It took its sweet time but the Galaxy S23 FE is finally here, so let's unbox it. You get the phone, a USB-C cable, a SIM tool, and leaflets.
The series skipped over an entire generation and left fans of the affordable flagship wanting for the last year or so. Now the FE is back with the same formula - get the base off the acting S series but with some older components to keep the price down, like the chipset and cameras.
The Exynos 2200 (or Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 if you live in North America) is still a pretty capable chip, 'issues' with efficiency notwithstanding.
We got the...
The latest version of the Nintendo Switch OLED is now coming with rather subtle Super Smash Bros.-themed controllers and the actual Super Smash Bros. Ultimate game. The paint job itself isn't as exciting as previous Nintendo Switch iterations, but the console has a couple of goodies coming with it.
The full Super Smash Bros. Ultimate game is included in the retail package along with a three-month free trial of the Nintendo Switch Online Individual membership. The whole bundle will set you back $349 and that's pretty good given that the regular Nintendo Switch OLED is priced the...
The Galaxy Buds FE are Samsung’s most recently launched wireless earbuds and buyers in Korea can now pick up a limited-edition case inspired by Pixar’s Toy Story franchise. The Toy Story cases for the Galaxy Buds FE are available in two designs inspired by Lotso Bear and Hamm and are available in South Korea via local online marketplace G Market
Galaxy Buds FE Toy Story cases
The Lotso Bear case is priced at KRW 39,600 ($30) while the Hamm case is KRW 36,300 ($28). Buds FE and the new cases will cost a combined KRW 125,900 ($97) but there’s an early bird price until November 29...
Earlier this year Samsung launched the English version of Bixby Text Call in select markets – now this includes India too. The feature still only supports English, but you may find it useful. Long story short, it transforms an incoming voice call into a text chat (note: this isn’t available for outgoing calls).
Once you activate it (follow the Source link for instructions how), you will see the Bixby Text Call button on the incoming call screen, next to the usual green answer button. You have the option to switch from a text call to a regular voice call at any time.
But once you start a...
Platform reviewed: PS5 Available on: PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, PC Release date: November 9, 2023
Neon signs wash over the bustling city streets of Osaka, Japan. I’ve just left Club Sega arcade and I’m heading to a bar when some cartoonish thugs confront me. Our brief battle concludes after I unleash punches, kicks, explosions, and an army of drones. I get my drink - Macallan, neat - and I decide it’s time for some karaoke. I am Kazuma Kiryu and this is the action-adventure game Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name, from developer Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio.
Set in 2019, Like a Dragon Gaiden takes place three years after 2016’s Yakuza 6: The Song of Life, the game where Kiryu bid his emotional farewell to the series by faking his death to protect his loved ones. Now going by the name of Joryu, our hero is working for the Daidoji Faction, a mysterious organization with fingers in many dubious pies, and it’s clear early on that this isn’t a happy existence.
Kiryu keeps a low profile, working as a bodyguard/heavy for Daidoji, but this simple life in the shadows is soon disrupted when a dodgy deal goes awry, resulting in Kiryu’s handler, Hanawa, being attacked and almost abducted. One thing leads to another and Kiryu is deployed to Sotenbori - the in-universe version of Osaka’s Dōtonbori district - in an effort to uncover who was behind this act.
The rest is heavily into spoiler territory, but I can say that it’s a much shorter experience than we’re used to from the Yakuza/Like a Dragon series. Even digging into the side quests and minigames I still rolled credits within 15 hours, much shorter than the usual Kiryu-led adventure. In other words, this Dragon doesn’t ever drag on (I’m sorry).
Network skills
(Image credit: SEGA)
A new face to the series is Akame, a ‘jack-of-all-trades’ to use her words, who runs the Akame Network in Sotenbori. Similar to the Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man app in Insomniac’s Marvel’s Spider-Man games, people can report issues through it, and Akame enlists Kiryu to resolve them.
Ranging from food delivery and tracking down lost items, to, of course, knocking the stuffing out of villains, there’s plenty of busywork to be getting on with in Osaka. However, despite an overwhelming amount of tasks, it’s difficult to resist undertaking them because each completed chore feels rewarding as you earn both money and Akame points, a currency that can be exchanged for items and power-ups, administering sweet hits of dopamine faster than gaming videos on TikTok.
It’s worth noting that Akame Network tasks are integral to progressing the main plot, along with another new feature: The Coliseum. This is a battle arena in which you fight your way through a variety of challenges. There are one-on-one bouts, matches where you fight multiple foes back-to-back, and a group battle mode where you enlist AI allies for mass brawls, which is as chaotic as it is enjoyable. You’ll need to recruit teammates for the latter, with some familiar faces available to enter the ring with Kiryu.
It’s always your turn
(Image credit: SEGA)
Speaking of combat, Like a Dragon Gaiden doesn’t use the turn-based system introduced in Yakuza: Like a Dragon, the confusingly named mainline game that’s effectively ‘Yakuza 7,’ taking place canonically after Gaiden. Instead, Kiryu’s latest adventure follows the same formula as the previous core games and delivers unadulterated brawler action.
Generally, it’s simple to perform: on PS5, for example, the Square button is a basic attack that you can mash for a combo, with Triangle offering a strong/finisher move. However, there’s more to it depending on which of the two fighting styles, Yakuza and Agent, you adopt.
Best bit
(Image credit: SEGA)
Playing as Kiryu again is a dream come true. I’ve missed his brawler combat, wholesome personality, and soothing singing voice.
The former is familiar territory to fans of the series, with heavy blows, wrestling-esque moves, and the ability to wield random items around you, from traffic cones to bicycles. The Agent style is brand new in Like a Dragon Gaiden, allowing Kiryu to administer faster blows and utilize a variety of weapons. Continuing the Spider-Man game parallels, our hero has a tool called the Spider Gadget that he can use to tie up foes from afar and hurl them around.
Kiryu also has rocket-propelled shoes that let him zip around in battle, knocking down any baddie who dares stand in your way. There’s also an explosive cigarette for a James Bond-like explosive attack and you can call in multiple drones to hassle your opponents. All of this combines to make a combat style that not only suits Kiryu’s new cloak-and-dagger lifestyle but delivers a ruthless efficiency to downing enemies that keeps the game’s pace running high.
Living for the city
(Image credit: SEGA)
When not engaged in combat, the game’s world is full of a multitude of captivating pastimes. The Yakuza/Like a Dragon games are well known for their minigames, and Like a Dragon Gaiden is no exception. There’s karaoke, darts, billiards, shogi, poker, blackjack, UFO catchers, classic Sega arcade games like Sonic the Fighters, and more. I honestly lost track of the time I spent with these distractions, but I’ll be damned if I don’t lose more hours to Virtua Fighter and slot car racing.
If you can pull yourself away from these distractions, there are plenty of sights to see around Sotenbori, including quirky signs and gorgeous riverside views. Then there are bars and restaurants to visit that turn Gaiden into a charming life sim, if only for a while. You can also explore a restricted version of Ijincho, the district from Yakuza: Like a Dragon that’s based on Yokohama’s Isezakichō, but you’ll find it less alive and alluring than Osaka.
Tears of a dragon
(Image credit: SEGA)
Like a Dragon Gaiden’s biggest strength is in its sentimentality. While the game egregiously rushes over the events of Yakuza 7, which presents a potential hurdle for newcomers, it’s somewhat understandable as Like a Dragon Gaiden is Kiryu’s story, and he wasn’t present for most of the previous game. Instead, we get a rather barebones summary of Yakuza 7’s main plot beats - but that gives more time to explore the life and times of Joryu, which is to say Kiryu’s story after Yakuza 6.
When Kiryu disappeared at the end of the 2016 game, it was a bittersweet ending at best. Kiryu faked his death so that his adopted daughter Haruka and her family could live in peace, along with the children at the orphanage that Kiryu ran. So when we see Kiryu living an empty existence under Daidoji’s ever-watching eye, longtime fans are immediately sympathetic to the once-legendary former yakuza man.
As the story progresses in Like a Dragon Gaiden, we see Kiryu suffer like never before. This is a guy who has been through trying times, but some scenes in this game really hit home as to how much Kiryu has sacrificed. At one point I was in floods of tears because I finally saw this iconic tough guy break down in a truly masterfully-crafted scene. However, as amazing as the direction and voice actor’s performance were, I hope I never see Kiryu cry again.
