M1 Pro Macbook Pro 16 Inch Hands-On Review
Hi there. About a year ago I bought the base model 16-inch MacBook Pro with the M1 Pro chip. I’ve been using this laptop for just about everything. From web development, to editing photos and videos and even media consumption. I’m going to share with you how my experience with this laptop has been and who I’d recommend it for. This is a hands-on review of the M1 Pro MacBook Pro from a long-term user’s perspective.
I’ve been working as a web developer and content creator for about 5 years now. Before Apple started using their own chipsets, I never really believed that you could rely on a MacBook for editing videos. Whether it was on Final Cut or Adobe Premier. However, since Apple introduced the M1 Chip, that perspective has changed significantly.
The M1 Pro Chip delivers game-changing performance with amazing battery life. It features up to 10 CPU cores and up to 16 GPU cores, as well as a 16-core Neural Engine and a powerful media engine that can play as many as 4 streams of 8K video.⁷ Delivering 200GB/s of memory bandwidth, M1 Pro can be configured with up to 32GB of unified memory to handle complex professional workflows.
I’m not going to be talking about the specs and features in this article. I believe you could easily get that information somewhere else. Rather, I want to talk about my personal experience with the 16-inch M1 Pro MacBook Pro base model. But first, I just want to mention the specs at a glance, just so we can have in mind what device were talking about.
The 16-Inch M1 Pro MacBook Pro Base Model, Specs at a Glance
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Below, I’ve stated the configuration of the M1 MacBook Pro that I reviewed.
- 10-Core CPU
- 16-Core GPU
- 16GB Unified Memory
- 1TB SSD Storage¹
- 16-core Neural Engine
- 16-inch Liquid Retina XDR display
- Three Thunderbolt 4 ports, HDMI port, SDXC card slot, MagSafe 3 port
- Magic Keyboard with Touch ID
- Force Touch trackpad
- 140W USB-C Power Adapter
Now that we’re familiar with the specs of the laptop featured in this review, let’s get down to business.
Before I begin, I just want to say that, when I’m not traveling, I like to use my MacBook Pro in a desk setup. In this setup, I have two main accessories that I can not do any work without. The Logitech MX 3 Master Mouse and the Logitech MX Mechanical Keyboard. I believe that this combo is a match made in heaven and I’d recommend it to anyone who has a desk setup. It doesn’t have to be a MacBook setup.
16-Inch M1 Pro MacBook Pro Long-Term User Review
Display
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This is one of the best displays that I’ve used on a laptop. It is a 16.2-Inch Liquid Retina XDR Display with a peak brightness of 1000nits that’s almost 4K. The aspect ratio is okay for someone who wants both horizontal and vertical pixels. This display is quite comfortable to use even in the daylight or in brightly lit rooms. I really have no complains about this display. To enhance your experience even more consider using an external monitor.
Performance
This is the best MacBook I’ve ever used – performance-wise. The new chip has really improved the performance and efficiency while reducing heat and noise. The laptop doesn’t get as hot as its predecessor.
Webcam
The webcam could certainly be better. However, 1080p HD is sufficient for video calls like Face Time and Zoom.
Keyboard
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I really appreciate the return of the function keys. It has made the MacBook Pro’s Keyboard more functional. The keys are well spaced and I’ve had absolutely no problem with this keyboard.
For the full Review, watch the video above. You can also watch it on YouTube here
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