MBP M3 vs M3 Pro

[tonitoni93]

My 2019 Intel MBP has been a mess since the beginning (less than 5 hours of battery, overheats, lags often etc) and I know that silicon chips are a true gamechanger.

I am debating between MBP M3 (16GB) & MBP M3 Pro (18GB), either with 512GB or 1TB (not decided yet). My use is mostly work (Chrome with 30 tabs opened including Google Sheets, Slides opened, LinkedIn etc) & productivity & entertainment. 95% of my use is Safari/Chrome, Music, Youtube, and cloud gaming (GeForce Now). I want a computer that lasts at least 7 or 8 hours on battery. I also plug my laptop to a 1440p or 4K monitor half of the year. I might buy a second monitor to use them as dual screens down the road but it is certainly not a priority for the time being, battery life and mobility is more important.

Price and value push me towards the M3 Pro, but the only factor that stresses me out right now is battery as I have read from many different persons that the M3 pro has a much weaker battery efficiency than the base M3. Also, based on my use I don't really see the value in having more CPU power, unless I can see the difference for my use (opening apps/websites a bit faster, closing windows, multitasking). The reason I am saying this is that my current MBP Pro is MUCH slower than a comparable M1 chip to open even basic websites on Safari or Chrome, and scrolling on most websites often trigger loading issues and blank pages). In other words, if the M3 Pro chip can help speed (even just a bit) from that front versus the base M3, I see the value in getting the Pro.

Which one would you recommend?

 

[Paul Deemer]

It's all about what you're willing to spend. I have the M3 Max base and it lasts all day sometimes 2 days. I wouldn't recommend the base M3 with 8 gb of ram its just not enough memory. Will cause a lot of swapping to the ssd which will wear it down faster. I would recommend the M3 Pro as its got 6 efficiency cores and 6 performance cores. That will last you all day easily for what your use case is. It's always recommended to buy the most memory you can afford. If it was me I would get a 36 gb model with 1 tb hard drive is which will be more than enough for people that are not doing heavy professional work. I have 36 gb on mine and it has never run out of memory and had to use a swap file. But you might also consider some of the M1 and M2 Pro models that are heavily discounted right now while retailers try to unload the last of their old stock. I saw B&H photo had a few M1 Pros in limited quantity for $850.00 off yesterday. But if your deciding between 512gb and 1 tb hd and 512gb is enough storage for you I would spend the $400 upgrade on the memory instead of the storage cause you can always add an external ssd later on if you run out of storage. But whatever you choose it will be a night and day difference upgrading from an Intel MBP.

 

[tonitoni93]

It's all about what you're willing to spend. I have the M3 Max base and it lasts all day sometimes 2 days. I wouldn't recommend the base M3 with 8 gb of ram its just not enough memory. Will cause a lot of swapping to the ssd which will wear it down faster. I would recommend the M3 Pro as its got 6 efficiency cores and 6 performance cores. That will last you all day easily for what your use case is. It's always recommended to buy the most memory you can afford. If it was me I would get a 36 gb model with 1 tb hard drive is which will be more than enough for people that are not doing heavy professional work. I have 36 gb on mine and it has never run out of memory and had to use a swap file. But you might also consider some of the M1 and M2 Pro models that are heavily discounted right now while retailers try to unload the last of their old stock. I saw B&H photo had a few M1 Pros in limited quantity for $850.00 off yesterday. But if your deciding between 512gb and 1 tb hd and 512gb is enough storage for you I would spend the $400 upgrade on the memory instead of the storage cause you can always add an external ssd later on if you run out of storage. But whatever you choose it will be a night and day difference upgrading from an Intel MBP.

Thanks. Unfortunately I am not in the US but in HK so retail rebates options on old models are limited. Apple Store prices for new model are aligned with US prices though so that’s good.

Do you think 36GB wouldn’t be overkill for my needs versus 18GB?

Also the reason I am leaning towards 1TB is that iCloud would be more expensive if I upgraded from 200GB. Also one of my largest password image protected file is 50GB and unusable on iCloud (and iCloud unfortunately still does not offer password protected folders) so for now I value local storage slightly more than the cloud.

