M1 Pro vs M1 Max battery

[obwohl]

I thought I cancelled one of my pending ordes for an MBP16 (I was in doubt between the M1P (10/16) 32GB 2TB and the M1M (10/24) 64GB 2TB and as such both machines arrived at my doorstep.

I will send one back based on battery life (although I like the extra RAM).

Side by side watching the same Youtube content, both consume the same wattage within margin of error: 6-6.5 W (see the menubar stats).

The machines also idle at the same wattages and temps (4.5-5W, 40C) .

That sounds interesting. Please continue to post updates here. If I can play games and be more future-proof for about 300€ more I'll happily do that.

 

[4389842]

That sounds interesting. Please continue to post updates here. If I can play games and be more future-proof for about 300€ more I'll happily do that.

I have done an 'all-day same casual workload' test today:

1. Half brightness, volume at 5 stops, backlight and all other system settings as from the factory
2. Streamed a couple hours 4k content from Youtube -> similar drain speed
3. Did some side by side editing of a Powerpoint deck on both machines (switching every other slide)
4. Installed Xcode from App Store (the full 6 GB) -> similar drain after install completion
5. Ran Xcode benchmark (twice)

I will amend screenshots of the battery state during/after all these tasks but for these kinds of loads, battery drain was similar, if not identical. Which makes me conclude that if you hammer the Max with GPU loads, it likely will drain faster but for light use and CPU bound tasks... they are almost identical.

 

[Serengeti1]

I have done an 'all-day same casual workload' test today:

1. Half brightness, volume at 5 stops, backlight and all other system settings as from the factory
2. Streamed a couple hours 4k content from Youtube -> similar drain speed
3. Did some side by side editing of a Powerpoint deck on both machines (switching every other slide)
4. Installed Xcode from App Store (the full 6 GB) -> similar drain after install completion
5. Ran Xcode benchmark (twice)

I will amend screenshots of the battery state during/after all these tasks but for these kinds of loads, battery drain was similar, if not identical. Which makes me conclude that if you hammer the Max with GPU loads, it likely will drain faster but for light use and CPU bound tasks... they are almost identical.

Percentages would be nice. Both going from 100 doing the same tasks. All but one of the battery tests I've seen indicate a difference of a few percent so it'd be surprising to me if you weren't also seeing that.

 

[Someirishguy]

I thought I cancelled one of my pending ordes for an MBP16 (I was in doubt between the M1P (10/16) 32GB 2TB and the M1M (10/24) 64GB 2TB) and as such both machines arrived at my doorstep.

I will send one back based on battery life (although I like the extra RAM).

Side by side watching the same Youtube content, both consume the same wattage within margin of error: 6-6.5 W (see the menubar stats). Interestingly, the reported load is double on the Pro vs the Max when performing the video playback.

The machines also idle at the same wattages and temps (4.5-5W, 40C).

The Max dropped from 88% to 68% over 3.5 hours playing videos like this and lightly browsing...

How did the battery life compare?

 

[glindon]

Battery life on my 16" 64gb 32C Max, 2TB is around 20 hours. This is with the screen brightness under half and dark mode and Noir extension to make web pages dark. I'm just doing casual web browsing (Amazon, MacRumors, occasional YouTube, etc.), email, updating my Numbers finance spreadsheet, making notes, etc. I've found that the biggest impact on casual usage is overall screen brightness, and since the screen is mini LED, the more dark areas, the better the battery life. Coconut Battery reports about 3-5W of power being used. Typing this message in office lighting uses around 5W of power. Definitely don't regret getting this over a base model as far as battery life goes. Getting same or better battery than I do on my M1 Air with 16gb, 1TB.

 

[Fomalhaut]

Battery life on my 16" 64gb 32C Max, 2TB is around 20 hours. This is with the screen brightness under half and dark mode and Noir extension to make web pages dark. I'm just doing casual web browsing (Amazon, MacRumors, occasional YouTube, etc.), email, updating my Numbers finance spreadsheet, making notes, etc. I've found that the biggest impact on casual usage is overall screen brightness, and since the screen is mini LED, the more dark areas, the better the battery life. Coconut Battery reports about 3-5W of power being used. Typing this message in office lighting uses around 5W of power. Definitely don't regret getting this over a base model as far as battery life goes. Getting same or better battery than I do on my M1 Air with 16gb, 1TB.

