Apple’s MacBook Pro 14 packs the new M1 Pro Chip, a 120Hz ProMotion display, and a notch

After launching the new iPhone 13 series last month, Apple has now announced the all-new MacBook Pro 14 and MacBook Pro 16. Apple refreshed the MacBook Pro 13 and MacBook Air last year with its custom M1 silicon. Now, it’s time for the elder sibling — the MacBook Pro 16 — to transition from Intel to Apple’s ARM-based chipset. Along with the update to the 16-inch model, Apple has also announced a brand new 14-inch MacBook Pro. This move is similar to how the brand replaced the MacBook Pro 15 with a new 16-inch variant a couple of years back. The new MacBook Pro 14 comes with Apple’s latest M1 Pro and M1 Max chip and brings back some legacy ports from the 2015 MacBook Pro models.

Performance and Internals

After months of extensive leaks and speculations from rumor mills, the MacBook Pro 14 is finally official. One of the biggest highlights of the new MacBook Pro 14 is what’s on the inside. We saw last year that Apple’s M1 chip was a huge leap in terms of computing power compared to its Intel counterpart. This resulted in both the MacBook Air and the MacBook Pro 13 being one of the most powerful portable laptops out there in terms of raw performance. The new ARM-based M1 Pro and M1 Max chips on the MacBook Pro 14 further builds on the performance offered by the M1.

The M1 Pro has a 10-core CPU accompanied by a 16-core GPU that should ideally result in superb performance regardless of what you run on the machine. It’s based on the 5nm manufacturing node. Apple claims that the CPU on the M1 Pro can perform up to 70% faster than the M1 while the GPU is 2X faster. It supports up to 32GB RAM. The M1 Max, on the other hand, packs a 1-core CPU and a 32-core GPU. It supports up to 64GB RAM and offers 4x faster graphics performance than the M1 Pro.

The base MacBook Pro 14 comes with 16GB of RAM along with 512GB of SSD storage. Interestingly, the base model has an M1 Pro with an 8-core CPU and 14-Core GPU, unlike all the other models. Apart from being a solid performer, the M1 was scored high in terms of endurance too. We’re expecting to see similar results from the M1 Pro too which means the MacBook Pro 14 should also give you great battery life.

MagSafe, Ports & Keyboard

It’s not just about the innards though. Apple has backtracked on its move of removing legacy ports from the MacBook Pro in 2016. The MacBook Pro 14 brings back essential ports like the HDMI port and an SD Card reader which a lot of photo and video editors will surely appreciate. What’s even better is the reintroduction of MagSafe. No, not the MagSafe that was announced with the iPhone 12, but the MagSafe port that was once used to charge MacBook computers until 2015.

MagSafe is essentially a magnetic connector that’s used to charge the MacBook. Since it’s magnetic, you just have to bring the cable close to the connector on the MacBook and it will automatically snap in place. The main advantages of MagSafe are that it’s convenient and if you’ve connected the charger to your Mac and someone trips on the charger, the connection will instantly snap off instead of the cable flinging your MacBook in the air. The USB-C ports still remain though and can also be used to charge the MacBook.

While Apple has brought back certain features that will surely be appreciated by users, it has officially ditched the Touch Bar that also made its debut in 2016. The Touch Bar was a nifty little display strip that showed shortcuts, emojis, media controls, and other similar functions. Apple replaced the traditional function keys with the Touch Bar, but the reliable function keys are now back on the MacBook Pro 14.

Display

The MacBook Pro 14, like the name suggests, has a 14.2-inch display. Apple has managed to trim the bezels around the display to accommodate a slightly larger screen in a form factor that’s more or less similar to the MacBook Pro 13 from last year. But that has a minor drawback (more on that later).

The display is a Mini-LED panel this time around that should give you better contrast levels compared to the IPS LCD display on previous MacBook models. It’s still a 2K retina display though with True-Tone functionality with 1000nits of sustained brightness and 1600nits of peak brightness.

The webcam above the display has finally been replaced by a 1080p camera after it was stuck on 720p for the longest time. The webcam has an f/2.0 aperture and 2x better low-light performance. Sadly, the slim bezels and upgraded webcam mean that the MacBook Pro 14 has a notch to house the webcam like the iPhone 13 lineup.

Audio

Apple’s MacBooks have always offered some of the best speakers on laptops. The MacBook Pro 14 takes things up a notch with a new six-speaker sound system with two tweeters and 4 subwoofers. The laptop also features a three-mic array with a 60% lower noise floor.

Battery life

Thanks to the new Apple M1 chips, the new MacBook Pro 14 offers amazing battery life. The laptop offers up to 17 hours of video playback on a single charge. What’s even better is that it offers fast charging support, giving users 50 percent charge in just 30 minutes.

Price and Availability

The MacBook Pro 14 is available to pre-order today and will go on sale starting next week. The base variant starts at $1,999. The laptop will be available with up to 64GB of RAM and 8TB of storage, with the top model with all the bells and whistles retailing for a staggering $3,299. If you’re thinking of getting the new MacBook Pro 14, make sure you check out our roundup of the best MacBook Pro deals.

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