 

[smirking]

Do you think 36GB wouldn’t be overkill for my needs versus 18GB?

You'll be fine on the 16/18GB models for what you described. 16GB on an M-chip is way more capable than 16GB on an Intel MBP.

If and when battery life is an issue on the M3 Pro, you can set the power management to low power mode. I'm on an M1 Pro at 450 cycles and still have over 95% battery health. For just browsing websites and stuff without low power turned on, I'm getting 7+ hours.

 

[tonitoni93]

You'll be fine on the 16/18GB models for what you described. 16GB on an M-chip is way more capable than 16GB on an Intel MBP.

If and when battery life is an issue on the M3 Pro, you can set the power management to low power mode. I'm on an M1 Pro at 450 cycles and still have over 95% battery health. For just browsing websites and stuff without low power turned on, I'm getting 7+ hours.

That’s nice. Do you think the M3 pro has better battery life than your M1 Pro?

 

[smirking]

That’s nice. Do you think the M3 pro has better battery life than your M1 Pro?

I wouldn't know, but there's a pretty good thread on M3 battery life here:

M3 Pro Battery Life

The battery life on the 14" M3 Pro is killer with what I use it for. I've been working in Citrix, multiple browser tabs, email, etc for about an hour on battery and it's still at 100% and shows 20:00 time remaining (which may be the highest this thing will show as I've never seen it go over...

forums.macrumors.com

 

[tonitoni93]

I wouldn't know, but there's a pretty good thread on M3 battery life here:

M3 Pro Battery Life

The battery life on the 14" M3 Pro is killer with what I use it for. I've been working in Citrix, multiple browser tabs, email, etc for about an hour on battery and it's still at 100% and shows 20:00 time remaining (which may be the highest this thing will show as I've never seen it go over...

forums.macrumors.com

I just read it. At this point it’s only the battery life that makes me hesitate on getting the M3 Pro. Half of the people on this thread say the battery is very bad. The other half is impressed. Not sure who to believe.

 

[Basic75]

I know that silicon chips are a true gamechanger.

Nearly all computer chips are made from silicon, including the ones in your Intel MacBook.

I also plug my laptop to a 1440p or 4K monitor half of the year. I might buy a second monitor to use them as dual screens down the road but it is certainly not a priority for the time being, battery life and mobility is more important.

The base M3 can only drive two displays, in a laptop that means the built-in display plus one external one. You'll need at least the M3 Pro if you want to attach two external displays to a MacBook Pro.

I have read from many different persons that the M3 pro has a much weaker battery efficiency than the base M3.

I'm surprised by this, of course the M3 Pro can consume more power than an M3, but in that case it's probably also doing more stuff in the same time. Where did you read that it's less efficient?

Also, based on my use I don't really see the value in having more CPU power, unless I can see the difference for my use (opening apps/websites a bit faster, closing windows, multitasking). The reason I am saying this is that my current MBP Pro is MUCH slower than a comparable M1 chip to open even basic websites on Safari or Chrome, and scrolling on most websites often trigger loading issues and blank pages). In other words, if the M3 Pro chip can help speed (even just a bit) from that front versus the base M3, I see the value in getting the Pro.

The CPU cores in the M3 Pro and M3 Max are not faster than those in the M3, you just have more of them. That means the larger chips are only faster when you are using software that needs more cores at the same time. Loading web pages or scrolling them doesn't really do that, so an M3 should be just as fast as an M3 Pro. Things are different on the GPU side, but it doesn't sound like you are doing anything especially taxing. Jumping from an Intel Mac to an M1 or better is a huge jump in single-threaded performance that makes most things noticeably faster.

 

[Basic75]

I just read it. At this point it’s only the battery life that makes me hesitate on getting the M3 Pro. Half of the people on this thread say the battery is very bad. The other half is impressed. Not sure who to believe.

Apple rates the 14" M3 at "up to 22h" and the 14" M3 Pro & Max at "up to 18h". Under full throttle the difference will probably be larger, but that doesn't sound like your use case.

