Late 2023 MacBook Pro Buyer's Guide: 14-Inch vs 16-Inch Models

[JippaLippa]

You guys think there will be inventory/out of stock issues on these new MacBook pros because of the chip shortage? Just wondering if I should wait and see if there will be a sale on black Friday

100%.
I'm not advising rushing purchases, but if you want one by christmas you should get it immediately.

I, for example, took 10 minutes to think it through and I went for it; It's coming on the 5th of november.

 

[travelsheep]

Is nobody talking about the abysmal design? It looks like a time-travel 15 years into the past, and the top does not match the bottom. It just looks wrong. Worst design in any Macbook to date IMO.

 

[kyykesko]

14" fast charges both with magsafe and usb-c but the 16" fast charges only through magsafe? I don't want that garbage proprietary charger, so I guess I just saved a lot of money. Unless they can get the magsafe charger to get the computer from 0 to full in less than 5 minutes I'm not interested in that. And even then I'd only use it in an emergency. USB-C ftw.

I just wonder what happened to Apple's claims about being eco-friendly and wanting to reduce electronic waste? Is the new magsafe compatible with the older magsafe chargers I have? I doubt it. Is anything else on this planet compatible with that charger? What, no? How surprising.

 

[Arthur75]

For me the most "outrageous" thing is the price of 32 gb ram option on the M1 pro : +460€ !
So now I hesitate between :
14" M1 pro 10/16 32g RAM 1TB : 3209€
and
14" M1 max 10/24 32g RAM 1TB : 3439€

What do you guys think ?

 

[yitwail]

14" fast charges both with magsafe and usb-c but the 16" fast charges only through magsafe? I don't want that garbage proprietary charger, so I guess I just saved a lot of money. Unless they can get the magsafe charger to get the computer from 0 to full in less than 5 minutes I'm not interested in that. And even then I'd only use it in an emergency. USB-C ftw.

I just wonder what happened to Apple's claims about being eco-friendly and wanting to reduce electronic waste? Is the new magsafe compatible with the older magsafe chargers I have? I doubt it. Is anything else on this planet compatible with that charger? What, no? How surprising.

The one that ships with 14” has a detachable cable, MagSafe on one end, usb-c on the other end, so it’s indeed compatible with non-MagSafe devices

 

[yitwail]

Is nobody talking about the abysmal design? It looks like a time-travel 15 years into the past, and the top does not match the bottom. It just looks wrong. Worst design in any Macbook to date IMO.

It’s in the eye of the beholder. I actually like the notch, it’s an Apple signature, it doesn’t get more distinctive, it says function over form

 

[pneves1975]

Helpful would be to point out that if you configure a 14" the same as a base 16" (M1-Pro, 10-core CPU, 16-core GPU), the price difference is only $200 ($2,299 vs $2,499) for the larger chassis.

And that $200 difference gets you a more powerful charger, 4h battery life, more screen real estate. I see a no-brainer here, except if ultimate portability is a major goal and/or use case is clamshell mode.

If only the RAM upgrades were not that expensive...

 

[BasedReborn]

Yeah I pulled the trigger, canceled 14 order and will get the 16 when available. I can wait

 

[svish]

Both are excellent laptops. For portability reasons, it may be better to get the 14”

 

[onthebuses]

Is nobody talking about the abysmal design? It looks like a time-travel 15 years into the past, and the top does not match the bottom. It just looks wrong. Worst design in any Macbook to date IMO.

I am not in the market for a new MBP as my 2019 intel is still fine for me. But if I was, I'd find it hard to move from a design which looks more modern to a design that looks older. The last Intel MBP does look more modern than Apple's first M1 MBP. That is a fact.

Will this damage the product sales, I really don't know. Apple has always produced products which looked cool, the new MBP still looks cool, but it looks old and something HP could produce. I wonder if this is the first sign of the end. The start of the end of Apple. I really don't know, time will tell. But I consider the 2021 MBP design a misstep.

