Will using my MacBook Pro in clamshell mode help performance?

[zoegreg]

Just purchased a 16" M2 MacBook Pro to connect to my Studio display. My question is, will performance be better in clamshell mode since it only has to render one display? Or will leaving the MacBook open and using it as a secondary display give the same performance?

 

[zoomp]

With my heat magnet 2019 intel i9, clamshell seems to be worse for performance, since the heating dissipation elements work less efficient than when it's open. If I leave it open, the fans will hit higher speeds later.

 

[zoegreg]

With my heat magnet 2019 intel i9, clamshell seems to be worse for performance, since the heating dissipation elements work less efficient than when it's open. If I leave it open, the fans will hit higher speeds later.

That's a great point, I hadn't thought of the heat issue.

I was thinking about the resources used by the CPU/GPU/RAM for the extra display.

I actually have the MacBook connected to two Studio displays and am running Windows 11 on one display using Parallel's desktop which uses a decent amount of system resources.

I wasn't sure how much system resources the built in display of the MacBook was using while in opened mode and thought running it in clamshell mode would offer an improvement in performance.

 

[hovscorpion12]

I’ve had my MBP 16” M3 Max connected to my monitors in clamshell since December. I’ve noticed no difference in performance or heat.

 

[zoegreg]

I’ve had my MBP 16” M3 Max connected to my monitors in clamshell since December. I’ve noticed no difference in performance or heat.

That's good to know. Do you think that leaving it open affects performance since it has to render the display on the MacBook itself?