Overall, Like a Dragon Gaiden is a relatively short but still satisfying entry in this iconic series. The return of Kiryu as protagonist is an exquisite treat, and effectively sets up his prominent role in the next mainline game, Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth. While it feels a bit rushed in some parts of the main story, it’s a must-play for fans.
Accessibility features
(Image credit: SEGA)
Like a Dragon Gaiden offers three difficulty options - beginner, standard, and professional - and you can change between them at any time. The main difference is how much damage enemies inflict, but beginner also adds a combat assist feature by default, which can be turned off without changing modes.
Within the settings menu, you can remap each button. You can also change the size and color of subtitles, and add a background to them in cutscenes. Lastly, there is color vision assistance for Deuteranopia, Protanopia, and Tritanopia, including a slider for adding/reducing the level of application.
How we reviewed Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name
I spent 20 hours with Like a Dragon Gaiden, rolling credits after 15. As well as finishing the main story, I began the Premium Adventure mode, which lets players continue enjoying side content after the main campaign finishes. From here I did Akame Network tasks, sampled the wide range of minigames, and increased my rank in the Coliseum.
The latest flagship chipset from MediaTek is here with the Dimensity 9300 and it aims to go head to head with Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 powering the incoming crop of Android flagships from Chinese smartphone makers.
Dimensity 9300 brings an all-big core CPU design
Dimensity 9300 is built on TSMC’s third-generation 4nm+ process node and its standout feature is the all-big core CPU design. You get a prime Cotex-X4 core clocked at 3.25GHz alongside 3x Cortex-X4 cores @ 2.85GHz and 4x Cortex-A720 cores @ 2.0GHz all based on the Armv9 architecture. MediaTek claims Dimensity 9300...
Apple’s October reveal of the MacBook Pro 16-inch (M3) range was both an unexpected, in terms of its timing, and a risky one. We expected that Apple would bring out a successor to the M2-based MacBook Pro 16-inch (2023) at some point, but few Apple watchers thought it would happen a mere 10 months later.
It's a risky move for several reasons. For a start, it risks annoying people who bought the last MacBook Pro 16-inch – particularly the maxed-out M2 Max model – and who will have thought they’d have some time before the very expensive laptop they just purchased was superseded. While trying to stay at the cutting edge of computing products is a ridiculous and expensive pastime, and while the reveal of the M3 Pro and M3 Max doesn’t suddenly make the M2 versions redundant, I can see why this might leave a bitter taste in the mouth for a lot of people.
It also risks making the whole M2 generation look like a misfire which Apple is keen to move on from. While the leap from M1 to M2 wasn’t huge, it didn't feel like a misfire – at least not until Apple launched not just the M3 at its October Scary Fast event, but also the M3 Pro and M3 Max, along with replacements for 10-month-old laptops and a new iMac that completely skipped the M2 altogether.
The good news is that with a starting price of $2,499 / £2,599 / AU$4,299, you’re getting the performance upgrades of the M3 series for the same price at the previous generation started at; well, that’s good news for people who held off buying the M2 Pro or M2 Max 16-inch MacBook Pro, although it could be seen as yet another insult to anyone who did buy those laptops, especially if they did so only a few weeks ago.
As with previous models, you can choose a variety of configurations, including M3 Pro or M3 Max chips, and up to 128GB of unified memory – and you’ll want to make sure you nail your options before you buy, as you can’t upgrade the laptops afterwards. Of course, the better specs you go for, the more money this already-expensive laptop is going to cost.
Also, unlike the new 14-inch MacBook Pro, there isn’t a more affordable option with the base M3 chip, so I can only recommend the MacBook Pro 16-inch to people who have the budget and need for such a powerful machine.
If that’s you, then this could be your new favorite laptop. It keeps the same best-in-class screen from previous models, with a stunning 16.2-inch display with a sharp 3456 x 2234 resolution and Liquid Retina XDR tech, offering 1,600 nits of peak brightness for incredible vividness and dynamic contrast. The ProMotion tech also allows for 120Hz refresh rates, which keeps the macOS operating system, and any app you run (or website you scroll through) feeling fast, smooth and responsive.
A great array of ports, including plenty of USB-Cs, a HDMI and memory card reader, gives professionals plenty of flexibility when using the Apple MacBook Pro 16-inch (M3) when out and about.
Performance-wise, this is an impeccable workstation, with Apple building on the already impressive M2 Pro and M2 Max MacBooks. There wasn’t a task the new 16-inch MacBook Pro couldn’t handle during my testing, even when editing 4K footage with multiple 4K and 8K video files, and it also did an impressive job of running the latest games. That’s right: with the new 16-inch MacBook Pro (and the 14-inch model), Apple might have just come out with the first gaming MacBook. No longer is its ‘Pro’ range of MacBooks all work and no play.
(Image credit: Future)
Apple MacBook Pro 16-inch (M3) review: Price and availability
The launch may well have set a record (and not a terribly good one) for shortness of lifespan for a new device, as the 16-inch MacBook Pros with M2 Pro and M2 Max chips were discontinued as soon as Apple announced the new M3 Pro and M3 Max versions. That’s sure to annoy a lot of people who only bought what was the latest and most powerful MacBook Pros less than a year ago.
You’d also be forgiven for wondering if this new MacBook Pro 16-inch will itself become outdated in just nine months. That seems unlikely, but I’d have said the same in January of this year – there was a gap of 14 months between the M1 Pro and M1 Max 16-inch MacBook Pros and the M2 versions). And, while the M2 models, as well as the M1 models, are still supported by Apple, if no longer sold by it, I wouldn’t blame you for being cautious. Always having the latest model of a MacBook is going to be difficult – and expensive – at the best of times, but for a new model to be replaced in just nine months definitely feels a bit cheeky. Would Apple attempt to do that with an iPhone?
At least Apple has kept the starting price of the new MacBook Pro 16-inch the same, at $2,499 / £2,599 / AU$4,299, which gets you a version with the M3 Pro chip, which comes with a 12-core CPU, 18-core GPU, 18GB of unified memory and 512GB SSD.
That means you’re essentially getting a big boost with the M3 Pro, plus more memory (the rather odd 18GB compared to the M2 Pro model’s 16GB), for no additional cost. That’s nice for people who had been weighing up the M2 Pro version up until a few weeks ago, although it could be construed as another slap in the face for people who've bought the M2 Pro.
The good news, however, is that while Apple has stopped selling the M2 Pro and M2 Max MacBook Pro 16-inch models, other retailers are still selling them, and they will likely be quite keen to clear inventory to make way for the M3 generation. That means you may be able to pick up an M2 Pro or M2 Max model with a big price cut, especially during the upcoming Black Friday deals event – and because those laptops are less than a year old, you could get yourself a still-excellent laptop for a bargain price.
You can also get the 16-inch model with the same M3 Pro chip, 36GB of memory and 512GB SSD for $2,899 / £2,999 / AU$4,899.
The next step up comes with the more powerful M3 Max chip, which features a 14-core CPU, 30-core GPU, 36GB unified memory and 1TB SSD for $3,499 / £3,599 / AU$5,999. Finally, you can get a model with the M3 Max with a 16-core CPU, 40-core GPU, 48GB Unified Memory and 1TB of storage for $3,999 / $4,099 / AU$6,899.
You can also configure the new 16-inch MacBook Pro to come with 64GB or 128GB of memory, and up to 8TB of SSD storage.
The fully-specced out version will set you back an immense $7,199 / £7,299 / AU$11,699. If you’re one of the few people who can a) afford this and b) need this kind of power, you’ll need to allow for two to three weeks for it to be delivered.
The 16-inch MacBook Pro is certainly a premium workstation laptop with the price tag to prove it, and while this will put many people off, for many others who require seriously strong hardware for work, may see this as a good investment – despite fears that Apple could drop a follow-up nine months later.
Unlike the MacBook Pro 14-inch (M3) which launched alongside it, the 16-inch model doesn’t come with a more affordable model with the base M3 chip. This is the first time the 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pros have differed (apart from their screen sizes).
Value score: 3/5
Apple MacBook Pro 16-inch (M3): Specs
(Image credit: Future)
Apple MacBook Pro 16-inch (M3): Design
Same design as earlier model
New Space Black color option
Still the best screen you can get on a laptop
When it comes to the design of the MacBook Pro 16-inch (M3), Apple has hardly deviated from the previous model – the only change is a new color option, called ‘Space Black’, which Apple claims is made with a “breakthrough chemistry” that reduce the retention of fingerprints by creating am anodisation seal.
