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What is Low Power Mode exactly? My battery Concerns: 14" M1 Max vs 14" M1 Pro

FocusAndEarnIt

FocusAndEarnIt

macrumors 601
Original poster
May 29, 2005
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Hi all,

I sold my 2019 16" MBP and am taking the jump earlier than expected to the new MacBook Pro. I have always had the 15" or 16" PowerBook/MBP line. However, my use case has changed and mobility is more important than ever as I will be taking this to and from work daily. Battery life is also a very important factor. But so is making this investment last -- I want this thing to last me for 6 years. So, to that end I went all out and got 32GB memory, 2TB SSD, and M1 Max 24 core GPU. That's all out for me.

But now I'm worried about the extra draw of the battery from the M1 Max. I bought the M1 Max over the M1 Pro to help future proof this thing -- the graphics power won't be tapped by me, but the 400gb/s bump from from 200gb/s in bandwidth as well as Apple's knack for requiring more and more power from GPUs as they release software made me want to go for the Max. (Example: iMac late 2013 - still quite a capable machine with an SSD - no longer can run Big Sur, Monterey solely because of its graphics card). I sometimes edit video, but nothing crazy like 8k or something. I do some photography, but nothing crazy either. The M1 Max bump from M1 Pro was only a $180 upgrade (education discount) because I was going to get the 32GB regardless. But now I am wondering if I am buying extra computing power that I will never use and at the cost of battery life, which is important to me.

But then there is this "Low Power mode" option while on battery. This option is cautiously giving me hope that perhaps the M1 Max while on low power battery mode will still be just fine and quite comparable to M1 Pro. Does anyone have any insight into what Low Power Mode actually does and if it alleviates this concern? I know it disables ProMotion, but what else? I placed the order for the M1 Max 14" MBP on Wednesday and it shows delivery Dec 8-15. If I cancel and replace an order for a M1 Pro 14" MBP, it will be delayed into Dec 16-23 timeframe. I'd really rather not wait, but can if the concern here is actually real and accurate.

I am now wondering if the best machine for me really is the M1 Pro 16" / 32 GB memory / 2TB SSD given my preoccupation with battery life. It would be $140 for me to go from 14" M1 Max 32 GB 2TB SSD 24 core gpu to 16" M1 Pro 32GB 2TB SSD 16 core gpu. The price difference is mostly the extra cost in AppleCare+ for the 16" over the 14".
 
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OK, update - realizing that M1 Max 14" probably worst choice for battery life... canceled the order, but now Apple won't release the installment on my Apple Card so I can't purchase the replacement machine. Hope that changes later today...

In my head I have two realistic options, and one far reached (the last one).
14" M1 Pro 10 core CPU, 16 core GPU, 2TB SSD, 32GB memory

16" M1 Pro 10 core CPU, 16 core GPU, 2TB SSD, 32GB memory

16" M1 Max 10 core CPU, 24 core GPU, 2TB SSD, 32GB memory

I was wrong...the price difference is ~$330 between the first two when factoring tax, AppleCare+, etc.

Curious what people's thoughts are. I am used to carrying a 16" MBP, but I was surprised by how big it was at the Apple Store. But maybe that's just how it looks. My use case is changing to be more mobile now.

Leaning towards the 14"... but man, that 16" is beautiful, has a longer battery, and the M1 Max might buy me more time in the future...
 
FocusAndEarnIt said:
Does anyone have any insight into what Low Power Mode actually does and if it alleviates this concern? I know it disables ProMotion, but what else?
Click to expand...

As far as I can tell, Low Power Mode disables HDR as well, and it makes JavaScript timer much slower in Safari, which in turn causes Safari to become slightly less responsive, while using less resources overall. I'm sure it has implications elsewhere as well when it comes to timer granularity, which makes sense: slower timer = less animation frames = less resource intensive.

I don't like how it messes with Safari's responsiveness, so I never have it on. My M1 Pro 14" still easily lasts well over 10 hours on a single charge.
 
