MacBook Pro 16-inch M3 Max 2023 review

MacBook Pro 16-inch M3 Max 2023 review .. The most powerful laptop we’ve ever tested is the new 16-inch MacBook Pro with the M3 Max CPU, which starts at $3,499 to be exact. I realize I said the same thing about the MacBook Pro 16-inch with M2 Max CPU that was introduced earlier this year, but with this enormous computer, Apple has once again exceeded expectations. Easily among the greatest MacBooks to date is this one.

With the exception of its new Space Black color, which reduces fingerprints, the most recent MacBook Pro 16-inch is almost similar to earlier versions. This implies that the stunning 16-inch Liquid Retina XDR display, a ton of connectors, and a solid, elegant design are all still included. But the M3 Max CPU hides a ton of power behind the recognizable shell.

Clearly, not everyone is a good fit for the 16-inch MacBook Pro with an M3 Max CPU, and this is due to more factors than simply its hefty $3,499 starting price. If you are a creative worker who uses 8K movies in your process, this beast of a laptop should help. In a same vein, this MacBook Pro’s M3 Max processor makes it an effective gaming system. However, the new 14-inch MacBook Pro M3 could be a better option if you just sometimes edit videos or use the best laptops for writing.

Is the 16-inch MacBook Pro the best option for you? To learn more, read my whole review.

MACBOOK PRO 16-INCH (M3 MAX, 2023) REVIEW: SPECS

MACBOOK PRO 16-INCH (M3 MAX, 2023) REVIEW: RELEASE DATE AND PRICE

Starting at $3,499, the MacBook Pro 16-inch with M3 Max may be purchased on Apple’s website. This variant has a 30-core GPU and a 14-core CPU in its M3 Max chip. Moreover, it includes 1TB of SSD storage and 36GB of unified memory.

Are you trying to find more RAM than you really need? Upgrading to an astounding 128GB of unified memory is an option. But only the M3 Max chip, which has a 16-core CPU and a 40-core GPU, can have this much RAM. For this memory bump, you would have to spend an additional $1,300 in total ($300 for the upgraded M3 Max processor and $1,000 for RAM). An additional $2,200 will bring you 8TB of storage.

Apple offered us the most highly-specced machine imaginable, including an 8TB SSD, 128GB of RAM, and the most powerful M3 Max processor. The staggering $7,199 would be your cost for this arrangement.

• $3,499 is the starting price.
• accessible in Space Black.

MACBOOK PRO 16-INCH (M3 MAX, 2023) REVIEW: DESIGN

The design of the new MacBook Pro 16-inch is identical to that of the MacBook Pro 14-inch (2021) and MacBook Pro 16-inch (2021). If you were looking for a brand-new design, it may be a deal breaker, but as far as I’m concerned, this construction strikes the perfect balance between functionality and style. I’ll talk more about the new Space Black hue soon.

This laptop weights 4.8 pounds (4.7 for the M3 Pro model) and dimensions 14.01 x 9.77 x 0.66 inches, much like the previous generation. Because of its strong, squared-off metal body, the MacBook Pro seems robust even though it is large and hefty. The lid has the perfect amount of firmness while opening and closing, and it is simple to open with one hand. The MacBook Pro feels comfortable in the hand and is more portable than the MacBook Air 15-inch due to its reduced weight and size.

The 16.2-inch display’s small bezels let you see more of the content you’re viewing or working on. To answer your question, the notch in the upper center of the display is still there. Some of you would find it bothersome, but I’ve become used to these machines’ notches. It is uncommon that I see the notch on a screen this large.

Let’s discuss the recently released Space Black hue. Yes, it looks amazing, but what’s really great is that the anodization seal on the finish minimizes fingerprints. The key term here is “reduces,” since fingerprints are still detectable on this laptop but aren’t as noticeable as they would be on a chassis that is Silver or Space Gray. It’s amazing stuff, but I definitely shouldn’t get this enthusiastic over a new hue as much as I do.

• identical to the previous model’s design
• The hue Space Black reduces fingerprints.

MACBOOK PRO 16-INCH (M3 MAX, 2023) REVIEW: DISPLAY AND AUDIO

As stunning as ever is the 16.2-inch Liquid Retina Display (3,456 x 2,234). Its 120Hz ProMotion refresh rate not only helps everything run smoothly, particularly games, but it’s also brilliant and vibrant. Once again, this is without a doubt one of the greatest laptop screens available.

On the 16.2-inch screen, the most recent trailer for Monarch: Legacy of Monsters looked amazing. The level of detail on the many monsters, particularly the large one, Godzilla, really surprised me. Despite the majority of the clip being dark, everything seemed clear and sharp. The XDR display produced a great, brilliant final photo of Godzilla roaring in a desert during the day.

Our lab tests validate what I’ve seen about the panel of the 16-inch MacBook Pro. Our colorimeter reads 116.7% of the sRGB color spectrum and 83.2% of the more precise DCI-P3 color space when aimed at the screen; 100% is the most accurate reading for both. The MacBook Pro 16-inch has excellent color accuracy, with a Delta-E of 0.11 (0 being the best). It’s fantastic that these values match those of the prior model.

