e comparisons from these, albeit frim different testers.

 

[Carlson-online]

TLDR - Max not worth it unless you spend your time encoding prores !

 

[Eddie8]

TLDR - Max not worth it unless you spend your time encoding prores !

Or need more than two external displays

 

[James_C]

That M1 MBA looks pretty good by itself!

It is it will be around twice the performance of your current MBP, super light with all day battery life. I loved that machine.

I did a review of the M1 MBA a week after I had it and did some specific comparisons to the 15" 2016 MBP - The original article is here ;

MacBook Air M1 ,1 Week Review, Switch from 15” MBP

I thought it might be useful to summarise my thoughts after using the new M1 MacBook Air after using it for a week, and how it compares with a 15” MBP, if anyone else is thinking of upgrading. The summary is for those that don’t want to read a long post is I am really happy with the switch, the...

forums.macrumors.com

You might ask, why did I upgrade from the M1 MBA to the M1 Pro 16", two reasons really - My daughter had a very old MBA around 5 years old, she needed a upgrade, so she inherited by M1 Air and I tend to work with a lot of large complex spreadsheets, which are easier to use on a larger screen.

 

[Mdv2]

It is it will be around twice the performance of your current MBP, super light with all day battery life. I loved that machine.

I did a review of the M1 MBA a week after I had it and did some specific comparisons to the 15" 2016 MBP - The original article is here ;

MacBook Air M1 ,1 Week Review, Switch from 15” MBP

I thought it might be useful to summarise my thoughts after using the new M1 MacBook Air after using it for a week, and how it compares with a 15” MBP, if anyone else is thinking of upgrading. The summary is for those that don’t want to read a long post is I am really happy with the switch, the...

forums.macrumors.com

You might ask, why did I upgrade from the M1 MBA to the M1 Pro 16", two reasons really - My daughter had a very old MBA around 5 years old, she needed a upgrade, so she inherited by M1 Air and I tend to work with a lot of large complex spreadsheets, which are easier to use on a larger screen.

I just returned the MBA and ordered a MBP 14", cause the MBA screen gave me eye strain issues.

 

[project_2501]

I just returned the MBA and ordered a MBP 14", cause the MBA screen gave me eye strain issues.

hi Mdv2 - what were the issues? I thought the MBA had a "retina" display after the 2017 versions.

 

[Mdv2]

hi Mdv2 - what were the issues? I thought the MBA had a "retina" display after the 2017 versions.

Not sure - I currently have a MBP '20 (Intel) and this screen is much more comforting to the eye than the MBA. Since I use the device daily for like 8-10hrs, I decided to spend $600 more and get a better screen. Besides the screen issues, I loved the MBA and it would suit my needs.