I'd hardly call having the ability to have up to 128 GB of memory a M1.5 chip.
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Apple Reportedly 'Just Started Formal Development' of M4 MacBook Pro
- Thread starter MacRumors
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
If they can, and it adds performance, why not? If it doesn't cost them anymore (or much more) than what they are currently spending on R&D it's a win-win. People will buy. Not everyone will upgrade right away but there are enough people that will, and those that won't will upgrade next year when the M5 comes out.
Correct. My market as a buyer is high-end, not entry-level. They need to differentiate the high-end models since neural compute is becoming so important, and I think it will happen with M4 to tie in with their ML software stack that is going to improve enormously over the next year and a half. Apple is already contributing to a few open-source projects that leverage this and those people will want more power so it makes sense to offer it, especially with unified memory being such an asset as an architecture vs. the competition. Apple's AI teams just got dozens if not hundreds of engineers to add to those efforts. I'd be shocked if by M5 there's no change in the Max line for MBPs.
The vast majority of pro buyers purchase laptops despite what older users used to desktop computers will tell you.
From an enthusiast POV I hope the Mac Pro tower gets a Quad eventually but that isn't slated to happen for another 3 generations, if it ever does. With stacked dies the yields might be enough for them to do it but I don't think we'll see that until 2027+, and the "AI" story they need to tell for both users and investors can't wait for a hypothetical $10,000 machine that has only 4x the performance of a $1299 MacBook Air in this specific domain.
They could do more with FPGA cards but I suspect won't, given how non-existent the developer support was for the Afterburner (and I mean from Apple's end, there was no real devkit at all which was stupid and wasteful). Afterburner was a total anomaly and not something they'd sell as a product again, unfortunately, because an FPGA development platform would be pretty great.
I agree with others that having hardware AV1 and H.266 will be nice too, and should be coming with M4/M5.
It's a weird situation that the M3 Max's Neural Engine has about half the power of the current iPhone Pro's!
Maybe. The speculation is that Apple advertised 35 INT8 TOPS for the A17 Pro but are advertising 18 INT16 TOPS for the M3. This would be equivalent throughput but you can get more done with less accuracy (usually not needed for ML) with INT8. This might or might not be a problem depending on whether the M3 supports INT8. So far, it isn't clear and hasn't been addressed yet by Apple as far as I know.
I like the keyboard. I've owned a lot of MBPs, and this is one of the good ones. Never owned one of the famous old ThinkPads with the fantastic keyboards, nor one of the gaming laptops with a low profile mechanical keyboard, so either or both could be better...
It’s not mandatory for individual customers to buy a new computer every year, any more than it is for a phone. Buy a new computer when you need it. Since they are doing ongoing updates, you can be confident that, when you are ready for a new one, it will be as updated and performance as possible and not using some outdated chip.
That’s just us here who are reading all of the articles and following the rumors that might get fatigued. Most actual customers just go into a store and order what is available now. As we have seen, the year to year changes are not revolutionary. They are incremental improvements and if you were to go from a computer with last year’s chip and replace it with a computer with this year’s chip, you probably would not see any difference unless you ran a benchmark program. Then would would just see some different numbers but your work wouldn’t be different.
So you would want a smaller screen? That notch gives useful additional vertical space that the menubar can occupy. If you are so focused on the esthetics over functionality, you can just get Topnotch or similar app, as others have mentioned. If you really just want a bigger bezel, then just choose one of the 16:10 screen resolutions and that area will alway be black, just like the notch and a bezel. You’ll just have less workspace below it. But that is the price of beauty.
Most of us long ago gotten used to the notch and hardly every see it.
What you said about having annual refresh makes sense BUT Apple just need to fresh their models, I don’t think they need to refresh the processor every year. [Once again looking at an] automotive analogy could be representative, new models every year but the power train is not updated annually. Just add an OLED display, update to WiFi 7, TB 5, etc.. 10% benchmark improvement isn’t needed with each annual update
What do you consider useless about the notch? Are you against getting more vertical screen space? that is useful to me.
There is more than enough room for the current mediocre camera system in the top bezel without the notch. Dell and HP have better and smaller cameras in some of their premium almost bezel-less notebook lines.
I wouldn't mind if there were Face ID or something else at this point they could even have the dynamic island that takes less space.
I guess I also hate it a little bit more now that I can use my iPhone as the camera
Except they do need to refresh their processor every year, if they want to stay competitive.
It’s more than just a camera in the notch. If you’re salty about not having FaceID, would you want a FaceID bump on the lid, cause the FaceID components are significantly thicker than the lid.There is more than enough room for the current mediocre camera system in the top bezel without the notch. Dell and HP have better and smaller cameras in some of their premium almost bezel-less notebook lines.
I wouldn't mind if there were Face ID or something else at this point they could even have the dynamic island that takes less space.
I guess I also hate it a little bit more now that I can use my iPhone as the camera
14-inch M1 Pro here. Previously 2002 iBook (white plastic keys), 2006 MacBook Pro (aluminum-colored keys), 2010 MacBook Pro (chiclet keys), 2014 MacBook Pro (same keyboard, I think).
I'd say it takes some getting used to. They are flatter/thinner than the 2008+ unibody laptop keyboard. But, not bad. I get about 100 wpm on it. I could do ~120 on the previous one, but perhaps that'll improve over time.
It’s more than just a camera in the notch. If you’re salty about not having FaceID, would you want a FaceID bump on the lid, cause the FaceID components are significantly thicker than the lid.
Looks so old tech 😂 I know I sound like an old man yelling at an apple but when removed it will be remembered as another design stain in Apple’s reputation.
Actually the notch is a clever design solution to the problem of how to enlarge the screen without making the case larger. Like any design, there are compromises. To get the larger space, there is the need for the notch to hold those components. That is a minor downside with little impact, so it is certainly worthwhile. Eventually, if they are able to move the camera under the display they may get rid of the notch, but until then, it is a worthwhile balance of form and function.
Removed in favor of what? That's what sensors look like.
Better and smaller cameras? With the same structural rigidity? I don't buy it.
Aren't Dell the ones who tried a nose cam just a few years ago because they, too, struggled to fit a camera into a small-bezel setup?
I’ve heard rumours about the M6 there won’t be a pro or max version there will just be the M6 and M6 Toll, the toll version will be faster but you pay for that.
The extra screen height is nice, and I'd suggested the screens could benefit from more vertical height before the notch. Just make the whole devices 2mm bigger to accommodate the (disappointing) webcam in the bezel, like I wrote in the message you replied to.
The Apple webcams are pretty poor still. They were disastrously crap on the M1. Other companies seem to squeeze in smaller webcams that appear as good or better, as the other poster said. A price breakdown I saw seemed to suggest it was simply a component Apple was skimping on, by buying a very cheap camera module.
I can buy that maybe for the Air*, but OTOH with the Air, thinness plays into it even more. For the 14/16 Pro chassis, I find it unrealistic that they'd arguably overshoot on aspects like the display and speakers, butt hen skimp on the webcam.
*) it does, for instance, have a mediocre display by today's standards