With 1,546 nits of brightness when showing HDR video on 10% of the display and 1,123 nits while displaying HDR content on 100% of the screen, HDR brightness is also equivalent to the M2 Max edition. Brightness that isn’t HDR makes things more intriguing. The new MacBook Pro has an average brightness of 563 nits, compared to 455 nits for the M2 Max. Even if it’s not as bright as the 600 nits of SDR brightness that were claimed, it’s still noticeable.

How does the 16-inch MacBook Pro’s screen compare to that of other notebooks? The Samsung Galaxy Book 3 Ultra (378 nits) and the most recent Dell XPS 15 OLED (372 nits) are not as brilliant as the display on Apple’s laptop. While Dell’s laptop has significantly less color accuracy (194.7% / 137.9% / 0.15), Samsung’s gadget offers similar color saturation and accuracy (121.6% / 86.2% / 0.15).

Rich, deep sound from the six-speaker sound system (two tweeters, four force-canceling woofers) delighted my ears. In the Monarch teaser, thunderous explosions and roaring beasts were accompanied with a cinematic sense that made even the smallest details stand out. The guitar chords from Nevemore’s “Enemies of Reality” have a bassy tone that fit the song. All things considered, the laptop’s speakers provide great sound for music, movies, and podcasts.

• Bright Liquid Retinal Screen
• wealthy and strong speakers

MACBOOK PRO 16-INCH (M3 MAX, 2023) REVIEW: PORTS

Similar to the two previous 14- and 16-inch MacBook Pros, port selection is still available. There are three Thunderbolt 4/USB-C connectors, an HDMI port, and an SD card slot. Additionally, there is a MagSafe port and a headphone jack. With the updated MacBooks that have been available for a few years, the latter function is still one of my favorites.

Up to 8K resolution at 60Hz may be shown on an external monitor via the HDMI 2.1 connector. On the other hand, a 4K monitor may be connected to at up to 240Hz. Up to two external displays can be supported by the M3 Pro chip, and up to four displays may be managed by the M3 Max chip.

• plenty of ports
• supports external monitors with resolutions up to 8K.

MACBOOK PRO 16-INCH (M3 MAX, 2023) REVIEW: PERFORMANCE

Now for the exciting part: the show. Although the M2-powered laptops that we have evaluated do have greater power than their direct predecessors, the difference was not as noticeable as when Apple stopped using Intel technology. The leap from M2 to M3 is impressive, even if the M3 boost isn’t as important as that pivotal event. This is particularly true for the M3 Max-equipped 16-inch MacBook Pro.

As anticipated, the new MacBook Pro handled my regular workflow—which often entails having many tabs open—without any issues. The M3 Max-powered laptop never sweated, even when I had more than 30 active tabs and a YouTube video playing in the background.

When editing films, the MacBook Pro proves why it deserves the designation “pro.” Our video editors used a 16-inch MacBook Pro M3 Max laptop and an earlier 14-inch MacBook Pro with M1 Max to render the identical nine-minute 4K footage in order to demonstrate this. The M1 Max laptop took almost twice as long to render 50% of the movie as the M3 Max computer, which finished the work in less than five minutes.

Our laboratory analysis supported our anecdotal findings. The MacBook Pro 16-inch with M3 Max achieved an astounding 21,711 multi-core score and a single-core score of 3,200 on Geekbench 6, a tool used to test CPU performance.

In contrast, the test results for its M2 Max predecessor, which had a 12-core CPU and a 38-core GPU, were 1,993 and 15,173, respectively. The earlier M1 Max scored 1,781 and 12,683 on the single and multi-core tests on Geekbench 5.4. To put it simply, the M3 Max outperforms the M2 Max by around 20% and the M1 Max by about 45%.

How about two of the greatest Windows laptops equipped with Intel Core 13th Generation CPUs? The graph above shows that the $1,899 Dell XSP 15 OLED (2,462 / 12,478) and $2,399 Samsung Galaxy Book 3 Ultra (2,270 / 12,405) scored more similarly to the M1 Max than the M3 Max. According to Qualcomm’s Geekbench 6 evaluations, the next Snapdragon X Elite CPU (2,979 / 15,130) beats M3, however it still falls short of M3 Max.

• lightning-quick performance
• surpasses rivals in performance

Handbrake (Video transcoding)

Header Cell – Column 0 Time (min:sec)

• MacBook Pro 16-inch (M3 Max) 2:34
• MacBook Pro 16-inch (M2 Max) 4:03
• MacBook Pro 16-inch (M1 Max) 4:48
• Samsung Galaxy Book 3 Ultra 5:26
• Dell XSP 15 OLED (2023) 5:01

The M3 Max-powered MacBook Pro 16-inch completed our Handbrake video transcoding test in 2:34 seconds, converting a 6.5GB 4K film to 1080p. That is almost twice as quick as the 16-inch MacBook Pro computers we evaluated, the M2 Max (4:03) and M1 Max (4:48). In contrast, the XPS 15 OLED (5:01) and Galaxy Book 3 Ultra (5:26) plodded along.

