New Apple silicon: M1 Pro and M1 Max double down on performance potential

(Pocket-lint) - In 2020 Apple launched its ain chip, the M1, ushering successful a caller epoch for the Mac. For 2021, Apple silicon is expanding with adjacent much power, with M1 Pro and M1 Max options - not M1X arsenic rumoured - coming to the latest MacBook Pro models.

So what are the caller M1 chips each about? M1 Pro and M1 Max usage the aforesaid 5nm process arsenic M1, but the architecture is scaled considerably, meaning acold much CPU and GPU imaginable and overmuch much representation bandwidth. Here's a speedy breakdown:

• M1: 8-core CPU, 7- oregon 8-core GPU, 68GB/s representation bandwidth, up to 16GB unified memory
• M1 Pro: 10-core CPU, 16-core GPU, 200GB/s representation bandwidth, up to 32GB unified memory
• M1 Max: 10-core CPU, 32-core GPU, 400GB/s representation bandwidth, up to 64GB unified memory

As you tin spot from the summary above, M1 Pro builds upon M1 with much CPU cores, for up to 70 per cent much computational power, and a doubling of the GPU for doubly the graphics performance.

M1 Max takes that M1 Pro step-up and doubles down again: its 32-core GPU being doubly that of the Max and 4 times that of the archetypal M1. There's much unified representation disposable present - astatine up to 64GB - than immoderate different notebook setup has ever offered before.

These caller chips volition beryllium disposable arsenic portion of Apple's 2021 MacBook Pro refresh, with all-new plan 16-inch and 14-inch models coming to marketplace successful the adjacent future.

Writing by Mike Lowe. Originally published connected 18 October 2021.