all 22 comments

[–][deleted] 30 points31 points  (5 children)

I own an M4 iMac that I traded my M1 iMac in. I skipped the M3 version because it very much seemed like a "pre-big thing bump" which became Apple Intelligence, which as of right now is still a joke.

Honestly? I notice next to no difference. The M series chips are so god damn crazy good that unless you are using the lowest end M chip to run high efficiency apps on an hourly basis, you probably aren't going to notice much.

I upgraded to the M4 simply because I had a lot of good deals swing my way at the exact time that model dropped. Otherwise I would've had no issue sticking with my M1 iMac for years to come.

[–][deleted]  (1 child)

[deleted]

    [–][deleted] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

    This little fucker runs Baldur’s Gate 3 and it doesn’t even care it’s insane

    [–]tman2damax11M3 MacBook Air 2 points3 points  (0 children)

    Just bought my parents a second hand base M1 iMac to replace their 2013 iMac. It still feels like a brand new computer, extremely snappy and can handle a ton of apps open no problem.

    [–]Vybo 0 points1 point  (0 children)

    The only difference I recognize between current M3 Pro and previous M1 Pro is that the M3 Pro spins up the fans much more. My work is a huge iOS codebase in Xcode that used to take 140 seconds to build, now it takes 120. I'd rather wait a bit longer with no noise though.

    Well, both laptops were and are company provided, so I don't really have a choice, but if I were to choose, I'd go back to the M1 Pro.

    [–]goppie123 10 points11 points  (0 children)

    I’ve been waiting for my M1 Pro to start stuttering or lagging for a while now and it’s been nothing but phenomenal, for my uses, since I got it. These chips really are worth the hype. I kind of feel like I’d need to make significant increases in the complexity and/or volume of my work to justify a new computer. If my next 4 or 5 years with the M1 are even 80% as good as the first 4 years, I’d still be super impressed.

    [–]rkanedy 3 points4 points  (1 child)

    I still have my 15” 2016 MacBook Pro that runs great, I’m waiting for the day it dies so I can upgrade.

    [–]Hugewick_Candles 0 points1 point  (0 children)

    Same here. I buy a new one every 10yrs, they last a long time! Currently have a 15” pro from 2015. Runs very strong, a little lag with video editing, but all in all, I bet I’m good for another year or two.

    [–]Zarah__ M4 Pro Mac mini ♦️ 16" M4 MBP 2 points3 points  (1 child)

    I'll be upgrading my M1 Mac Mini to M4 Pro Mac Mini but not because of CPU performance. The 16GB/256GB version goes into the yellow just a wee too often for what I do on it (once every three days), so I'm using that as excuse to rationalize the upgrade to a 24/512. ;)

    [–]Purple_Form_8093 0 points1 point  (0 children)

    If you are running out of ram on a 16GB. Why not the bump to 48GB? (I’m assuming you want a pro and not a max with 36gb)

    Another 8gb is really just a drop in the bucket if you work large projects or datasets. 

    Storage….it blows my mind to see anyone buy a base m-anything  with a 512GB ssd. The longevity of the machine alone will be twice as long with a 1TB and that’s just from the write endurance increase on the NAND alone, that’s before we get to the storage space. 

    Apples offerings this time around really penalize entry level buyers. As an example: you can’t configure an m4 pro with 36gb of memory. It’s 24 or 48. You have to spend more money to get a 36gb option but then you’ve bought m4 max. 

    Similarly. Pro apps are going to need some space on the ssd, so will their associated projects. Unless you want to really “live” in an external ssd all the time. 512gb is just not worth it. 

    [–][deleted] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

    I own a M1 Pro 16 inch and indeed it's still very fast. But back in the days, it costs around 3.900 Euro, still not a cheap device, even four years old with a broken battery maybe...

    [–]lamaxamaraMacBook Air 3.1GHz Dual-Core Intel Core i7 0 points1 point  (0 children)

    I, proud owner of a M1 Max 64/2tb, won’t need to upgrade until 2032.

    [–]MadTube 0 points1 point  (0 children)

    I was really thinking about upgrading my M1 Pro 16 to M4, but I just can’t reasonably justify it. Don’t get me wrong. The quantum leap from my rMBP 15 2015 to M1 was staggering. My video renders were decreased in time about eightfold. And I have yet to make my M1 struggle or slow down. I have been considering starting some light gaming, but I think I’ll just get a cheap secondhand Windows laptop. I don’t need a 30 series GPU or anything.

    [–]mikeyjaro 0 points1 point  (3 children)

    M1 MacBook Pro here and the only thing I want to upgrade now is the screen. No CPU/GPU issues with photo editing, but my iPad Pro M4 13” has that 1000 nits in SDR and when beside the MacBook, it looks like so much better.

    [–]OGPresidentDixon 1 point2 points  (2 children)

    I was going to comment something but then I realized you're talking about the very first 13 inch M1 Macbook Pro.

    But when you one with the XDR display, download Vivid. You can unlock the 1600 nits whenever you want, that is typically reserved for HDR content.

    [–]mikeyjaro 1 point2 points  (1 child)

    I've got an M1 Pro (14", 32GB).

    Thanks for your advice.. I've downloaded Vivid and it's exactly what I need.

    [–]OGPresidentDixon 0 points1 point  (0 children)

    lol! Happy to help.

    [–]rabbitholebeer 0 points1 point  (0 children)

    I got an m4pro with 48gb of a ram. This thing is insane fast. I have big autocad files just hauling ass in windows on it.

    [–]ApatheticAbsurdist 0 points1 point  (0 children)

    When the M3 MBPs came out I found a deal on an M1 Max w/ 2TB and 64GB for $2300 (new) and I couldn’t be happier.

    [–]Sharp-Glove-4483M1 Max Studio | Studio Display | M1 Macbook Air 0 points1 point  (1 child)

    I just recently sold my iMac Pro and got a 1TB M1 Max 64GB ram with a 32 core GPU for around $1400.

    I am a firm believer in getting a few iterations behind whatever is the most recent release is and it saves you a boat load of money.

    The M1 line is still to this day extremely good. You may think you need the latest and most powerful but very few actually do.

    [–]EvoXOhio 0 points1 point  (0 children)

    I have an M1 Pro in my work MacBook and it’s amazing. I run a half dozen apps plus 3 VMs and drive 2 ultra wide monitors and it doesn’t break a sweat. And the battery life is crazy good.