Photoshop test

Header Cell – Column 0 Score Time (min:sec)

• MacBook Pro 16-inch (M3 Max) 1,443 3:29
• MacBook Pro 16-inch (M2 Max) 1,218 3:54
• MacBook Pro 16-inch (M1 Max) 877 4:20
• Samsung Galaxy Book 3 Ultra 822 6:01

The MacBook Pro 16-inch M3 Max received a score of 1,443 on the PugetBench PhotoShop test, which evaluates a system’s effectiveness in using scripts to apply a number of filters and other alterations to several high-resolution photos. The new laptop took 3 minutes and 29 seconds, according to this test that also measures the duration of each system.

On the other hand, this laptop’s M2 Max model took 3:54 and scored 1,218. With an M1 Max, the MacBook Pro 16-inch scored 877 and took 4:20. The Galaxy Book 3 Ultra, on the other hand, performed far worse, scoring 822 and taking 6:01 to complete.

BlackMagic SSD test (in MBps)

Header Cell – Column 0 Score (read/write)

• MacBook Pro 16-inch (M3 Max) 5,561 / 7,594
• MacBook Pro 16-inch (M2 Max) 5,717 / 6,664
• MacBook Pro 16-inch (M1 Max) 5,314 / 5,564

To assess the SSD performance of the 16-inch MacBook Pro, we also used the Blackmagic disk speed test. Its read and write speeds of 5,561 MBps and 7,594 MBps, respectively, are comparable to those of the 16-inch MacBook Pro with M2 Max (5,717 / 6,664). In the read/write test, the MacBook Pro with an M1 Max processor received scores of 5,314 and 5,564. Although there has been some increase in read/write speeds, it is just slight.

MACBOOK PRO 16-INCH M3 MAX 2023 REVIEW: GRAPHICS AND GAMING

In its “Scary Fast” virtual event, Apple exalted the improved GPU found in the M3 series. Dynamic Caching, a characteristic of all M3 chips, allots hardware usage of local memory in real-time and only consumes the precise amount of memory required for certain operations. With the new M3 processors, hardware-accelerated ray tracing is now feasible. Hardware-accelerated mesh shading is now available for Mac users with the upgraded GPU.

All well and good, but what about application in the actual world? On the M3 Max-powered MacBook Pro 16-inch, I discovered that titles like Lies of P and Baldur’s Gate 3 looked fantastic, with their respective worlds recreated in breathtaking clarity. I felt properly anxious in the living area with its pulsating red walls in Baldur’s Gate 3 opening, much as I did in Lies of P’s corpse-strewn train station.

Both games had continuously high frame rates, ranging from 70 to 130 fps, depending on how much action was happening on screen. The ability to activate or disable MetalFX, Apple’s response to Nvidia and AMD’s upscaling technology, is available in Lies of P. When MetalFX was activated, frame rates stayed in the 130 range; when it was off, frame rates were closer to 70 to 80. This option wasn’t available in Baldur’s Gate 3, although the frame rate stayed high the whole time.

• outstanding fidelity in graphics
• Excellent performance in games

3DMark

Header Cell – Column 0 Wild Life Unlimited

• MacBook Pro 16-inch (M3 Max) 31,271 / 187 fps
• MacBook Pro 16-inch (M2 Max) 13,000 / 77 fps

In our lab testing, the M3 Max MacBook Pro also fared well. The M3 Max MacBook Pro 16-inch achieved an average of 187 frames per second and a score of 31,271 in the 3DMark Wildlife Unlimited 3D performance test. The MacBook Pro 16-inch with M2 Max, in contrast, averaged 77 frames per second and got 13,000 points. That is a very significant improvement in graphics performance.

MACBOOK PRO 16-INCH (M3 MAX, 2023) REVIEW: VERDICT

The MacBook Pro 16-inch with M3 Max is, without a doubt, the most powerful Apple machine we have ever examined, even if that statement seems obvious. As my review showed, this well-specced laptop outperforms similar Windows laptops and even outperforms its predecessors. If you work as a professional video editor, you will complete jobs much more quickly than previously. Also, for games designed for Apple silicon, the M3 Max offers Windows PC-quality gameplay. Furthermore, the addition of the Space Black finish elevates an already fantastic product.

As of right moment, the top-tier Apple laptop is the 16-inch MacBook Pro with M3 Max. But not everyone is a good fit for it. You would be better off with either the $1,599 MacBook Pro M3 or the even less expensive $1,299 MacBook Air 15-inch if your only uses for computers are writing, online browsing, and watching movies. People like me who sometimes love gaming on Macs and dabble in video editing should give the 14- or 16-inch MacBook Pro with M2 Pro, which begins at $1,999 and $2,499, respectively, some serious thought.

The MacBook Pro 16-inch with M3 Max is a great notebook that shows off the power of Apple silicon, even if I can’t recommend it to everyone. As previously, Apple has established a new benchmark that its rivals now have to meet. You can’t do better than this if you need additional power for an outdated Intel MacBook Pro or even an M1 Max-powered laptop.

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