 

[tonitoni93]

Nearly all computer chips are made from silicon, including the ones in your Intel MacBook.

The base M3 can only drive two displays, in a laptop that means the built-in display plus one external one. You'll need at least the M3 Pro if you want to attach two external displays to a MacBook Pro.

I'm surprised by this, of course the M3 Pro can consume more power than an M3, but in that case it's probably also doing more stuff in the same time. Where did you read that it's less efficient?

The CPU cores in the M3 Pro and M3 Max are not faster than those in the M3, you just have more of them. That means the larger chips are only faster when you are using software that needs more cores at the same time. Loading web pages or scrolling them doesn't really do that, so an M3 should be just as fast as an M3 Pro. Things are different on the GPU side, but it doesn't sound like you are doing anything especially taxing. Jumping from an Intel Mac to an M1 or better is a huge jump in single-threaded performance that makes most things noticeably faster.

The battery issue on the M3 pops up frequently on Reddit, as well as on the thread that another forum member posted just above

M3 Pro Battery Life

The battery life on the 14" M3 Pro is killer with what I use it for. I've been working in Citrix, multiple browser tabs, email, etc for about an hour on battery and it's still at 100% and shows 20:00 time remaining (which may be the highest this thing will show as I've never seen it go over...

forums.macrumors.com

1st person: "The battery life on my 14" MacBook Pro M3 has been horrible. I am lucky to get 4 hours of usage."

2nd person: "I seem to have similar issue after using the macbook just for 2 days"

3rd: "Have you found a solution? I'm having the same issue, I switched from M1 air and have the same usage pattern. Matter life on m3 pro is much much worse comparing to 3 year old m1 air. I get around maybe 5-6 hours"

 

[Makisupa Policeman]

Get the M3 Pro MBP. The M3 MBP is fine and will have plenty of power, but it’s also somewhat gimped with worse connectivity, less RAM, and less cooling. For a couple hundred more you can get a much better machine. I have the base M3 Pro 11C/14G/18GB RAM/1TB Storage, and I think it’s incredibly capable for probably the vast majority of Pro users.

 

[tonitoni93]

Get the M3 Pro MBP. The M3 MBP is fine and will have plenty of power, but it’s also somewhat gimped with worse connectivity, less RAM, and less cooling. For a couple hundred more you can get a much better machine. I have the base M3 Pro 11C/14G/18GB RAM/1TB Storage, and I think it’s incredibly capable for probably the vast majority of Pro users.

What about the battery life?

 

[Makisupa Policeman]

What about the battery life?

I think battery life is better in M3 but M3 Pro is no slouch and there’s been reports of it getting up to 30 hours in Low Power mode with not much of a performance hit. I think the slightly worse overall battery is worth the trade of more power and connectivity but YMMV.

 

[tonitoni93]

I think battery life is better in M3 but M3 Pro is no slouch and there’s been reports of it getting up to 30 hours in Low Power mode with not much of a performance hit. I think the slightly worse overall battery is worth the trade of more power and connectivity but YMMV.

I don’t need the added power for my use I think as apparently I won’t see a faster experience browsing the web or opening apps.

If I don’t use low power mode,will the battery be much worse?

 

[Makisupa Policeman]

I don’t need the added power for my use I think as apparently I won’t see a faster experience browsing the web or opening apps.

If I don’t use low power mode,will the battery be much worse?

No, I think you should still get around the Apple estimated 12-18 hours. Depends on the tasks of course.

 

[tonitoni93]

I think I will settle for the MBP M3 Pro then. I hope the battery last at least 8 hours.

 

[Liverbird1996]

I was in the same situation. Got an m3 with 16BG ram for $1600 which arrives today from B&H. Not sure if I made a mistake not getting the m3 pro for $1800. However, I'm leaving the country on Saturday so I doubt I'll have time to perform an exchange.