I haven't verified this, but I've read here that the extra memory bandwidth on the Max is used for the GPU, not the CPU, so probably won't be so useful to you.

People are saying low-power mode reduces refresh rates some, at least in some situations, but unless I've enabled it incorrectly it doesn't disable HDR on Youtube. Someone noticed it reduces the amount you can deliver to things you charge from your USB-C ports to 500mA.

The new 16" is 5 ounces heavier than the previous 16", definitely noticeable but not awful. The case isn't much bigger.

I think you may be overdoing the future proofing for your usage, unless money isn't a big concern. Unless you expect your usage to change you won't need the extra RAM. You don't say what you want the 2TB for, but that's a lot cheaper off-board.

Another thread:

forums.macrumors.com

Low Power Mode on MBP 14

I've had both the new 14 and 16 for about a week and I'm still deliberating which one I should get. I like the 14 better because of its smaller form factor, but the battery life seems so inadequate compared to the 16 and the M1 13. I understand that Low Power Mode can help increase battery life...
forums.macrumors.com forums.macrumors.com
 
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I'm in the same boat, ordered the 14" M1 Max with 24 cores and now doubting whether that's a good choice in terms of battery life vs performance. My usage is office and Xcode development stuff and I tend to have a lot of apps and tabs open so would want to get the 32GB. There isn't much price difference between M1 Pro and M1 Max with 32GB, but it seems there is a difference in battery life. Not sure what the difference is with the same 10 CPU cores on Pro and Max and M1 Max with 24 and 32 gpu cores.
 
petardosh said:
I'm in the same boat, ordered the 14" M1 Max with 24 cores and now doubting whether that's a good choice in terms of battery life vs performance. My usage is office and Xcode development stuff and I tend to have a lot of apps and tabs open so would want to get the 32GB. There isn't much price difference between M1 Pro and M1 Max with 32GB, but it seems there is a difference in battery life. Not sure what the difference is with the same 10 CPU cores on Pro and Max and M1 Max with 24 and 32 gpu cores.
Click to expand...

I'm also wondering this, and naturally it's difficult to get comparable numbers for any workflow, let alone something resembling mine. Many comparisons seem to only pit the 14-core 16GB M1 Pro against the 32-core 64GB M1 Max, with little data on the models between these. I would expect the RAM and GPU cores to make at least a small difference separate from the Pro/Max difference.
 
It’s tough. If battery is the priority then go with the 16”. If portability is the priority then go with the 14”.
If you’re just going back and forth from work - I would go with 16”.

Having owned both - generally I would recommend the 16” as it’s a pretty big upgrade in performance and usability vs the 14”.
 
wilberforce said:
M1 Max is not going to make it last any longer, it is just extra GPU.
Click to expand...
It isn't necessarily extra GPU; can't we get a 16-core GPU on an M1 Max?

The more important consideration is that a Max is required for 64 GB of RAM which _absolutely_ will be important in 5 years. Maybe not for noobs who can't even get 16 GB up, but the OP says 32 GB is a requirement today, so....
 
bill-p said:
Yes. It is called the M1 Pro with 10 CPU cores and 16 GPU cores.
Click to expand...
Doesn't have the extra memory bandwidth, extra video encoder, or extra heatsink area. The 24-core does, so it often actually performs closer to the 32-core than the 16-core.
 
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wilberforce said:
M1 Max is not going to make it last any longer, it is just extra GPU. There will be other features in 5 years that will make it obsolete. If you don't need the extra GPU now, you won't need it then. (And if you do, it will be obsolete and way behind.)
Click to expand...
I have a feeling that these new MacBook Pros won’t be obsolete in 5 years. They’ll still be screamers and fully serviceable for our workloads.
 
Thanks all for your input. Because battery life is so important to me and because I have been lugging around a 15" and then 16" Intel MBP since 2008, I have opted for the 16" M1 MBP with 32GB RAM and 2TB SSD. I think it'll be a screamer. It's overkill for my needs now, but plenty of room to grow as the years go by. Very excited!
 
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