 

[yitwail]

If Apple can survive the butterfly keyboard and eliminating all ports besides thunderbolts, I think it will survive a design shortcoming or two

 

[LindseyA]

Will MagSafe 3 work with my 24 inch LG monitor or do I need to use a USB C slot instead? Currently the monitor is connnected to my 2019 MacBook pro via USB C and it is providing both power and monitor functionality.

 

[winebibbing]

I still have a 2014 MacBook Pro, so it’s definitely time to upgrade. First I waited for Apple to fix their keyboards, then I waited for the M1, and then for the redesign. And now the M1 Pro and Max are here, I realise I don’t need such a fast machine. But I do like the new displays, camera, MagSafe, and other features.

so, I’m now on the fence: buy the cheap M1, go all out on the M1 Pro I don’t really need, or wait another year for all the features to trickle down to the basic models.

This is literally me except I've also got the Mac Mini and iMac on the brain as well because WFH has changed everything. I figure the next iterations of mini and iMac will will be $$$ due to M1 Pro so now I'm kicking myself for not pulling the trigger on *something* months ago

 

[tivoboy]

I still have a 2014 MacBook Pro, so it’s definitely time to upgrade. First I waited for Apple to fix their keyboards, then I waited for the M1, and then for the redesign. And now the M1 Pro and Max are here, I realise I don’t need such a fast machine. But I do like the new displays, camera, MagSafe, and other features.

so, I’m now on the fence: buy the cheap M1, go all out on the M1 Pro I don’t really need, or wait another year for all the features to trickle down to the basic models.

Frankly, based on several things, one of which is you seem to keep machines a while, I would go with one of the newer machines, the 14” or 16” depending on your preference for form factor. Unless you really want the smaller form factor that the older chassis offer with the original M1 models, the new models have really quite a larger feature set, battery, screen, magsafe, ports and the M1P/M1M chips are going to put the M1 in the dust. Buy yourself another half decade or more of confident usability with a small amount of more $$ today.

 

[michaeljk]

It is almost same weight as 13.3 inch MBP 2019.

Not even close. My 2019 MBP. weighs 3.02 pounds. The new 14 inch MBP weighs 3.5 pounds. That's almost 20% more. Why? Bummer.

 

[ProfessionalFan]

Will MagSafe 3 work with my 24 inch LG monitor or do I need to use a USB C slot instead? Currently the monitor is connnected to my 2019 MacBook pro via USB C and it is providing both power and monitor functionality.

You would need to use a USB-C port instead, MagSafe is just for charging.

However, that should be fine since the USB-C port will provide both power and monitor functionality anyway so still 1 cable for you.

 

[tivoboy]

Not even close. My 2019 MBP. weighs 3.02 pounds. The new 14 inch MBP weighs 3.5 pounds. That's almost 20% more. Why? Bummer.

In pounds closer to 15% but whose counting. It’s probably half the weight of the power adaptor for sure.

 

[sl8ed]

This week, Apple announced a major update for its high-end MacBook Pro models, with the new machines featuring a complete redesign, the M1 Pro and M1 Max chips, larger mini-LED displays with ProMotion, an HDMI port and SD card slot, full-sized function keys, and more.

The redesigned MacBook Pro is available in all-new 14-inch and 16-inch sizes. Despite both being high-end models, the 14- and 16-inch models do have some different design aspects, features, and capabilities, so should you consider purchasing the smaller MacBook Pro, which starts at $1,999, or do you need the larger MacBook Pro, which costs at least $500 more? Our guide helps to answer the question of how to decide which of these two high-end MacBook Pro models is best for you.

