| Cult of Mac

Apple’s new M3 iMac and MacBook Pros hit store shelves

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The top two new MacBook Pro models now come in a space black aluminum finish.
You can now get your hands on the M3 MacBook Pro or iMac.
Photo: Apple

Apple’s new M3 iMac and MacBook Pros are now officially on sale in the United States, the United Kingdom, Europe and select other countries. If you live in one of those locations, you can pick up the latest iMac or M3-powered MacBook Pro from your nearest Apple Store.

The new M3 Max MacBook Pro will go on sale later in November.

Don’t hold your breath for a new 27-inch iMac

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Three kids huddle in front of a red iMac powered by Apple's M3 chip.
Apple apparently thinks a 24-inch iMac is plenty big enough.
Photo: Apple

If you’ve been holding your breath waiting for a new 27-inch iMac, it’s time to inhale: Apple reportedly has no plans to produce such a computer.

The news, which doubtless will disappoint fans of all-in-one Apple computers hoping for a bigger screen, comes straight from Apple itself.

2023 iMac reviews: Speedy M3 chip makes all the difference

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2023 iMac M3
The 2023 iMac is intended for use in the home, not the office.
Photo: Apple

Fans of all-in-one desktops are about to get the improved iMac they’ve been waiting for. The first reviews of the 2023 version are out and they’re full of praise for performance gains that that come with the new Apple M3 processor.

“The 2023 edition of the 24-inch Apple iMac is a real pleasure to use, and arguably the best all-in-one desktop when it comes to the amount and variety of tasks it can accomplish,” said the PCMag reviewer.

All M3 MacBook pros reviewed: Same cars, better engines

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Apple M3 chip family
Apple unveiled the M3 and didn't make Mac users wait for the M3 Pro and M3 Max.
Image: Apple

To paraphrase many of the M3 MacBook Pro reviews coming out Monday, Apple’s new lineup is like new car models that look like the old ones but have much better engines under the hood.

Other than the inclusion of blazing-fast M3, M3 Pro and M3 Max chips, reviewers made note of the new Space Black color for the M3 Pro and M3 Max MacBooks. And some poked a little fun at Apple for even having a MacBook Pro with an option for only 8GB of RAM (the 14-inch M3 MacBook Pro model).

First benchmarks back up Apple claims of blazing-fast M3 chip speeds [Updated]

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In early benchmark testing, Apple's new M3 chip lives up to expectations for speed.
In early benchmark testing, Apple's new M3 chip lives up to expectations for speed.
Photo: Apple

New benchmark tests support claims Apple made about the impressive speed of the new M3 chip unveiled Monday in the Scary Fast event.

Geekbench found the new entry-level M3 chip, which appears initially in a new 24-inch iMac and one of three MacBook Pro models, performs as expected compared to M1 and M2 versions.

Update: And after the initial results for M3 came in, further tests showed M3 Max is 42% faster than M2 Max, or about as fast as M2 Ultra. That means a new top-shelf MacBook Pro is as fast as the Mac Pro released earlier this year in June, which Apple said at the time was the “most powerful chip ever created for a personal computer.” That claim lasted about five months.

M1 vs. M3 24-inch iMac comparison: What’s changed?

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M1 vs M3 iMac Comparison
How is the 2023 iMac better than its 2021 predecessor?
Photo: Rajesh

Apple unveiled the 24-inch iMac with M1 chip way back in April 2021, and while the rest of the company’s Mac lineup got an M2 upgrade since then, the all-on-one desktop missed the boat. To make up for it, Apple announced the M3-powered iMac at its ‘Scary Fast’ event.

How does the 2023 iMac compare to its predecessor? Does it pack any other improvement besides the faster chip? Read this comparison to find out.

Good riddance: 13-inch MacBook Pro discontinued

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Apple has finally discontinued the 13-inch MacBook Pro.
You can no longer buy a MacBook Pro with a Touch Bar.
Photo/Graphics: Apple/Rajesh

Following Monday’s launch of the M3-powered MacBook Pros, Apple discontinued the 13-inch MacBook Pro. It was the last MacBook in the company’s lineup with a Touch Bar, a thin, customizable OLED strip at the top of the keyboard that replaced the usual row of function keys.

A cheaper 14-inch MacBook Pro with an M3 chip replaces the older Touch Bar model.

3 new M3 MacBook Pro models promise blazing speed

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The top two new MacBook Pro models now come in a space black aluminum finish.
The top two new MacBook Pro models now come in a space black aluminum finish.
Photo: Apple

In a first, Apple rolled out three new chips at once — the M3, M3 Pro and M3 Max — during its Halloween-themed Scary Fast event Monday. The new Apple processors power updated 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models.

The company also utilized a cool-looking space black aluminum finish for the first time on M3 Pro and M3 Max models. The laptops promise to hit speedy new benchmarks.

“Tonight we’re doing something we haven’t done before, as we bring our latest technologies to a broader set of users more rapidly than ever,” said Johny Srouji, Apple’s senior vice president of hardware technologies. “We’re launching the next generation of Apple silicon for the Mac by releasing three great new chips at the same time.”

Apple M3, M3 Pro and M3 Max boost Mac performance up to 50%

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Apple M3 chip family
Apple unveiled the M3 and didn't make Mac users wait for the M3 Pro and M3 Max.
Image: Apple

Apple broke with tradition and unveiled the M3, M3 Pro and M3 Max processors all at once on Monday, rather than stringing the releases out. The performance cores in the new chips are up to 30% faster than M1, and the efficiency cores are up to 50% faster.

“Apple silicon has completely redefined the Mac experience. Every aspect of its architecture is designed for performance and power efficiency,” said Johny Srouji, Apple’s SVP of Hardware Technologies. “With 3-nanometer technology, a next-generation GPU architecture, a higher-performance CPU, faster Neural Engine, and support for even more unified memory, M3, M3 Pro, and M3 Max are the most advanced chips ever built for a personal computer.”