Apple sent me a MacBook Pro 16-inch (M3) in that color, and it looks great. Black can sometimes not be the most exciting color for tech to come in, but there’s a nice metallic finish to Space Black that gives it a depth that other laptops of a similar hue often lack. It looks serious and professional, which is what you want from a mobile workstation like the 16-inch MacBook Pro. It would be nice to have some more vibrant colors with the next MacBook Air, however. I can also confirm that whatever (space) black magic Apple used to banish fingerprints works a treat – after handling it for days, the MacBook Pro 16-inch (M3) showed not a single fingerprint, whereas other MacBooks would be beginning to look a bit smudged by now.
There is a bit of a design oversight, I feel, as while the braided charging cable comes in black to match the color of the MacBook Pro it came with (much like with the 24-inch iMacs), the power brick that you plug into the wall socket remains white, which looks a bit ugly with the rest of the Black Space-colored MacBook Pro.
I should also point out that while I liked the new Space Black color, a few of my colleagues – especially the ones who usually use MacBooks – weren’t too impressed, noting that it didn’t look like a MacBook, and more like a standard black laptop. One even commented that it looked like a gaming laptop – which is interesting as Apple has been pushing the gaming abilities of its M3 lineup.
Aside from that, things are identical to the model released at the beginning of 2023, which itself was the same as the model from 2021, but to be honest, I don’t mind. I feel Apple nailed the design of the first 16-inch MacBook Pro two years ago – the keyboard is comfortable and responsive (banishing the poor reputation older MacBook Pro keyboards suffered from), the Touch ID button lets you securely sign in and pay for things with a quick tap, and there’s an excellent array of ports (SDXC memory card slot, three Thunderbolt / USB 4 ports, a full-sized HDMI port and headphone jack.
(Image credit: Future)
There was a fashion a few years ago to keep make laptops thinner and lighter, and that often came at the expense of ports. While that’s fine for regular laptops, for workstations where you’re likely going to want to plug in a lot of peripherals, such as hard drives, external monitors or projectors and memory cards, having only two USB-C ports, one of which often gets used to charge the laptop, just isn’t enough.
With the MacBook Pro 16-inch (M3), you can leave pretty much all of your adapters at home, and plug everything directly in to the laptop – making it a far more convenient device for people who travel a lot. With the quality of the screen (I’ll get to that in a moment), six-speaker sound system, studio quality mics and 1080p FaceTime HD webcam, the MacBook Pro 16-inch (M3) continues what I appreciated so much about the previous versions – that it offered excellent quality with its built in features which meant you didn’t necessarily have to plug in external screens, microphones or speakers, which gives a level of flexibility to creatives working in film, animation, music and photography.
The slimline bezels around the screen still feel nice and modern (just compare it to the older 13-inch MacBook Pro to see what a difference a thin frame around the display can make), and yes, the ‘notch’ around the webcam remains, dipping down into the menu bar at the top of the desktop. The controversy over this was overblown back in 2021 when it debuted with the new 16-inch model, and it remains a non-issue now. macOS Sonoma, like the previous versions of macOS, adapts to it well, moving menu items to either side of the notch, and with the large 16-inch screen, you really don’t notice it, as you get a large, unobscured workspace.
The 16.2-inch screen remains the best display you can get on a laptop, with a sharp 3456 x 2234 resolution and Liquid Retina XDR tech, offering 1,600 nits of peak brightness for incredibly vivid colors and dynamic range, especially with HDR footage. Mini-LEDs and local dimming help make dark scenes look absolutely superb, and the P3 wide color gamut and support for 1 billion colors allows for accurate tones that will be essential for video editors and photographers in particular.
Perhaps my favorite part of the 16-inch MacBook Pro’s screen (which is also found in the 14-inch model), is the ProMotion technology, which supports up to 120Hz refresh rates, and can automatically adjust that rate to match onscreen content. This can be particularly noticeable when scrolling though websites or documents. Text, images and even moving footage all scroll smoothly and remain visible no matter how fast you scroll up and down. TV shows and movies also benefit from this – as well as computer games. Apple has been keen to emphasise the M3 line up’s prowess when it comes to playing graphically-demanding games, and ProMotion is key selling point (high refresh rate screens are increasingly common in premium gaming laptops).
ProMotion also helps extend battery life of the MacBook Pro by reducing the refresh rate when it detects static content.
Finally, there’s a MagSafe 3 port for easily connecting (and safely disconnecting) the power supply. It’s good to have, especially if you forget the MacBook Pro 16-inch (M3) is plugged in and pull it away, as the charger will disconnect safely without damaging any ports. It also means you don’t lose one of the USB-C Thunderbolt 4 ports when it needs to be charged – though you can use one of those ports to top up the battery if you leave your MagSafe 3 cable behind.
So, the MacBook Pro 16-inch (M3) doesn’t do anything new design-wise, but that really isn’t a bad thing. Why tinker with such a great design? Sure, Apple could have added a touchscreen, or even *shudder* resurrect the Touch Bar above the keyboard, and at 1.62kg (3.6lbs), it is a heavy laptop to carry around, but honestly, this would just be tweaking for tweaking’s sake – and could come at a cost (such as dropping some of the ports for a lighter and thinner design). I don’t want Apple getting complacent, but for now, I am perfectly happy that the company has stuck to a tried-and-tested design.
Design score: 5/5
(Image credit: Future)
Apple MacBook Pro 16-inch (M3): Performance
Superb performance
Big leap over M1 Pro and M1 Max
Can play modern games
Apple made some big claims about the M3 Pro and M3 Max chips at its launch event in October, and it sent me the MacBook Pro 16-inch with the high-end M3 Max (with 16-core CPU and 40-core GPU) and 48GB of unified memory, which is the most expensive preconfigured MacBook Pro 16-inch you can buy.
There are less powerful models, and you can also configure the MacBook Pro 16-inch to come with more memory and SSD storage, and I recommend you think carefully about what configuration suits your needs. The model I received will be overkill for a lot of people, unless you’re planning on doing some seriously intensive workloads when it comes to graphics rendering and video, but as this is an Apple device, it’s notoriously impossible to upgrade yourself, which means the specs you choose before you buy are going to be the ones you’ll have to live with.
If you do go for a lower-specced model of the 16-inch MacBook Pro (M3), then you won’t get the exact experience I got with the highest-end model, but even at the lower specs, you’re going to get a very good experience.
According to Apple, the M3 Max inside the 16-inch MacBook Pro delivers up to 45% faster CPU performance than the M2 Max, and up to 20% faster graphics performance. That’s not a bad step up in just 9 months, and is probably enough of a gap to make M2 Max owners regret their purchase. However, it’s not enough to justify replacing an M2 Max model with the M3 Max – even if you get a good trade-in price.
Benchmarks
Here’s how the MacBook Pro 16-inch (M3 Max) performed in our suite of benchmark tests:
Cinebench R24 CPU: Single-Core: 140; Multi-Core: 13,122 Geekbench 6 Single-Core: 3,219; Multi-Core: 21,345 Blender:Monster: 207.7; Junkshop: 125.5; Classroom: 87.8 Battery Life (TechRadar movie test): 24 hours and 35 minutes
When it comes to the older M1 Max, the gap is more pronounced, with Apple claiming 80% faster CPU speeds, and 40% faster graphics performance. However, it’s clear that when Apple talks about performance gains, it really wants to address owners of Intel systems (be they older MacBooks or Windows 11 PCs), and here the performance gains are much larger, with Apple claiming the M3 Max 16-inch MacBook Pro is up to 5.3 times faster than the fastest Intel-based MacBook Pro.
That’s an impressive boast, but bear in mind that the last MacBook Pro to come with an Intel chip was back in 2020, but Apple is referring to the 2019 MacBook Pro 16-inch model, which came with a 9th generation Intel Core i9-9980HK in its top configuration.
In our own independent benchmark tests, we definitely saw a good leap between the M3 Max and M1 Max MacBook Pro 16-inches, with a 35% increase in Geekbench 6 in single core CPU performance, and a huge 69% increase in multi-core performance.
Cinebench R24 saw a similar leap, with a 25% gain in single-core performance, and 98.9% increase in multi-core. This tracks, with the M3 having more cores that perform better, so multi-core performance increases as you’d expect.
The GPU performance also brought big increases according to the Cinebench test, with a leap of 188% for the M3 Max. These are all very impressive results.
