And theres more Apple Intelligence features on the way in macOS Sequoia like Image Playground and ChatGPT integration.
Heres the pros and cons in my M4 MacBook Pro review.
This is the laptop Darth Vader would use, complete with matching black MagSafe power cord.
MacBook Pro (2024, M4) webcam(Image credit: Tom’s Guide)
The port selection on the MacBook Pro M4 is a little bit better than the M3.
Same thing goes with my daily bus commute.
Its just a more pleasurable viewing experience.
That beats all of its closest competitors, some of which dont even support HDR.
It now features a 12MP Center Stage camera, up from the 1080p camera on the M3 MacBook Pro.
And I noticed a huge difference in image quality when I took some selfies using the Photo Booth app.
Based on a 3-namometer process, Apple claims youre getting the fastest CPU core and better multithreaded performance.
Our system has a 10-core CPU and 10-core GPU, plus 16GB of unified memory and a 1TB SSD.
In my testing I found this M4 Mac extremely responsive.
Everything just feels super fluid with this machine, especially compared to my aging M1 MacBook Pro.
The only drawback in our testing is surprisingly low SSD performance scores.
The one negative surprise in our performance testing was the SSD speed of the M4 MacBook Pro.
Its read and write speeds were also behind the top Windows systems.
On the plus side, I had a blast playing a demo of Resident Evil 4.
The graphics were lush with impressive lighting effects as I ran around a muddy nightmare-fueled landscape.
Just dont expect the fastest performance in demanding titles.
It was a similar story with other titles.
But theNvidia-powered laptop was faster.
But before we get to that theres some pretty neat upgrades that are not AI-related.
For example, macOS Sequoia finally includes easier window tiling.
You wont find as many options as my favorite free Rectangle app, but its a great improvement.
Another macOS Sequoia highlight is iPhone Mirroring.
you could easily use your iPhone on your Mac even if its in another room.
I tried this and it connected almost immediately, complete with all my apps and notifications.
MacBook Pro (2024, M4) webcam(Image credit: Tom’s Guide)
From there you’re able to copy that summary and put it at the top of your document.
It can even help make your tone sound more professional, which is a good filter for sending emails.
I really like having a smarter Siri on board with macOS Sequoia.
MacBook Pro (2021, M1) webcam(Image credit: Tom’s Guide)
With the macOS 15.2 developer beta, you’re able to push things even further with ChatGPT.
And then I could add that image to the Photos app with a click.
Another handy Apple Intelligence feature is Clean Up.
Those are just some of the highlights of Apple Intelligence on the Mac.
Im also looking forward to trying out Image Playground for generating AI images.
However, the Snapdragon-powered XPS 13 is still the battery life champ for now at 19:31.
MacBook Pro M4 review: Verdict
The MacBook Pro M4 is pretty close to the perfect laptop.
Its just too bad my favorite feature the nano-texture display costs $150 more.
I do have a few nitpicks at the $1,949 price of my review unit.
First, the SSD performance is slightly behind the competition.
Overall, though, the M4 MacBook Pro is the laptop Id buy with my own money.
And its one of the best laptops you’ve got the option to buy, period.
