In a surprisingly understated announcement, Apple finally debuted the M2 Pro and M2 Max chipsets. They launch with a new set of 14- and 16-inch MacBook Pros. Plus, Apple revealed the new M2 Mac mini, which starts at just $599, a lower price than its predecessor.
As expected, these are the most powerful Apple Silicon chipsets to date. The M2 Pro features 40 billion transistors and delivers some notable improvements, including 30% greater graphics performance and a 40% faster Neural Engine than its predecessor. It also unlocks HDMI 2.1 for 4K 240Hz or 8K 60Hz display output. (To be clear, I’m not sure how Apple’s getting 4K 240Hz from this HDMI standard. Some form of compression may be involved.)
The M2 Max features a whopping 67 billion transistors. It offers 20% faster performance than M1 Max, an improvement that’s most noticeable when rendering video or 3D models.
The M2 Pro features 40 billion transistors.
The M2 Pro features 67 billion transistors.
These chipsets are now available in 14- and 16-inch MacBook Pros. Interestingly, the new MacBook Pro models feature HDMI 2.1 connectivity and support up to four external displays. They also pack Wi-Fi 6E (the first for Mac), and if you’re willing to blow your savings, the M2 Max model comes with a maximum 96GB of memory.
Interestingly, Apple advertises a 22-hour battery life for its M2 Pro and M2 Max MacBook Pros. Even if you don’t plan to do any hardcore video editing, these machines might be worth buying just for the battery life.
The MacBook Pro now supports 8K HDMI 2.1 output on the M2 Pro and M2 Max platforms.
The M2 Pro Mac Mini adds an extra Thunderbolt port and supports three external displays.
Additionally, Apple revealed the M2 Mac mini. It starts at just $599 and offers two Thunderbolt 4 ports, plus the improved performance of M2. But we’re more interested in the new M2 Pro Mac mini, which has four Thunderbolt 4 ports and can support up to three external displays.
These new machines are available for pre-order today. The new MacBook Pros start at $1,999, while the M2 Mac mini starts at $599. Pre-orders ship on January 24th.
