The Truth Behind the M3 MacBook Pro (30 Days Later)

How does the performance of the new M3 Max MacBook Pro compare to previous models? How does it stack up against a Windows machine?

I’ve had the M3 Max MacBook Pro for 30 days now so I wanted to share my experience of this $4,000 machine! Is it worth the mammoth price tag? Well, in this video, I carefully consider the performance, battery life, connectivity, support, user experience, and score them based on my lifelong experience with Apple products.

I also share the reasons why I have some regrets about buying the M3 Max MacBook Pro.

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My name is Pete and from 2011, I started and grew an IT Support and Services Company from £0 to over £1m in turnover before selling the business in 2020. New video's every week! I upload videos around the latest and greatest tech.

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Disclosures: All opinions are my own. Some links in the descriptions are affiliate links that if you click on, I’ll receive a commission at no additional cost to you.

--SMPOST--M3 Max MacBook Pro After 30 Days: The Truth

[Vanuatoo]

Have been using M1 MB Pro 14 inch for 18 months already and the performance is superb. I've never heard a cooling fan kicking on, even during my development work.

[GoddamnAxl]

I bought an M1 Max 2 years ago and it’s still killing it.

[mdmiadulislam-]

Using M1 Air I'm so happy as a Graphic designer & Content creator!

[GrzegorzBojanek]

Man, I am on a late 2013 MacBook Pro with 8GB memory and it still does the job with Ableton 10.

[Everyday-man]

Since the SSD and Ram is soldered on, you most certainty will at some point. Btw i got the M3 pro and love it, but soldered on is such a kick in the guts. Say your SSD or part of your Ram dies in a few years time.. well you cant just get a ssd, you need a whole new board

[matt-eu-poland]

You can buy a single HDMI to usb-c adapter. I bought one for like 90 PLN which is around 20 usd I believe. Worth purchasing as you can connect the monitor from any side. The one I bought can bear 4k @ 120hz so definitely worth it.

[himynameisryan]

To be fair I upgraded from an m1 MacBook MacBook Air to an m3 max MacBook Pro 16” and I justified it to myself with the 120hz display

[mykalmatters]

Is the MacBook Pro M3 somewhat on par with the M3 Max, or is there a night and day difference? Thanks.

[someonewhocares...]

Just a quick comment: What you perceive as a review is, in fact, a classic 'you don't need this, but here's why you might want to buy it' tactic. This implies an encouragement to purchase the product and ensures the use of your affiliate link.

I am not judging you as a person, as I am sure there is more to you than this video, but why would you want to con people in this manner?

[hamodalbatal]

I bought M1 Max more than 2 years ago and it’s blazing fast and I don’t feel need to upgrade perhaps till M5 :)

[TimWhild]

I Man Mathed myself this exact model after 3 years with a 16" M1 Pro...I doubt I'll ever scratch the capacity of it but I won't be in a hurry to change it either 😁

[johannmadrid]

Oh wow! That man math term personally hit hard😂 because this past two months I’ve been debating which laptop to upgrade from my air intel 2017. I want to get the m3 pro space black because it looks sick but the prices of m2 pro and m2 air can’t beat the price haha

[arcadialive]

After a month on my 128gb, m3 Max/4tb I’m pretty happy. I lost nearly $2, 600 on my m2 with 96gbs selling it but the m3 solved a lot of the m2 issues. I had to install TG fan pro, because apple’s software doesn’t increase the fan speeds during heavy load properly. This is an issue they need to fix. But with TG fan pro the laptop stays at the proper temps and I’m 4k gaming while working with multiple monitors, with no issues thus far.

[jurrydevries]

Great video thanks. I liked the fact you mentioned using iPad as secondary screen using sidecar. A feature that’s, in my view, under estimated and under utilized. I use a M1 Max 16 inch and totally happy with it. Definitely no need to upgrade.
What I like about this machine is that I am using a Studio Display as main screen, simultaneously use the MacBook screen to lock certain images and simultaneously use the iPad to display relevant system data and display messages in background.

[paulharrison]

The M1, M2 and M3 processors are all fast enough for most people's needs. The only way to order a slow M1, M2 or M3 is to order the base 8 GB RAM and slow 256 GB SSD configurations. If I was a power user and was buying a Mac then I would order a M2 Pro Mini, a M2 Mini or an M1 Mini with at least 16 Gb of RAM and a 512 Gb SSD. I regard these Apple Silicon Macs with enough RAM and storage as being future proof.

It is outrageous that the base M1, M2 and M3 Macs all have inadequate RAM and storage and also that almost all of the Macs that Apple ships are base systems. For most PCs and laptops you can update the SSD for around $50 and can update the RAM for around $50. It would be difficult to find a PC with less than 16 Gb of RAM if they are in the Mac price range.

[MistqueGOD]

Should i get the MBP M2Pro 16gb or M3 with 16gb

[nikkithuillier]

Hi Pete, thank you for the excellent video, I am purchasing a Samsung 57 based on your previous reviews. Will the M3 Max drive the 57in Samsung monitor without overheating and spinning up the fans under normal conditions?

[louisefindlay]

I adore the wave skin. Considered that one and Magma but love real leather.

[VicharB]

I got the EliteBook 835 G10 7840U with 32GB, 5G and installed Samsung 990 Pro 2TB, for about USD1, 650 only. Installed my preferred Linux distro Opensuse Tumbleweed and got all things working out of box. Just saying. :)

[TheMezaFamily]

I hope I get a response before this day gets started. I bought the 14inch MacBookPro M3Max with the following specs! 14 Core CPU, 30 Core GPU, 36GB of unified memory. I believe = max 300GB/‘s memory bandwidth. My question is this., . I will ONLY use this laptop for editing 1080p and some 4k files (drone footage) maybe some 4k DSLR footage as well with a lot of 3rd party plug in’s for Final Cut Pro X like Titles, Generators, Effects and transitioning etc… should I return this product and upgrade to 64 GB of unified memory with 16 core CPU and 40core GPU? Which by the way would = Max 400GB/s memory bandwidth! OH and does 14” vs 16” make a difference with the same exact specs? Thank you in advance.