Good to know.

...but I hope you're going to do more than just browse the web, and run a few productivity apps with this beast of a machine! Sounds like something you could do on an entry-level MacBook Air so far...

 

[clarencek]

My only comparison is my M1 Max 16” 32 RAM/32GPU it would run on battery from 9 am to 6 pm with 5% left.
I just swapped it for a M1 Pro 14” 16/16 and it ran from 9 am to 5 pm with 6% left.

 

[Fomalhaut]

My only comparison is my M1 Max 16” 32 RAM/32GPU it would run on battery from 9 am to 6 pm with 5% left.
I just swapped it for a M1 Pro 14” 16/16 and it ran from 9 am to 5 pm with 6% left.

What was your usage during these tests? i.e. which apps, how many browser tabs, documents open, memory pressure, how much application switching, screen brightness, external device and network connections?

 

[glindon]

Good to know.

...but I hope you're going to do more than just browse the web, and run a few productivity apps with this beast of a machine! Sounds like something you could do on an entry-level MacBook Air so far...

I make music in Logic as a hobby so it won’t be a total waste of money.

 

[Aka757]

Battery life on my 16" 64gb 32C Max, 2TB is around 20 hours. This is with the screen brightness under half and dark mode and Noir extension to make web pages dark. I'm just doing casual web browsing (Amazon, MacRumors, occasional YouTube, etc.), email, updating my Numbers finance spreadsheet, making notes, etc. I've found that the biggest impact on casual usage is overall screen brightness, and since the screen is mini LED, the more dark areas, the better the battery life. Coconut Battery reports about 3-5W of power being used. Typing this message in office lighting uses around 5W of power. Definitely don't regret getting this over a base model as far as battery life goes. Getting same or better battery than I do on my M1 Air with 16gb, 1TB.

Your post is making me almost regret my 16" M1 Pro 32GB RAM purchase from a couple days ago! I was trying to decide between the 16" M1 Pro with 32GB RAM and the 16" M1 Max with 64GB RAM. I likely won't be able to use even 32GB RAM, but I wanted the max amount of RAM possible without sacrificing battery life, regardless (and because the RAM upgrade wasn't a huge deal in terms of additional cost). Ultimately went with the M1 Pro 32GB out of fear of reduced battery life with the M1 Max, but if they are the same, especially with light use (like mine), I probably would've opted for an M1 Max.

Well, on the bright side I'll get my machine a month earlier than if I had ordered the M1 Max (mid-January vs mid-February).

 

[glindon]

Your post is making me almost regret my 16" M1 Pro 32GB RAM purchase from a couple days ago! I was trying to decide between the 16" M1 Pro with 32GB RAM and the 16" M1 Max with 64GB RAM. I likely won't be able to use even 32GB RAM, but I wanted the max amount of RAM possible without sacrificing battery life, regardless (and because the RAM upgrade wasn't a huge deal in terms of additional cost). Ultimately went with the M1 Pro 32GB out of fear of reduced battery life with the M1 Max, but if they are the same, especially with light use (like mine), I probably would've opted for an M1 Max.

Well, on the bright side I'll get my machine a month earlier than if I had ordered the M1 Max (mid-January vs mid-February).

I know the feeling. I waited almost 2 months for my Mac to arrive but ultimately worth the wait.

 

[Aka757]

I know the feeling. I waited almost 2 months for my Mac to arrive but ultimately worth the wait.

Thankfully I think I've enough of a wait on my hands that I can easily cancel and repurchase and it won't really make a huge deal. I'd be curious to hear why you chose the M1 Max with 64GB RAM? What's your typical workload like?

 

[clarencek]

What was your usage during these tests? i.e. which apps, how many browser tabs, documents open, memory pressure, how much application switching, screen brightness, external device and network connections?

Both machine about 10 browser tabs in safari open and google meet video conferences in chrome running the entire time - literally from 9-5/6.

 

[glindon]

Thankfully I think I've enough of a wait on my hands that I can easily cancel and repurchase and it won't really make a huge deal. I'd be curious to hear why you chose the M1 Max with 64GB RAM? What's your typical workload like?