But what do they mean for real-world use? In our Handbrake encode test, where we take a 4K video and re-encode it at 1080p, the M1 Max completed the task at 61fps (frames per second), while the M3 Max did it at 107fps, an increase in 76.6%, and with the higher fps, the task completed much more quickly – and this is how the new M3 series of chips can impact you, as there’s a noticeable cut in the time it takes to complete workloads, especially graphics-intensive ones.
(Image credit: Future)
In my day-to-day use of the MacBook Pro 16-inch (M3), I was really impressed with how fast macOS Sonoma ran, allowing me to have a large number of applications open and running at once, plus a Chrome browser full of open tabs. The performance of the MacBook Pro 16-inch with M3 Max makes working on the laptop fast and fluid, and again, it feels like it’s an experience that’s been designed to speed up workflows, especially for creatives. Opening up and editing 4K videos in Premier Pro was incredibly quick, and I was able to add effects and use AI-enabled tools and see the results instantly, rather than having to wait for scenes to render. By speeding up workflows like this, I was able to complete the editing much more quickly, and for professional video editors, this means projects can be completed faster, which could enable you to take on more work. Suddenly, this very expensive laptop looks more like a wise investment.
One of the most exciting developments with the M3 family of chips is Apple’s focus on gaming performance, and I was keen to put this to the test.
Running games such as Shadow of the Tomb Raider, I was able to get 108fps at the highest settings at 1200p resolution (twice what we managed on the M1 Max), and in Total War: Warhammer III, it hit 58.2fps.
I also loaded up Baldurs Gate 3, a turn-based RPG that’s just launched, and is a popular game with a version made for Apple’s M3 lineup. On the M3 Max-powered MacBook Pro 16-inch, the game looked fantastic, with many graphical settings on ‘Ultra’. The ProMotion display also puts in good work, allowing me to cap framerates at 120fps, and while I might not often hit that in a graphically-busy game like Baldurs Gate 3, the ability to reach higher frame rates makes for a much smoother experience. There were a few times when odd graphical glitches appeared, such as strange lines in shadows, but they were only temporary, and it could be down to driver support for the new M3 chips.
I also played Baldurs Gate 3 on the new iMac 24-inch (M3), and while it was nice to play on an iMac, the power difference was clear, as the graphical settings had to be lowered, and there were still hitches in performance.
The MacBook Pro 16-inch (M3), then, has the potential to rival many of the best gaming laptops based on this showing – and it even looks the part if you go for the Space Black color option. Impressively, while the fans did kick in, they never got as loud as most gaming laptops get when powering through games, though the part of the chassis just above the keyboard did get noticeably hot to touch while gaming.
Performance score: 5/5
Apple MacBook Pro 16-inch (M3): Battery life
Over 24 hours in benchmark test
Shorter for intensive tasks
Gaming drains it even faster
Since the switch to Apple silicon, the battery lives of all flavor of MacBook have been seriously impressive – especially the 16-inch models, which come with physically larger batteries, along with all the efficiency features of the M3 lineup.
Apple claims that the new MacBook Pro 16-inch ‘delivers that longest battery life ever in a Mac’, with a lithium-polymer battery with 100 watt-hours of capacity, offering up to 22 hours of video playback and 15 hours of web browsing.
In our battery life benchmark, where we ran a looped 1080p video until the MacBook Pro turned off, the battery lasted just over 24 hours – that’s incredibly impressive. Now it’s unlikely you’re going to be using the MacBook Pro 16-inch for just watching a local video file, but it shows how far we’ve come – the fact that such a powerful laptop with a relatively large and bright screen can hit those kind of numbers is a real credit to what Apple has achieved with its M3 lineup.
(Image credit: Future)
When using the Apple MacBook Pro 16-inch (M3) for more intensive tasks, the battery will deplete faster, but during my time with it, I never felt the need to charge it halfway through a day. The performance also remained consistent whether the MacBook Pro 16-inch (M3) was plugged into the charger or not – which is definitely nice to see, as some laptops reduce performance when on battery power to lengthen the time before it needs to be charged.
When gaming on the battery, the battery depletes even faster, and if you're playing a graphically-intensive game, you're looking at around three to four hours of battery life. That may sound shocking for a MacBook, but even the best gaming laptops often only last that long.
With the 140W USB-C Power Adapter included in the review sample I received, the MacBook Pro 16-inch (M3) charged up quickly, taking less than an hour to go from empty to 100%.
Battery life score: 5/5
Apple MacBook Pro 16-inch (M3): Should you buy it?
Let’s be honest: the title of the best all-in-one computer is the Apple iMac (M3)’s to lose. No Windows-based all-in-one comes close to Apple’s iconic product – and that’s not always a good thing. In the past, it’s led to a sense that Apple is resting on its laurels a bit; there was a period of time in the late 2010s where Apple seemed to pump out Intel-based iMacs with seemingly little to no enthusiasm, just a slight specs bump and the same, increasingly dated, design.
That changed with the launch of the iMac 24-inch (M1, 2021), which not only featured Apple’s new (at the time) M1 chip – the first non-mobile chip the company had produced – but also an overhauled design that slimmed the bezels down, modernized the look and added some much-needed color options. It was easily one of the best redesigns we’ve seen recently, and firmly cemented the iMac as the best all-in-one computer And then… nothing.
When Apple launched the M2 chip, there was no iMac refresh, even though other products, including the Mac mini, got the new SoC. Nor was there any sign of a 27-inch iMac or iMac Pro – both of which have currently never had Apple silicon versions.
It seemed like Apple had fallen out of love with the iMac once again. That was until its ‘Scary Fast’ event on October 30, 2023, where it finally unveiled a new 24-inch iMac (M3), featuring its cutting-edge M3 chip, but keeping pretty much everything else the same as the one from two years ago.
(Image credit: Future)
Design-wise, the iMac 24-inch (M3) is identical to the M1 model from two years ago. It remains a great looking device with bright color options – a rarity both for modern Macs and Windows-based PCs – that don’t look childish, but that add a splash of individuality to the all-in-one. The screen remains the same as well, and is bright, sharp and offers excellent color accuracy with the P3 gamut.
However, sticking to the same design also brings back some old frustrations, such as the charging port on the bottom of the Magic Mouse, which means you can’t use it while it’s charging, plus a reliance on the increasingly obsolete Lightning connection for charging all of the peripherals, rather than getting with the times and using USB-C. And there's the lack of larger screen options; this is perhaps the most disappointing aspect of the new model, as 24 inches no longer feels that large, especially for power users who like to work on multiple apps and windows at once.
On the inside, things are much more different, however, with support for Apple’s impressive M3 chip, which offers a noticeable performance increase over the previous M1-powered iMac, and does an excellent job with intensive tasks such as coding and video rendering. It can even play modern games, and while you’re not getting the kind of frames per second seasoned PC gamers expect from their rigs, it’s a promising sign that gaming on Macs may one day no longer be the joke it once was.
(Image credit: Future)
One thing I’d have liked them to keep the same, however, is the price. Unfortunately, the new iMac 24-inch (M3) now starts at $1,399 / £1,399 / AU$2,199, a leap over the starting price of the previous model. In some ways this is understandable – the M3 chip represents a big upgrade in performance, and what isn’t getting more expensive these days? Still, Apple was developing a habit of launching new models for the same price as the previous one, so it’s a shame that has not happened here.
Also, the base model comes with just 8GB of memory and 256GB SSD, which is pretty low these days, and because the iMac isn’t upgradable (this is an Apple product, after all), I’d recommend upping the memory and SSD to future proof your purchase – but that, of course, raises the price further. The new iMac remains the best all-in-one computer you can buy, but it doesn’t feel as good value as the previous model.
Apple iMac 24-inch (M3) review: Price and availability
How much does it cost? Starts at $1,399 / £1,399 / AU$2,199
When is it available? Available now
Where can you get it? Available in the US, UK, and Australia
Image 1 of 3
(Image credit: Future)
Image 2 of 3
(Image credit: Future)
Image 3 of 3
(Image credit: Future)
Though Apple launched several MacBook Pros with a range of screen sizes and configuration options (including powerful M3 Pro and M3 Max chips), the new Apple iMac (M3) comes in just one size, 24 inches, and you only get the M3 chip – though that can be configured.
The base model of the Apple iMac 24-inch (M3) starts at $1,399 / £1,399 / AU$2,199, which gets you an M3 chip with 8-core GPU, 8-core CPU, 8GB of memory, 256GB SSD and Magic Keyboard and Magic Mouse.
