During Apple Inc.’s AAPL “Scary Fast” event on the eve of Halloween, the company introduced a series of new Macs featuring its latest M3 chips, including a refreshed 24-inch iMac and 14-16 inch MacBook Pro models, along with a twist that we have detailed.
What Happened: On Monday, Apple’s “Scary Fast” event revealed a significant upgrade in the company’s proprietary chips: the new M3 lineup.
The lineup consists of the M3, M3 Pro, and M3 Max chips, and according to the tech giant, it is the first personal computer chip series manufactured using a more efficient 3-nanometer process.
While unveiling its next-generation chips, Cupertino promised a faster and more efficient CPU, while also boasting an updated GPU that supports ray tracing, mesh shading, and Dynamic Caching along with up to 128GB of unified memory.
Moreover, the most powerful of the lineup, the M3 Max chip features a staggering 92 billion transistors, a 40-core GPU, and a 16-core CPU.
Now, let's talk about the much-anticipated M3 upgrade in the 24-inch iMac.
With an M3-flavored upgrade, the 24-inch iMac now offers twice the performance of its M1-equipped predecessor. It comes with a 4.5K Retina display, support for Wi-Fi 6E, and a 1080p webcam. In addition, it comes with 24 GB of unified memory.
Moreover, it continues to offer the seven vibrant color options: green, yellow, orange, pink, purple, blue, and silver. However, the color-matched accessories still feature USB-C to Lightning cables.
Pricing: The 24-inch iMac starts at $1,299 with an eight-core CPU or $1,499 with a 10-core chip.
Availability: The device is now open for preorders and will be available beginning Nov. 7.
Let's talk about the elephant in the room now.
Apple has also upgraded the 14 and 16-inch MacBook Pro models with M3 chips. The tech giant unveiled the low-end model with the standard M3 chips, along with high-end versions integrated with M3 Pro and M3 Max.
The new versions feature a Mini LED display, a 1080p camera, a six-speaker sound system, up to 128GB of RAM, and a sleek "Space Black" with a matt finish to reduce fingerprints.
Additionally, the company said that with next-gen chips, the new laptops will be “more powerful” while retaining their 22 hours of battery life.
Pricing: The 14-inch MacBook Pro with an M3 Pro chip starts at $1,999, and the 16-inch M3 Pro model starts at $2,499.
A cheaper 14-inch MacBook Pro is also available with the base M3 chip, starting at $1,599, replacing the previous 13-inch model.
Availability: Preorders are open, with availability beginning on Nov. 7.
Why It's Important: True to the reports, Apple did not refresh its 13-inch MacBook Pro with M3 chips.
While earlier tech analysts like Mark Gurman and Ming-Chi Kuo predicted that a 13-inch MacBook Pro, codenamed J504, is on the cards, and the former also said that the device's inventory was dwindling, it was later reported that Apple introducing a refreshed version is highly unlikely.
Another rumor that turned out to be true was the cancellation of Touch Bar on MacBook Pro models. The 13-inch MacBook Pro will be the last in its line to feature a Touch Bar.
We'll divulge more about this feature that many users love to hate in an upcoming article.
Also, Apple didn’t forget to add a touch of its Apple TV+ promotion during the event. Classic Apple!
Photo by Qcon on Shutterstock
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