Comparing the 14-Inch MacBook Pro and 16-Inch MacBook Pro

The 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models share almost all of their key features, such as display technology, chip configurations, and connectivity options. Apple lists these same features of the two machines:

Similarities

• Mini-LED Liquid Retina XDR display with up to 1,000 nits sustained brightness, 1,600 nits peak brightness, P3 wide color, True Tone, and ProMotion
• Options for the M1 Pro or M1 Max chip with up to 10-core CPU and 32-core GPU
• Up to 64GB of unified memory
• Up to 8TB of storage
• Touch ID
• 1080p FaceTime HD camera
• High-fidelity six-speaker sound system with force-canceling woofers, wide stereo sound, and spatial audio support
• Studio-quality three-mic array with high signal-to-noise ratio and directional beamforming
• Three Thunderbolt 4 ports
• HDMI port
• SDXC card slot
• 3.5mm headphone jack with support for high-impedance headphones
• 802.11ax Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth 5.0
• Available in Silver and Space Gray

Apple's breakdown shows that the two MacBooks share most of their important features, but there are still some meaningful differences between the 14-inch MacBook Pro and 16-inch MacBook Pro that are worth highlighting, including display size, thickness, weight, battery size, and power adapter.

Differences


14-Inch MacBook Pro

• 14.2-inch display
• Configurations start with M1 Pro with 8-core CPU and 14-core GPU
• 0.61 inches thick (1.55 cm)
• Weighs 3.5 pounds (1.6 kg)
• Integrated 70-watt-hour lithium-polymer battery
• 17 hours of battery life when playing back video
• Fast charging over MagSafe 3 or Thunderbolt 4
• 67W USB-C Power Adapter (with M1 Pro with 8-core CPU)
• 96W USB-C Power Adapter (with M1 Pro with 10-core CPU or M1 Max, configurable with M1 Pro with 8-core CPU)
• Starts at $1,999

16-Inch MacBook Pro

• 16.2-inch display
• Configurations start with M1 Pro with 10-core CPU and 16-core GPU
• 0.66 inches thick (1.68 cm)
• Weighs 4.7 pounds (2.1 kg)
• Integrated 100-watt-hour lithium-polymer battery
• 21 hours of battery life when playing back video
• Fast charging over MagSafe 3 only
• 140W USB-C Power Adapter
• Starts at $2,499

Other MacBook Options

If you are looking for an Apple silicon MacBook Pro, but the latest M1 Pro and M1 Max models are out of your price range, there is the M1 MacBook Pro, which starts at $1,299. This is $700 cheaper than the 14-inch MacBook Pro, and is a good option for users who want a machine that is more capable than the MacBook Air, but something more affordable than the high-end MacBook Pro.

The M1 MacBook Pro is an entry-level model, featuring a 13.3-inch display, Touch ID, two Thunderbolt 4 ports, the Touch Bar, and a 720p webcam. It is a more consumer-oriented and less capable machine compared to the high-end MacBook Pro, but is more than adequate for most users.

There is also the M1 MacBook Air, which sports the same processor as the M1 MacBook Pro, a 13.3-inch display, Touch ID, and ports, as well as most other hardware features, and starts at $999. For casual users, this means that the additional $300 to upgrade to a MacBook Pro may be difficult to justify.

• Apple M1 MacBook Air vs. M1 MacBook Pro Buyer's Guide
• Apple M1 MacBook Pro vs. Intel MacBook Pro (13-Inch) Buyer's Guide

M1 MacBook Pro still has a number of improvements over the MacBook Air, offering slightly better performance, a brighter display, the Touch Bar, improved microphone and speaker quality, two extra hours of battery life, and an active cooling system. If you want slightly better performance than the M1 MacBook Air, as well as better battery life, display brightness, and speaker and microphone quality, the MacBook Pro is the better option.

Likewise, users who intend to perform a lot of graphics-based tasks should skip the MacBook Air entirely and buy the M1 MacBook Pro because the eight-core GPU MacBook Air configuration is only $50 less than the MacBook Pro, but this is only the case if you don't need more than 256GB of storage, because a storage upgrade would further push up the MacBook Pro's price.

