New MacBooks Pros have a completely new design. They are no longer boxy and look much more modern. I love the new MacBooks Pros. This 14 inch model reminds me of the lighter and thinner version of Apple’s 15-inch PowerBooks. It’s also not too large, which I love.

The screens on both models are now larger and have an HDMI port, SD card slots, and faster Apple M1 Pro and M1 Max processors. Thunderbolt 4 ports allow for the addition of accessories such as external monitors or other devices.

Apple has brought back MagSafe, its magnetic charger which it had abandoned after 2017 MacBook Air’s release. It charges the MacBook Pro at 50% within 30 minutes. You can pull it out when you trip over the cord to ensure that your whole MacBook does not come crashing down. If you wish, Thunderbolt ports can be used to charge your device with a USB C power adapter.

My favorite feature is the new Liquid Retina XDR Display, 14.2 inches. Its main purpose is to color-grade sharp HDR photos and videos. Professionals are likely to appreciate it. It’s also very bright, which I love.

Although numbers aren’t important to many people and I rarely drop them in reviews, they can be very helpful to clarify. While the MacBook Air is 400 nits brighter than the MacBook Pro, the 2020 MacBook Pro’s 13 inch display has 500 nits brightness. The new MacBook Pro’s 14 inch display has 1,000 nits, while the MacBook Air can achieve 1,600 Nits thanks to mini-LED Backlighting. It allows some areas to become super bright to make movies and photos. It also has a one-million-to-one contrast ratio which allows for deep blacks as well as bright whites. You will enjoy picture quality comparable to high-end HDTVs thanks to the sharp resolution, rich colors and high contrast.

This means that the colors in movies and television shows really stand out. I can even see my iPhone 13’s HDR photos on my iPhone 13, which supports HDR. The difference is huge from the M1 MacBook Air. ProMotion is a great addition that makes scrolling easier. The feature is available in the Apple iPhone 13 Pro and iPad Pro models. It makes it easier to scroll through news articles. If you don’t scroll or do anything that demands a fast refresh rate, it will adjust automatically to preserve battery life. You can choose to have it turn off, or set a particular rate for video editors who need a certain refresh rate. 

These speakers far outperform any laptop speakers I have ever tested. These speakers can provide a full sound experience in a space and have a rich bass. You can also use spatial audio to create surround sound when playing Dolby Atmos music or movies. This makes movies and music seem to be coming from everywhere, rather than just the right or left of your laptop.

It works as good as the previous-generation keyboard, although it received an update due to issues with sticky keys and repetitive keystrokes. The keyboard is just as intuitive to use as the M1 MacBook Air. Apple removed the Touch Bar display from the top of its MacBook Pros and replaced it with large function keys. These are easier to access to control volume, brightness and other settings. 

There’s also the M1 Pro chip. It is way more powerful than the laptop I use, and that’s why professionals are able to benefit from it. I had the opportunity to run six iOS apps in Xcode side-by-side, just as a developer might do to determine how their app would perform on different iPhones. Edit multiple 8K HDR scenes or Apple’s brighter content XDR in real-time within Final Cut Pro. You can also render 3D models and adjust how the sun falls in Cinema 4D without needing to wait for them to render. These tasks will be appreciated by professionals who have access to a computer with the right processors and a display. You can also add as many displays to your M1 Pro, or even three more screens to your M1 Max chip. This is a significant increase from the M1 Pro’s single monitor last year. It’s also a huge deal for people like me, who want to use multiple screens simultaneously.

It’s something that everyone can see: a 1080p Webcam. Apple has moved on from earlier models’ 720p cameras. This was made possible by the M1 chip which uses software to enhance the quality. However, the resolution has improved and video chats can now be seen clearly. Apple could add the Center Stage feature that tracks your movements on iPads to its laptop, but I wish they did. You can also sound more clear with the studio microphones.

Finally, battery life is great considering how much power you have. Apple claims that HD video can last up to 17 hours with the brightness set at 8 notches. I was able to get close to this in my battery tests. However, each 4 hour of playback, I lost about 23%. However, everyone’s mileage will vary. This will be cut by video rendering, for instance. Anyone who uses it for document editing and web browsing should be able to get by a normal workday.

You will find a webcam notch at the display’s top. It will be controversial and people may have different opinions. It’s not something I mind in all situations.

It won’t be noticeable if the laptop is set to dark mode. I used dark because everything surrounding the notch was dark. This trade-off I like: slimmer bezels at the top, instead of large borders as on previous models. The notch will be visible if there is a bright background with menus, but the screen fades more into the background than on the iPhone where it can cut into video content. Apple should have included Face ID in the notch. This facial recognition technology unlocks iPhones, iPads, and certain iPad models.

Since I have used Touch ID fingerprint readers on previous Macs, I am fine with it. However, Face ID could allow your laptop to be booted right from the moment you sit down. Windows Hello is also available on some Windows laptops like the Surface from Microsoft.

All that power does come with some compromises. The 3.5-pound weight is a little heavier than I had expected.

Although it’s light, the MacBook Air weighs 2.8 pounds more than this one and is half a pound lighter than the 13-inch MacBook Pro last year.