Apple stated that the M4, M4 Pro, and M4 Max series chips can smoothly run large language models, and all new MacBook Pro models are equipped with at least 16GB of memory. This memory upgrade by Apple is aimed at better supporting the "Apple Intelligence" artificial intelligence system
Apple Inc. released the MacBook Pro series equipped with the new M4 chip on Wednesday, featuring Apple Intelligence capabilities, aiming to attract consumers with faster processing speeds and artificial intelligence functions.
The new MacBook Pro comes with 14-inch and 16-inch Liquid Retina XDR displays, with peak brightness reaching 1000 nits. Both sizes offer options for M4, M4 Pro, and M4 Max chips, and are equipped with a 12-megapixel webcam. Apple claims its battery life can last up to 24 hours, making it the longest-lasting in the MacBook series.
M4 Series Chips: Smooth Operation of LLM
According to Apple's press release, the M4 series chips utilize second-generation 3-nanometer technology, excelling in single-threaded CPU performance with the world's fastest CPU cores, as well as outstanding multi-threaded CPU performance capable of handling the most demanding workloads. Combined with machine learning accelerators in the CPU, advanced GPUs, and faster neural engines, each chip also increases memory bandwidth, allowing large language models (LLM) and other large projects to run smoothly.
The 14-inch MacBook Pro features a more powerful 10-core CPU, consisting of 4 high-performance cores and 6 efficiency cores, along with a 10-core GPU, supporting up to 32GB of memory and 120GB/s memory bandwidth. Compared to the 13-inch M1 version of the MacBook Pro, the M4 version of the 14-inch MacBook Pro has a task processing speed increase of 1.8 times, while tasks like rendering complex scenes in Blender have seen a 3.4 times improvement. The M4 version supports two external high-resolution displays and is equipped with three Thunderbolt 4 ports for easy connection of all peripherals.
Meanwhile, the MacBook Pro with the M4 Pro chip features a 14-core CPU, consisting of 10 high-performance cores and 4 efficiency cores, significantly enhancing multi-core performance, along with up to a 20-core GPU, which has a 75% increase in memory bandwidth compared to the previous generation, providing significant acceleration for workloads such as data modeling and structural engineering.
The M4 Max device is equipped with up to a 16-core CPU, 40-core GPU, over half a TB of unified memory bandwidth per second, and a neural engine that is 3 times faster than the M1 Max, enabling faster local execution of AI models. The performance of the M4 Max MacBook Pro reaches 3.5 times that of the M1 Max, supporting up to 128GB of unified memory, allowing developers to easily handle LLMs with nearly 200 billion parameters
All new devices are built for Apple Intelligence
Apple Intelligence has also become an important part of the product. The first wave of features has been launched with the release of macOS Sequoia 15.1 on Monday, including writing tools, image cleanup, article summarization, and a redesigned text input feature for Siri. The upcoming version 15.2 will implement most of the remaining features promised by Apple at the WWDC in June, including Genmoji, Image Playground, Visual Intelligence, Image Wand, and ChatGPT integration.
Apple has recently made significant adjustments to its entire Mac product line to prepare for future artificial intelligence features. The company noted that all new devices released this year are tailored for the "Apple Intelligence" AI system, which can generate text, images, and emojis.
Additionally, all new MacBook Pro models come with at least 16GB of memory. Previously, entry-level Macs typically came with 8GB of memory by default. The larger the memory, the more complex and larger AI models the computer can handle. The MacBook Air laptops and iMac desktops have also been updated, now starting with 16GB of memory, while the starting price remains unchanged at $999. The AI capabilities of the M4 chip have also been enhanced. Apple's decision to double the memory configuration is aimed at better supporting the "Apple Intelligence" AI system.
Starting at $1599, available on November 8
The starting price for the new 14-inch MacBook Pro is $1599 (M4 version) and $1999 (M4 Pro version). The starting price for the 16-inch model is $2499. Both models will begin accepting pre-orders on Wednesday and will start shipping on November 8, alongside the newly released iMac and Mac Mini earlier this week.
This release is part of Apple's latest series of Mac upgrades. On Monday, Apple launched the new iMac, followed by the redesigned Mac mini on Tuesday—both equipped with the new M4 processor.
The redesign of the MacBook Pro in 2021 received positive reviews, with a thicker design allowing for multiple traditional ports, such as an HDMI port for connecting to TVs and projectors. This re-release is part of the revival of the Mac product line in 2021 and also marks Apple's transition from Intel chips to its own M-series chips Analysis suggests that although the revenue from the Mac series products is far lower than that of the iPhone or the wearable device business including Apple Watch and AirPods, it remains crucial for Apple. For example, all applications developed for the iPhone are written on the Mac.
In the quarter ending in June, Apple reported Mac sales of $7 billion, an increase of about 2% year-on-year. Apple will announce its latest quarterly financial report on Thursday