I do Logic as a hobby and virtual instruments love memory. My 2018 had 32gb (the most you could get on that machine) so went with 64gb, and also since these can't be upgraded after the fact.

 

[Fomalhaut]

Your post is making me almost regret my 16" M1 Pro 32GB RAM purchase from a couple days ago! I was trying to decide between the 16" M1 Pro with 32GB RAM and the 16" M1 Max with 64GB RAM. I likely won't be able to use even 32GB RAM, but I wanted the max amount of RAM possible without sacrificing battery life, regardless (and because the RAM upgrade wasn't a huge deal in terms of additional cost). Ultimately went with the M1 Pro 32GB out of fear of reduced battery life with the M1 Max, but if they are the same, especially with light use (like mine), I probably would've opted for an M1 Max.

Well, on the bright side I'll get my machine a month earlier than if I had ordered the M1 Max (mid-January vs mid-February).

If you only need 32GB RAM you could have just got the M1 Max with 32GB, which quite possibly uses less power than the 64GB version (based on some other MacRumors threads where users compared the DRAM power usage for different models).

That said, if you only have light usage the upgrade to M1 Max might have been an unncessary expense, and it does have at least *some* battery penalty, albeit small for light usage.

 

[Fomalhaut]

Both machine about 10 browser tabs in safari open and google meet video conferences in chrome running the entire time - literally from 9-5/6.

This is a useful metric - video conferences are part of my working day and can be a battery hog, so it's reassuring to see you still get 8 hours of battery life.

 

[Aka757]

If you only need 32GB RAM you could have just got the M1 Max with 32GB, which quite possibly uses less power than the 64GB version (based on some other MacRumors threads where users compared the DRAM power usage for different models).

That said, if you only have light usage the upgrade to M1 Max might have been an unncessary expense, and it does have at least *some* battery penalty, albeit small for light usage.

Yeah my usage is very light so I figured the M1 Max would’ve been overkill, plus I am much too impatient to wait an extra month lol (if I had gone with 64GB RAM so that pushed out the lead-time).

The only downside of sticking with the Pro is that I don’t get the extra RAM, but I will likely never need that much so all in all I figured I wasn’t losing out too much. If there was a 64GB RAM option for the Pro that would’ve been a no-brainer but no such luck.

 

[Fomalhaut]

Yeah my usage is very light so I figured the M1 Max would’ve been overkill, plus I am much too impatient to wait an extra month lol (if I had gone with 64GB RAM so that pushed out the lead-time).

The only downside of sticking with the Pro is that I don’t get the extra RAM, but I will likely never need that much so all in all I figured I wasn’t losing out too much. If there was a 64GB RAM option for the Pro that would’ve been a no-brainer but no such luck.

I don't get it - you say your usage is very light but that "if there was a 64GB RAM option for the Pro that would’ve been a no-brainer". Why would you want to pay a large extra amount for RAM you won't use?

If money is no issue or you can't accurately predict your future usage, then by all means, max out the specificiation. If you want to actually get what you need, then it requires a bit of research into how MacOS works and how to calculate the resources needed for your workloads.

 

[Aka757]

Why would you want to pay a large extra amount for RAM you won't use?

If money is no issue or you can't accurately predict your future usage, then by all means, max out the specification.

That’s precisely it; the incremental cost isn’t really an issue (roughly $600 extra for a 16”M1 Max 24-core with 64GB RAM vs 16” M1 Pro with 32GB RAM) and having the max amount of RAM gives me some peace of mind that if I ever start to delve into anything that is RAM intensive, I opted for the top spec at the time and gave myself more than enough headroom.

 

[tim1000]

after over a year how are the M1 Max battery holding up?

 

[dstyp]

after over a year how are the M1 Max battery holding up?

Very good. I use the machine daily. Often some on battery. At 177 cycles. Used Aldente since day 1 to max charge 80%.

No battery health impact that is noticeable so far. Probably a few percent less capacity. macOS reports 100% health.

 

[Someirishguy]

after over a year how are the M1 Max battery holding up?

My M1 Max is still going strong - for example, I recently streamed a live video from my M1 Max to a 4K tv for about 1.5 hours (airplay). Battery went from 100% to 97%