The new M3 Max focuses mainly on CPU performance and the results are really good. Multi-core performance has been increased by over 60% compared to the M2 Max version and even Intel’s H45 chips and AMD’s HS (Zen4) processors are significantly beaten. The single-core performance (+20%) is also comparable to Intel’s H45 processors. Apple has also improved the performance of the GPU and the results are also very good given the maximum power consumption of 60 watts, but Nvidia does have faster GPUs, at least if a power supply is included.
For the rest, the MacBook Pro 16 with the M3 Max is once again an excellent multimedia laptop, which is a perfect device for video editing thanks to the unified memory (which is also used by the GPU). Nothing has changed on the housing including ports and input devices, only the maximum SDR brightness has been increased by Apple and is now over 600 nits. The HDR maximum brightness remains extremely high and the implementation of HDR content is still much more comfortable under macOS than under Windows.
The MacBook Pro 16 with the M3 Max is Apple’s fastest laptop and the CPU performance is significantly higher thanks to additional CPU cores. The GPU performance is also better and Apple has managed to improve efficiency, which also translates into longer battery life. The MBP 16 remains one of the best multimedia laptops and one of the best overall packages on the market, but it comes at a price.
The new M3 SoCs are more efficient as Apple has managed to improve battery life compared to previous models. The fans are a little louder under average load, but the maximum fan noise remains almost the same. The new Space Black color looks great and isn’t as susceptible to fingerprints as the smaller MacBook Air’s Midnight color, but you’ll still need to clean it from time to time.
There are certainly areas where the competition is better, but in particular the lack of maintenance options combined with Apple’s extremely high prices for more RAM and SSD storage is a major disadvantage, but you’d be hard-pressed to find a better overall package for multimedia purposes or video editing. Apple is still not the best solution for playing games, especially AAA titles, but the situation is slowly improving. Native games run very well on Apple hardware, but the selection is very limited.
An upgrade from the MBP 16 with the M2 Max could be an option thanks to the massive increase in CPU performance, but the new MBP 16 with the M3 Max might be more interesting for users of the older M1 Max models or as an upgrade from an M1/ M2 Pro if you just need a little more power. The increased brightness of SDR is certainly appreciated, but is not a sufficient reason to switch models.