However, like OP, I think the benefits of of the m3 pro will never be taken advantage of in my use case. It will be used almost exclusively for school work involving lots of reading and annotating documents, web browsing and word documents. I also will be using it in a country that has planned power outages everyday, sometimes up to 12hrs. So the additional battery life might be of considerable benefit to me versus the extra performance. I will never connect it to an external display as I have a 4090/7950X/128GB ram desktop connected to an ultrawide.

Should I try exchange it, or just stick with my original purchase. I know its overkill for my needs and an air would do but considering I only upgrade every 10 years or so, I didn't mind spending more on the base m3 pro.

 

[Sheepish-Lord]

It's all about what you're willing to spend. I have the M3 Max base and it lasts all day sometimes 2 days. I wouldn't recommend the base M3 with 8 gb of ram its just not enough memory. Will cause a lot of swapping to the ssd which will wear it down faster. I would recommend the M3 Pro as its got 6 efficiency cores and 6 performance cores. That will last you all day easily for what your use case is. It's always recommended to buy the most memory you can afford. If it was me I would get a 36 gb model with 1 tb hard drive is which will be more than enough for people that are not doing heavy professional work. I have 36 gb on mine and it has never run out of memory and had to use a swap file. But you might also consider some of the M1 and M2 Pro models that are heavily discounted right now while retailers try to unload the last of their old stock. I saw B&H photo had a few M1 Pros in limited quantity for $850.00 off yesterday. But if your deciding between 512gb and 1 tb hd and 512gb is enough storage for you I would spend the $400 upgrade on the memory instead of the storage cause you can always add an external ssd later on if you run out of storage. But whatever you choose it will be a night and day difference upgrading from an Intel MBP.

- Swapping wearing down the ssd?
- Recommend 36gb ram for someone that does very little on their laptop.

OP, please don’t take this advice.

 

[chukwithak]

@tonitoni93 DId you pull the trigger? Hows the battery been?

 

[m1mini]

writing this from a m3 pro 12/18 core 36GB and the battery life in this thing is insane. for your workload I don't expect you to have a different battery life experience in between base m3 and m3 pro.

 

[gussic]

I have a 14-inch M3 with 16 GB RAM and 1TB SSD. I am enjoying it so far (the screen particularly lol).

Before my return period runs out I want to know...am I likely to see any noticeable performance difference in day-to-day use if I were to upgrade to the M3 Pro/1TB 14 inch model for the following tasks:
- MS Office (particularly opening the applications, they're very slow to open)
- Browsing, streaming
- PDF review (reading through large documents, annotating etc)
- odd bit of JavaScript development work
- a bit of photo editing (Photomator)
- running Windows 11 VM via Parallels for similar tasks as above, but accessing windows only software (Visio for example) and certain work apps

I'd like to think I'll do some gaming at some point, but if I am being honest I probably won't, and the promise of better gaming performance isn't important to me really.

Thanks for any/all advice. It's a difficult decision to make.

 

[m1mini]

I have a 14-inch M3 with 16 GB RAM and 1TB SSD. I am enjoying it so far (the screen particularly lol).

Before my return period runs out I want to know...am I likely to see any noticeable performance difference in day-to-day use if I were to upgrade to the M3 Pro/1TB 14 inch model for the following tasks:
- MS Office (particularly opening the applications, they're very slow to open)
- Browsing, streaming
- PDF review (reading through large documents, annotating etc)
- odd bit of JavaScript development work
- a bit of photo editing (Photomator)
- running Windows 11 VM via Parallels for similar tasks as above, but accessing windows only software (Visio for example) and certain work apps

I'd like to think I'll do some gaming at some point, but if I am being honest I probably won't, and the promise of better gaming performance isn't important to me really.

Thanks for any/all advice. It's a difficult decision to make.

if you like to do most of this at once, incl the windows 11 vm, yes you would notice a performance increase, but I did a lot of what you did plus 4k video editing on the ole m1 mac mini (16gb/1tb) before getting my m3 pro 36/1tb. Your device is fast and capable, but m3 pro is faster (in multi core workloads) and more capable (more max ram, more mem bandwith, you already know the increased amount of gpu and cpu cores etc etc)