Johannesburg, 08 Dec 2021
The new MacBook Pro M1 Pro and M1 Max are being put through their paces by some of the world’s top tech writers and analysts, and gaining rave reviews. Describing the devices as “awesome”, “incredible”, “stunning”, “dazzling”, “next level” and “revolutionary”, reviewers were unusually enthusiastic about the new laptops.
Built to out-power, outperform and outlast even the most high-end Windows PC portables, the new models, now available at iStore, are the flagships of Apple’s new Mac range of notebooks, which utilise a leading-edge system on a chip (SOC). This engineering breakthrough makes it possible for several previously isolated components, such as the CPU, GPU, neural engine and audio and image processing hardware to be combined on a single chip, with unified memory and up to 57 billion transistors.
But what does all of this mean for the single most important element in the everyday computing equation – the human who uses the machine?
Hailing them as the ‘laptops of the year’, The Verge said: “The new MacBook Pros with M1 Pro and M1 Max chips are incredible – the fastest laptops we’ve ever tested in some tasks, with some of the longest battery life we’ve ever seen… the performance Apple has delivered with these machines combined with the battery life we’ve seen in our tests means that there’s a new standard in the industry.”
Said Digital Camera World: The new MacBook Pro 14 inch is “one of the best laptops we’ve ever used... this portable powerhouse is an incredible investment for photographers and video makers”.
For GQ’s Robert Leedham, the MacBook Pro M1 Pro 14-inch is a “ludicrously impressive” machine that redefines expectations of the capabilities of notebook computing.
He is particularly dazzled by Apple’s Liquid Retina XDR display technology, which offers “startling contrast and pin-sharp clarity”, making the screen “an absolute stunner to behold”.
Over at PC Magazine, Tom Brant hails the new MacBook Pro M1 Max 16-inch as “the ultimate MacBook Pro”, noting in a series of gruelling tests that its 20-hour battery life “trounces that of its Windows competition”.
Outside of the testing lab, the new Macs are designed to satisfy the intense and demanding needs of professional users, whether working from home or out in the field. So how do they live up to their name?
For Marques Brownlee, also known as MKBHD, an ever-on-the-move YouTuber, the 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pros with M1 Pro and M1 Max are “truly next level” for battery life, speed, performance and video editing power. “There are going to be a lot of professionals like me who are really happy with these,” he adds.
Scott Simmons, a professional video editor, agrees, observing on the ProVideoCoalition website that the speediness of the MacBook Pro M1 Max, which “didn’t break a sweat” during testing, has direct and quantifiable benefits in an industry where time is money.
For software engineer Jameson Williams, who works at the popular social news curation site, Reddit, the same principle applies.
“We recently found that the new 2021 MacBook Pro range cut our Android build times in half,” he reports, adding that the machines are expected to save $100 000 in productivity for his team of nine, a massive return on investment.
Whatever your own profession or level of use, you can find out for yourself why the critics are raving about the new MacBook Pro range at iStore, where you can take advantage of an exclusive trade-in and trade-up programme for Mac and WindowsPC users. Trade in your Windows laptop and get up to R13 000 towards your cash purchase of a new MacBook Pro; choose an instant discount on your cash purchase, or redeem your trade-in value as an iStore Gift Card, to be used at a later stage. For more information on the all-new MacBook Pro with M1 Pro and M1 Max, please visit www.istore.co.za.
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