Final Thoughts

The 14-inch MacBook Pro is clearly a more portable machine than the 16-inch model, so if you intend to carry the MacBook Pro around frequently or need the versatility of easily fitting it into a bag, the smaller model will be the better option. Buyers of the 14-inch models are not missing out on any major MacBook Pro features, so this will be the best model for most customers.

The 16-inch model is $500 more than the 14-inch model, so you should be sure that you need the additional display area or battery life. That being said, if you upgrade the 14-inch model to the same M1 Pro with 10-core CPU and 16-core GPU that the 16-inch model starts with, the price difference shrinks to $200.

Buyers of the 16-inch model should be aware that it is considerably larger, thicker, and heavier than the 14-inch model. The 16-inch model may also provide slightly better performance than the 14-inch model due to being larger with potentially better thermals, but this is yet to be confirmed with benchmark tests. The 16-inch model's speakers are also likely to provide better sound quality owing to the device's larger size, but we can't be sure of this until real-world comparisons emerge.

While the performance difference in real terms between the two high-end MacBook Pro sizes is yet to be seen, most users will be better off buying the 14-inch model. We will revisit this recommendation after we see the real-world performance of the two machines.

Article Link: 14-Inch MacBook Pro vs. 16-Inch MacBook Pro Buyer's Guide

One more difference you have not mentioned is the difference in price for AppleCare+. £249 for 14-inch, £349 for 16-inch. I am looking at 14 or 16 inch models with M1 MAX, 32GB memory and 1TB SSD. Only £100 difference in purchase price! That bigger screen and battery costs you another £100 extra for AppleCare+.
I really want the 14-inch. But (so far) I can't get past the small price difference to 16-inch. I currently have the Macbook pro 2019 16-inch with i9, 32GB, 1TB and 8GB Radeon 5500. I love it. But the fan noise annoys me from time to time.

 

[DesertNomad]

One more difference you have not mentioned is the difference in price for AppleCare+. £249 for 14-inch, £349 for 16-inch. I am looking at 14 or 16 inch models with M1 MAX, 32GB memory and 1TB SSD. Only £100 difference in purchase price! That bigger screen and battery costs you another £100 extra for AppleCare+.
I really want the 14-inch. But (so far) I can't get past the small price difference to 16-inch. I currently have the Macbook pro 2019 16-inch with i9, 32GB, 1TB and 8GB Radeon 5500. I love it. But the fan noise annoys me from time to time.

I have a 2019 16" i9 64GB, 4TB, 8GB Radeon 5600M and plan to keep it at least 2 more years. I'll wait for the M2 or M3 as this is still a great machine and with the 5600M, it's quiet too. I think I'd move to a 14" though. It used to be only the larger model got the best speeds but now they are on equal footing.

 

[LindseyA]

You would need to use a USB-C port instead, MagSafe is just for charging.

However, that should be fine since the USB-C port will provide both power and monitor functionality anyway so still 1 cable for you.

Thanks! Unfortunately that means giving up a USB C port. I am using all 4 now.

 

[agent mac]

Half pound heavier, you will feel it if you lug a laptop around all day at a conference.

Half a pound is the same as a half drunk can of Coke! It’s hardly going to exhaust you.

 

[agent mac]

I think the loss of the TouchBar is a retrograde step

I too quite liked the Touch Bar on my 2017 MacBook. If folk wanted function keys, couldn’t apple have just added those as well as the Touch Bar?

 

[agent mac]

Function over form, Apple needs an injection of style. No reason these can't be bigger, more powerful and still look good! Ugly spud this one. I wait for the powerful Mac mini me thinks.

How is it even possible to compare a Mac mini with a laptop. One is a sm as ll computer with no screen. The other is a portable computer with a screen and speakers and a keyboard and mouse!!!

 

[ibilenjkij]

Article doesn't mention one of the most important differences: 3024 × 1964 vs 3456 × 2234 pixels.

 

[LIVEFRMNYC]

I went for the 16' MBP and decided to keep my MBA M1 for traveling.