This is a step up in starting price from the previous M1 model, which launched at $1,299 / £1,249 / AU$1,899, and puts it at the pricier end of all-in-ones. However, Apple is making some big claims about the performance of the M3 chip (which we’ll get to in a bit), so the pressure is on to prove that this price bump is worth it.
You can also buy the new iMac with a slightly more powerful M3 chip with 10-core GPU (and same 8-core CPU, 8GB of memory and 256GB SSD) for $1,499 / £1,599 / $2,499, and this model comes with two additional USB 3 ports, support for Gigabit Ethernet, and Touch ID on the Magic Keyboard to allow you to log in with your fingerprint.
You can configure the base models to come with either 16GB or 24GB of unified memory, which ups the overall price, but which is probably worth doing if you want the iMac for more intensive tasks. That's because, unsurprisingly, you can’t open up the iMac and upgrade the memory later, and 8GB is a bit low these days, especially as with unified memory, you’re sharing it as both standard system RAM and video RAM for the GPU.
You can also configure the iMac 24-inch (M3) for more SSD storage, up to 2TB, and again this is an upgrade I’d recommend you make before you buy, as 256GB will fill up fast, especially if you work with video and photo files. At least you can always add more storage with an external hard drive later on, however.
Price score: 3/ 5
Apple iMac 24-inch (M3) review: Design
Same design as M1 model
Seven color choices
Peripherals still use Lightning cables
Image 1 of 3
(Image credit: Future)
Image 2 of 3
(Image credit: Future)
Image 3 of 3
(Image credit: Future)
The Apple iMac 24-inch (M3) keeps the same design as the M1 model from two years ago, and that’s both a good and bad thing. On the plus side, it remains an attractive and stylish all-in-one, and the 2021 redesign did a great job of updating the aesthetics to make it feel more modern.
This means thinner bezels around the screen, so less overall space is taken up, and the angular-yet-rounded corners bring to mind modern iPhones such as the iPhone 15 range. Thanks to the size and efficiency of the M3 chip (which uses the 3nm process, allowing for an incredibly small chip), the body behind the screen is impressively thin. There’s no chunky parts or big whirring fans that kick in when in use here, as with many other all-in-ones that have to balance a relatively compact form factor with making sure the components inside don’t overheat.
The only concession to the hardware included in the iMac is with the thicker bottom bezel, which is where the bulk of the components are placed.
The 24-inch screen is again the same as the last model: it has a 4.5K Retina resolution which supports the P3 wide color gamut and over a billion colors, and 500 nits of brightness. It also features a 1080p FaceTime camera and 'studio-quality' microphones, plus a six-speaker setup for spatial audio. The screen is held by a base and arm that feel sturdy but allow it to be easily tilted and positioned.
Perhaps the best thing about the 2021 redesign also returns: the varied colors in which you can buy the iMac. You have a choice of seven: green, pink, blue, silver, yellow, orange and purple, and the cables and accessories that come with the iMac reflect the color you choose. However, bear in mind that only the first four of those colors are available on the base-level model.
It was lovely seeing Apple bring a bit of color back to its Macs, serving as a nod to its past with the colorful iMac G3, as well as a break with current style of PCs and laptops generally coming in variations of gray and black.
As with the previous model, the colors give it a sense of personality that other all-in-ones lack, but thanks to their muted, pastel, hues, they look stylish rather than childish. They’d fit into any modern home, office or studio without much issue. Apple sent TechRadar the iMac in pink, and it really looks lovely. The fact that the peripherals and braided cables also come in the same color is a great touch that has been carried over from the 2021 model.
(Image credit: Future)
With dimensions of 54.7 x 46.1 x 14.7cm (21.5 x 18.1 x 5.8-inches) and a weight of 4.48kg (9.75lbs), the Apple iMac 24-inch (M3) doesn’t take up much space on a desk, and is relatively easy to pick up and place where you need. Thanks to the all-in-one form factor, which combines the screen and computer in one connected device, it’s far less hassle to set up and move than a standard desktop PC which requires various cables and a separate monitor.
The included Magic Mouse and Magic Keyboard (plus the Magic Trackpad if you pay extra), are wireless, again minimising the clutter on your desk, and come charged and paired with the iMac, so you can take them out and start using them straight away. It’s a nice bit of Apple’s ‘it just works’ philosophy, and while it might not sound like a big deal, some Windows-based all-in-ones come with peripherals which need to be initially paired or charged, which makes the setup process less simple.
However, as I said, by sticking with the same design as the 2021 model, there are some frustrations as well, and it’s perhaps most apparent with the peripherals. When rumors of a new iMac started swirling, many people (myself included) had hoped that Apple would use this new model as an excuse to give the peripherals a design tweak.
This is mainly because they still use a USB to Lightning connection, which feels out of place considering that Apple has finally (and begrudgingly) swapped its proprietary Lightning port in its new iPhone 15 range for the much more widely-used USB-C. Back when iPhones (and other Apple devices) still used Lightning, it sort of made sense for the iMac peripherals to use it as well, as it meant you could use an iPhone charger to charge the peripherals – and vice versa. However, there will become a time when that’s no longer possible, and with pretty much every wireless mouse or wireless keyboard coming with USB-C ports, the fact Apple didn’t include them with the Magic Mouse and Magic Keyboard feels like a wasted opportunity – and a rather dated decision.
What’s more frustrating, in my opinion at least, is that this also means that the charging port of the Magic Mouse remains on the bottom of the mouse. Apple’s argument is that by having it there, rather than on the front or back of the mouse, like pretty much every other wireless mouse in existence, it has a sleeker design. However, the downside is that when you need to charge the mouse, you simply cannot use it due to the wire sticking out of the bottom.
(Image credit: Future)
It’s a baffling design decision from a company that usually nails the form and function of its devices, and the fact that Apple still clings on to this choice is even stranger, and feels a bit like stubbornness. Sometimes you do something in a different way from everyone else because you’re innovating – but other times it’s because you’re wrong.
The lack of a new design means that you’re stuck with 24 inches, which will be a blow to people hoping to finally see an Apple silicon-powered 27-inch iMac. Also, 24 inches no longer feels like a particularly large screen size, especially for creatives looking for a device to work on their footage and images.
Of course, you can plug in a larger external USB-C monitor, but that kind of defeats the point of having an all-in-one device.
The front of the iMac is free from buttons and ports, and on the back you get the power button, along with two Thunderbolt USB 4 ports on the base model. If you go for a more expensive model, you also get two additional USB 3 ports next to the others. This can lead to a bit of confusion, as all four ports use the USB-C interface, but two of them are slower, maxing out at 10Gb/s, rather than 40Gb/s of the USB 4 ports.
The two faster ports are identified by a small lightning bolt icon above them, but because the ports are at the back of the screen, and are the exact same shape, it makes it very hard to distinguish between them. For peripherals this won’t be an issue – they’ll work the same – but if you plug in a storage device, such as an external SSD, you’ll see a big impact on file transfer speeds depending on which port you plug it into.
Overall, then, the design of the Apple iMac 24-inch (M3) provides a welcome return of a stylish redesign, along with a less welcome return of some less successful design decisions.
Design score: 4/ 5
Apple iMac 24-inch (M3) review: Performance
Here's how the Apple iMac 24-inch (M3) performed in our suite of benchmark tests:
The new iMac 24-inch launched alongside new MacBook Pros showcasing Apple’s latest M3 series of chips, and while the all-in-one doesn’t come with the more powerful M3 Pro and M3 Max variants, which are currently exclusive to the new MacBook Pro 14-inch (M3) and MacBook Pro 16-inch (M3) models, those two higher-end chips are going to be overkill for most regular users.
The base M3 chip is still a significant upgrade over the previous iMac’s M1 chip (Apple didn’t release an M2 version of its all-in-one), and an even bigger leap over the Intel processors found in older iMacs. That makes the new iMac a far more justifiable upgrade than the two new MacBook Pros, which are replacing M2 Pro and M2 Max versions that launched only 10 months ago.
Apple claims that the M3 chip is up to 35% faster than the Apple M1 chip, and you can configure the new iMac with up to 24GB of unified memory – whereas the M1 model maxed out at 16GB. For multitasking and more intensive workloads, this is going to be very welcome.
The base iMac (M3) comes with an 8-core CPU and 8-core GPU, compared to the 8-core CPU and 7-core GPU of the base M1 model, and you can also upgrade the M3 to have an 8-core CPU and 10-core GPU (whereas the M1 model could only be upgraded to an 8-core CPU and 8-core GPU).
The model Apple sent in for us to review is the highest-end version, with the 8-core CPU and 10-core GPU M3 and 24GB memory, plus 2TB of storage, so the kind of performance I experienced with it during my time using and reviewing the new iMac may not quite match yours if you go for a more affordable model (though the difference shouldn’t be that extreme).
(Image credit: Future)
When it comes to our benchmark tests, Apple’s claims about the M3’s impressive performance certainly hold up. In the Cinebench R23 CPU tests, which look at how well the chip’s processor performs, the new iMac with M3 scored 1,897 in single core tests, and 9,796 in multicore tests. This is a big leap over the iMac with M1’s scores, which hit 1,489 and 7,754 respectively in the same tests.
In Geekbench 5, which again puts the CPU part of the chip to the test, the new iMac scored 2,284 in single-core tests, and 10,716 in multi-core tests, compared to the previous iMac’s scores of 1,725 and 7,650.
These scores show a clear leap in CPU performance, and while the M1 iMac was no slouch when it first launched, I was immediately impressed with how fast and fluid the new M3 iMac felt when using macOS Sonoma. Even with multiple open Chrome tabs and numerous apps running, the iMac 24-inch (M3) was ultra-smooth in use.
Interestingly, the single-core scores for the M3 in both Cinebench R23 and Geekbench 5 actually beat those for the M1 Max, which was once the flagship chip from Apple. While the M1 Max overtook the M3 in multi-core tests, due to having more cores, this is a great example of how quickly Apple silicon is evolving, and while the new iMac doesn’t have M3 Pro or M3 Max configurations, it’s a formidable performer, and few – if any – all-in-one PCs can match it.
When it comes to graphics performance, the M3 (which is what’s known as a System on Chip, and which features a CPU, GPU and memory all on the same chip) also impresses. At the launch event, Apple made a big deal about the new graphical prowess of the M3 family, with hardware-accelerated ray tracing now included – something even some dedicated gaming laptops lack.
There’s also Dynamic Caching that makes use of the fast unified memory included on the M3, and mesh shading for geometry processing in complex 3D scenes.
These improvements mean workflows are seriously sped up compared to the previous-generation iMac, as evidenced by our Handbrake video encoding tests, and for the first time ever, the iMac is also a viable gaming device.
(Image credit: Future)
Playing Lies of P, a graphically intensive game where timing is everything, the iMac with M3 scored on average 33fps (Frames Per Second) – an impressively playable experience. Shadow of the Tomb Raider also ran well at 36fps, and Total War: Warhammer III, which is quite CPU-intensive due to its complex battles featuring a multitude of units, scored 38.4fps.
While these scores aren’t going to make PC gamers with RTX 4090-equipped rigs consider switching, it’s an impressive result for a thin all-in-one PC with integrated graphics. The six-built in speakers get a good workout during games, and music via Apple Music and YouTube sounds fantastic, again impressive due to the thin design of the iMac 24-inch, which limits the kind of speakers you can include. Thanks to macOS Sonoma’s new Game Mode, the iMac also cleverly detects when you’re playing a game and ensures resources are allocated to keep the game running smoothly, while lowering the latency of wireless peripherals such as the PS5 DualSense controller, or AirPods earphones.
One thing to note is that these results were for games running at 1080p. They looked fantastic on the iMac’s screen, but they don’t make use of its native resolution of 4.5K (4,480 x 2,520). At that resolution, the M3’s GPU really struggles. Shadow of the Tomb Raider, for example, drops to just 6fps at native resolution – making it resemble a slideshow more than a game.
Despite not coming with the high-end M3 Pro or M3 Ultra, the iMac 24-inch (M3) is an excellent performer, outclassing any Windows-based all-in-one at this price point, and represents a very good leap over the previous M1 model as well. Thanks to the efficiency of the M3 chip, along with a clever thermal solution, I didn’t notice any performance throttling while using it, even when testing out 4K video editing in Adobe Premier Pro, and the fans didn’t kick in either, so the iMac was essentially silent in use as well.
Design score: 4.5/ 5
Apple iMac 24-inch (M3): Specs
Should you buy the Apple iMac 24-inch (M3)?
Buy it if...
You want the best all-in-one PC
Yet again, the iMac 24-inch (M3) proves that Apple leads the pack when it comes to all-in-one PCs.
You have limited space
The thin design and modest screen size means the iMac 24-inch (M3) can be easily set up in almost any room in a home or office.
You enjoy the occasional game
The graphical advancements of the M3 chip, along with macOS Sonoma’s Game Mode, means that playing games on the iMac isn’t just possible – it’s enjoyable as well.
Don't buy it if...
You want a big screen
The 24-inch screen makes the new iMac easy to carry and place, but if you want more screen real estate, you should look elsewhere.
You want high-end Apple silicon
The lack of M3 Pro or M3 Max options means you’ll need to get a new MacBook for the ultimate performance from this generation of Apple silicon.
You’re a hardcore gamer
The new iMac is an exciting step forward for the viability of gaming on Macs, but don’t go thinking this will give the likes of Alienware or Razer a run for their money.
How I tested the iMac 24-inch (M3)
Spent several days testing and using the iMac
Ran our suite of benchmark tests
Played several games
As soon as the iMac 24-inch landed in the office, I set it up and began testing. This involved using it for day-to-day tasks, such as writing up articles in Google Docs and sending emails, as well as browsing the web in both Chrome and Safari (with multiple tabs open).
I also played several games, including Lies of P and Total War: Warhammer III to test out Apple’s claims about the M3 chip’s gaming performance. With the help of my colleague John Loeffler, we ran our usual suite of benchmarks over the weekend as well, so I could get a full idea of just how well the new iMac performs.
I’ve tested several iMacs in the past for TechRadar, including the previous model with the M1 chip, as well as the iMac Pro and 27-inch Intel-based iMacs, so I compared my experience of those devices, as well as many Windows-based all-in-one PCs, to inform this review.
Here is the MacBook Pro (M3 Max, 2023) configuration sent to TechRadar for review:
CPU: Apple M3 Max (16-core) Graphics: Integrated 40-core GPU RAM: 64GB [Unified LPDDR5] Screen: 14.2-inch, 3024 x 1964 Liquid Retina XDR display 600 nits (1,600 peak nits with HDR content) brightness, wide color P3 gamut Storage: 2TB SSD Ports: 3x Thunderbolt 4 (USB-C), 3.5mm headphone jack, MagSafe 3 charging port, SDXC, HDMI Connectivity: Wi-Fi 6e, Bluetooth 5.3 Camera: 1080p FaceTime HD webcam Weight: 3.6 pounds / 1.24kg Size: 12.31 x 8.71 x 0.61 inches / 31.26 x 22.12 x 1.55cm; W x D x H)
The story of the new MacBook Pro 14 is less about a new laptop on the block than it is about Apple showcasing the raw power of Apple's newest silicon, the M3 chip. Stuffed inside my brooding Space Black portable is Apple's apex M3 processor, the M3 Max. I tell you this so that you don't mistakenly expect that your $1,599 / £1,699 / AU$2,699 MacBook Pro 14 with an M3 chip will provide the same performance as what's cooking on my $4,299 /£4,399 / AU$7,249 review unit.
The base-model M3 will still support hardware-based ray tracing and mesh shading. It'll still have that blazing-fast neural network. But you'll have many fewer CPU and GPU cores, and much less memory; the M3 Max model has 64GB. You're buying a casually powerful Pro system. The M3 Max MacBook Pro came to play hard and work hard (it's tough to say which it'll go at harder).
(Image credit: Future / Lance Ulanoff)
From the impressive design and materials (aluminum chassis with a brand-new anodizing technique for the Space Black finish that finally cuts down on fingerprints) to the expressive keyboard that is now my favorite MacBook typing experience, to a versatile macOS Sonoma platform that supports every activity from entertainment and gaming to email, web browsing, and intense photo and video work, there is not one hint of performance disappointment in this system.
It's without a doubt the best MacBook I've ever used, and I think it stands a chance of giving some of the best gaming laptops a real run for their money.
This is not, by any stretch of the imagination, an affordable laptop, and if you're looking for thin, light, relatively budget-friendly, and are not working on massive CAD files, 4K video streams, or playing the latest AAA games, then perhaps the still-stellar MacBook Air M2 (no M3 yet) is more your style, or even the MacBook Pro 14 with M3. As mentioned, that model starts at $1,599 / £1,699 / AU$2,699 – that's $100 cheaper than the 14-inch MacBook Pro with M2 in the US, but is also a reminder that there's no $1,299 tier in MacBook Pro space.
There's little doubt in my mind that the complete lineup of MacBook Pro 14 M3 machines, from the base M3 to the M3 Pro and this M3 Max, will take their places among the best laptops money can buy. And, yes, the MacBook Pro 14 M3 Max could also snare a spot on our best gaming laptops list.
MacBook Pro 14-inch (M3 Max, 2023) review: Price and availability
(Image credit: Future / Lance Ulanoff)
M3 range starts at $1,599 / £1,699 / AU$2,699
Tested model costs $4,299 / £4,399 / AU$7,249
No 13-inch option (which would have cost less)
Apple announced the new MacBook Pro 14-inch range at its October 30 Scary Fast event, alongside new 16-inch MacBook Pros. The 14-inch MacBook Pro now comes with a choice of M3, M3 Pro, and M3 Max chips, the latest generation of Apple's own silicon. Meanwhile, the 16-inch MacBook Pro is only available with the higher-end (and more expensive) M3 Pro and M3 Max. There's also a new iMac 24 running on the base M3 SoC.
Preorders are live now, and the new M3 and M3 Pro MacBooks will go on sale and ship from November 7, while the M3 Max models will begin shipping later in November.
The MacBook Pro 14-inch M3 range starts at $1,599 / £1,699 / AU$2,699 (it's worth noting that Apple has discontinued the 13-inch MacBook Pro). As configured, our Space Black MacBook Pro 14-inch with an M3 Max SoC, 64GB of RAM and a 2TB hard drive has a list price of $4,299 / £4,399 / AU$7,249.
Price score: 4/5
MacBook Pro 14-inch (M3 Max, 2023) review: Design
Same design
More power squeezed into the same space and weight
An awesome new color option
Apple has changed virtually nothing about the MacBook Pro design from the 14-inch model it launched earlier this year with an M2 chip. The dimensions are the same, with a thickness of 0.61 inches / 1.55cm, a width of 12.31 inches / 31.26cm, and a depth of 8.71 inches / 22.12cm.
The weight is roughly the same, though the M3 Max 14-inch MacBook Pro is, at 3.6lbs / 1.24kg, the heaviest of the 14-inch bunch.
The screen size is the same, and on the M3 Max and M3 Pro 14-inch MacBooks the port placement is unchanged from the previous generation, as are the number and types of ports. You get three USB-C Thunderbolt 4 ports, a 3.5mm headphone jack, an HDMI port, an SD card slot, and a MagSafe charge port (if you opt for the base M3 model you only get two Thunderbolt ports)
If you stack the MacBook Air 13-inch M2 on top of the MacBook Pro 14-inch M3 Max, the latter doesn't look that much larger, but it is substantially thicker and heavier. When I opened it up to reveal that familiar Liquid Retina XDR display and backlit Magic Keyboard, I noted that the keyboard and trackpad are, from a size perspective, exactly the same as on the MacBook Air. Apple uses the extra chassis space on the Pro to accommodate a six-speaker system that's split to sit on either side of the keyboard; the larger chassis also provides just a bit more space to rest your palms.
Image 1 of 7
(Image credit: Future / Lance Ulanoff)
Image 2 of 7
(Image credit: Future / Lance Ulanoff)
Image 3 of 7
(Image credit: Future / Lance Ulanoff)
Image 4 of 7
(Image credit: Future / Lance Ulanoff)
Image 5 of 7
(Image credit: Future / Lance Ulanoff)
Image 6 of 7
(Image credit: Future / Lance Ulanoff)
Image 7 of 7
(Image credit: Future / Lance Ulanoff)
As with the previous 14-inch MacBook Pro, the matte keyboard feels as good as it looks. It's expansive, and there's enough key travel to make every touch sure and satisfying; it's a pleasure to type on. The power button still doubles as a Touch ID biometric scanner, which I use to unlock the laptop and sign into various online services. I still hope for the day that Apple introduces Face ID to the FaceTime camera notch that sits at the top of the display.
But enough about everything that's the same. I want to talk about the new Space Black finish. Sure, Apple has done colorful and even inspired finishes before, but I'd argue there's never been anything quite like the new Space Black finish on this new MacBook Pro 14 M3 Max (the 14-inch M3 Pro and M3 Max MacBooks are available in Space Black or silver, while the M3 model comes in Space Grey or silver).
It's not just black – it's a light-swallowing black. I noticed this when trying to photograph the new laptop, and watched as it basically devoured my studio lighting. The surface is just shy of being matte black, and that low reflectivity really stops the light from bouncing back at you. The new color gives the laptop a bold, aggressive, and no-nonsense look. I think any gamer would be proud to cart this laptop into their next tournament.
Apple has developed a new anodizing process for the Space Black color to create a fingerprint-resistant surface, and I can report that it did repel most of my handprints. That said, I have dry hands, and I did note that the sweatier the palm, the more visible the marks left on the laptop's surface, although even those fingerprints were faint. Just remember that this is a fingerprint-resistant MacBook Pro, not a fingerprint-proof one.
Design score: 5/5
MacBook Pro 14-inch (M3 Max, 2023) review: Display
Same resolution
Still excellent
It's brighter! (With standard imagery)
(Image credit: Future / Lance Ulanoff)
In typical fashion, Apple has managed to not change anything about its MacBook Pro Liquid Retina XDR display, but has still managed to squeeze some extra performance out of it thanks to the new and more efficient 3-nanometer M3 Max chip.
The screen has the exact same resolution as the last display panel (3024 x 1964), and the same one million-to-1 contrast ratio. Even the same peak brightness of 1,600 nits with HDR content is unchanged, although for day-to-day brightness with standard content we now get 600 nits, as opposed to the 500 nits on the last MacBook Pro.
(Image credit: Future)
In real-world use, I found that the MacBook Pro 14-inch with M3 Max is quite capable of beating back even direct sunlight; I'm convinced I could work pretty much anywhere on this laptop.
Overall, this is a beautiful screen. Thanks to bright colors and inky blacks, everything on it gets a premium look. Do I mind the FaceTime camera notch? Not really. Video usually plays in letterbox format and well below it, and it doesn't interfere with the business part of apps and web browsing. Even when I played games – and I played a lot of them – I didn't notice it.
(Image credit: Future / Lance Ulanoff)
Display score: 4.5/5
MacBook Pro 14-inch (M3 Max, 2023) review: Performance
Apple silicon at its finest
Good luck finding a task it can't handle
AAA gaming can chew through battery life
Benchmarks
Here’s how the MacBook Pro (M3 Max, 2023) performed in our suite of benchmark tests:
I really like the way Apple makes its chip series more powerful. It uses a standardized architecture, and then wraps more and more cores around it. The benefit is that all systems running the base 3-nanometer process M3 SoC share the same impressive features, but some perform faster than others.
While the bare-bones M3 in the base-model MacBook Pro 14-inch (with one fewer Thunderbolt ports) has an 8-core CPU (four efficiency cores and four performance cores), and a 10-core GPU, the M3 Max chip in the machine I tested has a 16-core CPU and a 40-core GPU. According to Geekbench 6, the system is running a 4.1GHz (single-core) and an estimated 3.3GHz (multi-core).
I ran a lot of benchmarks for raw performance scores, because that's what you do. Unsurprisingly, the GeekBench 6 numbers were startling, and while Apple has taken pains to compare the base M3 to the three-year-old M1 performance, comparing my MacBook Air M2 to the M3 Max was a real eye-opener. Granted, the M3 Max and the base M2 are not really directly comparable, but I think these figures do give you a sense of why you might pay so much for an M3 Max system stuffed with, in my case, 64GB of unified memory (you can, by the way, get a more expensive system with up to 128GB of unified memory and 8TB of storage).
MacBook Pro 14 M3 Max Geekbench Benchmarks (Image credit: Future)
It's easy to forget that Apple silicon is running on the ARM-64 platform, and that not all MacOS apps run natively on it. The reason I often forget this? Everything works. There's never been a moment in my three years of experience with Apple silicon where the MacBook throws up its digital hands and says, "Sorry, I can't run this app." Part of this is down to the rapid adoption of Apple silicon by Apple partners, and also because the Rosetta 2 system (which can translate between x86 code and Apple silicon) runs quietly in the background, managing all apps that are still looking for an x86 platform.
Okay, the MacBook Pro 14 M3 Max is not perfect on the compatibility front. The x86-compatible Steam, which I used for most of my games, did crash. But weirdly, so did iMovie, repeatedly, and that's an ARM native, and later the ARM-friendly Adobe Photoshop 2024. At least the system as a whole never crashes, and doesn't even know the meaning of a blue screen.
Since we're mostly not thinking about compatibility, we can just focus on performance, and the M3 Max is stunning. To be clear, I'm not a professional video editor or doctor analyzing 3D MRI scans, but I did my best to press this system and found it shrugged off all tasks. I opened 40 or so browser tabs on both Safari and Chrome (normally a soul-crushing task for any system), launched Apple TV+, installed Steam, and then played Tomb Raider Legacy. I might as well have been composing something in Notes (oh, wait, I was doing that, too). I loaded up FinalCut Pro with 4K 30fps video as well as some 4K 24fps ProRes HDR content, and edited and manipulated them with ease.
While not visually evident, I think it's also safe to assume that some of the system's speed and ease with all these apps – often running concurrently – is the new Dynamic Caching technology. This is essentially a more efficient way of using available memory. Instead of X number of registers always being used for the same task, the system only applies the memory needed for each, explicit task. The result is a lot less wasted memory and more left over for managing other critical tasks.
Apple spent considerable time during its Scary Fast event telling us how it engineered the new M3 SoC with features specifically designed to handle graphics-intensive tasks like, obviously, AAA games. Hardware-based ray tracing and mesh shading might improve how some of your most expensive apps look, but we all know that it's really all about gaming.
Image 1 of 6
Shadow of Tomb Raider (note framerate in upper left). (Image credit: Future)
Image 2 of 6
Shadow of Tomb Raider benchmark test (Image credit: Future)
Image 3 of 6
Running FinalCut Pro and editing multiple 4K videos. (Image credit: Future)
Image 4 of 6
Lies of P with Benchmark window open (Image credit: Future)
Image 5 of 6
Rise of the Tomb Raider gameplay. (Image credit: Future)
Image 6 of 6
Lies of P Benchmark window (Image credit: Future)
Naturally, I played some games. First, a few hours of the engaging Rise of Tomb Raider, which I will note is not that easy when you're using the keyboard. The eight-year-old game looked good, and gameplay was smooth and immersive. I usually wore my AirPods Pro (they connected instantly) so as to not annoy people around me.
Next, I installed Lies of P, a brand-new game seemingly inspired by Pinocchio, that is at home on all major consoles and now, thanks to Steam, the MacBook Pro, too.
It's a beautiful and quietly atmospheric game that starts in an old, deserted train station. Everything is rendered in such exquisite detail and, thanks to all the M3 Max's onboard graphics power, every surface looked about as real as they can in a game of this nature.
The system seemed to keep up with the action quite well (I played this game with a Bluetooth-connected PlayStation 5 controller; the system supports Bluetooth 5.3, which has just 100ms of latency). I used Terminal for a real-time view of Frame rates and found that, depending on the action, they bounced between 30 and 60fps. Action generally looked smooth in most sequences, including fast-paced puppet-on-puppet battles.
l also played Shadow of the Tomb Raider at the highest possible resolution of 3024 x 1964, and with every atmospheric element turned to the absolute highest. At times, the fans were so loud that they drowned out the game sounds, but the gameplay and graphics were all at their cinematic best, and in the game's benchmarks I could achieve 108fps at 1920 x 1200 mode and 56fps at the highest, native resolution settings. Pretty impressive.
When I cranked all of Total WarHammer III settings to, where possible, ultra, (with 1920 x 1220 resolution), the fan churned on high, and there was some object (or sprite) flickering in the benchmark test. But the detail was all there, and the system reported an average frame rate of 56.1. Then I reran the test at the MacBook Pro's highest native resolution. The gameplay looked even better, naturally, though, the fps dropped to 33.8.
I won't claim to be a hardcore gamer, but it's clear to me that game developers are now thinking about the Mac as a viable platform, using the Game Porting Toolkit Apple released at WWDC 2023 to bring AAA games to the platform on the same date they arrive on your best console. It's not just that the games arrive on the Mac; it's that they're as playable and as immersive as anything on a Windows 11 gaming rig.
Overall, a quick look at all the benchmarks comparing the M1 Max to this M3 Max system shows a quantum leap across every aspect of performance. And, yes, the single number that is lower, AI Turn Time in Civilization VI, is also an improvement, as it shows the system taking less time than before to make that turn.
(Image credit: Future)
Performance score: 5/5
MacBook Pro 14-inch (M3 Max, 2023) review: Audio and video
(Image credit: Future)
Thanks to the larger system chassis, Apple fits three speakers on either side of the keyboard that can produce loud, clear sound. I played a wide variety of music, video, and gaming content through them. It all sounded great, with voices sharp and high notes clear as a bell. What this sound system lacks, though, is any discernable bass. Now, I wouldn't really expect the MacBook Pro 14 M3 Max's relatively tiny speakers to provide chest-thumping sound. Still, when I played White Stripes Seven Nation Army and Eminem's Lose Yourself I was struck by how flat some of the drums and backbeats sounded. It's not completely devoid of the richness necessary to deliver a nice drum solo, but I found the base side a bit hollow, robbing the tunes of their head-banging essence.
Remarkably, the MacBook Pro 14 still ships with a 3.5mm headphone jack. I'm sure audio and video professionals use it in their work, but for most people, the support you'll find for your best AirPods Pros (especially the head-tracking spatial audio) will be more than enough in-ear audio support.
The MacBook Pro 14 M3 Max comes equipped with the same 1080 FaceTime camera as its predecessor. I can tell you that it gives your callers a nice clear view of you and, thanks to the new native Sonoma webcam features, I can use gestures to set off fireworks, drop confetti, pop up thumbs-up emojis, and release balloons during any video call. My wife wasn't as amused as I thought she'd be.
MacBook Pro 14-inch (M3 Max, 2023) review: Battery life
Rated for 18 hours
Lasted in our tests over 12 hours with varied use
Charges quickly
You may have read some reports that the new MacBook Pro can manage up to 22 hours of battery life. That's the promise for the 14-inch M3 model; however, for my more powerful and more power-hungry M3 Max 14-inch MacBook Pro, the maximum I can expect is 18 hours, and that's only if I do nothing but, say, stream virtually all episodes of Ted Lasso. The number drops down to 12 hours if I'm browsing the web over Wi-Fi. And, in my experience, the duration truly plummets if you play a AAA game like Lies of P or even Tomb Raider Legacy on battery power.
When I started playing the latter game I had about 73% battery life left. Within a couple of hours, it was below 20%. It's clear that the MacBook Pro 14 M3 Max will give you all the gaming power you want and need (I usually played in High Power mode), but there's probably also an assumption that you're playing while plugged in.
My average battery life has been roughly 12 hours of mixed use, which is a little bit less than I was expecting from this more efficient 3-nanometer SoC.
I do have some good news. Fast charging works as promised, and I topped off to 50% in 30 minutes using the included 96W charge adapter and the woven black USB-C-to-MagSafe cable that strikes a discordant note when plugged into the perfectly white adapter (I'm not sure why Apple didn't make that Space Black too).
Battery life score: 4/5
Should you buy the MacBook Pro 14-inch (M3 Max, 2023)?
Buy it if…
Don’t buy it if…
First reviewed November 2023
Also consider...
If our Apple MacBook Pro 14-inch M3 Max (2023) review has you considering other options, here are three more laptops to consider...
I've spent decades reviewing Apple products, including many of its laptops and desktop systems (I've used Macs on and off since 1985).
For this review, I spent many hours with Apple's newest MacBook Pro and what it says is the most powerful silicon it has ever produced. I did my best to run it through a variety of tasks and played multiple games on it. I also ran a battery of benchmark tests to assess raw performance. We pride ourselves on our independence and our rigorous review-testing process, offering up long-term attention to the products we review and making sure our reviews are updated and maintained, regardless of when a device was released, if you can still buy it, it's on our radar.
Sony just started seeding the Android 14 update to the Xperia 1 V. The firmware brings the improved Bokeh mode from the Xperia 5 V, as well as the new Video Creator app. Sony announced the Video Creator app as part of Android 14, though it did previously release it for Xperia 1 V users as a downloadable app.
The Bokeh mode is Sony's Portrait mode and was much more impressive on the Xperia 5 V so it's great news that Sony has brought it over to the 1 V.
The Video Creator app is a neat app that's also available on the Xperia 5 V - it lets you create videos automatically (music...
