M4 Max MacBook Pro Review: A Month of Ultimate Performance! 💻 Is It Worth $4,300?

[@JerrySchulze]

Battery life... Somehow I cut this from the video but the battery life is up to 22 hours which is insane, and a nice upgrade over the 18 hours of the M2 Max, however, I mostly use this laptop as a desktop so I am rarely away from power for very long. As soon as MacBook were spec'd at over 15 hours, they became all day devices and I am happy with 22, or 18, or 15 hours.

[@JerrySchulze]

spec sheet... but @AZisk has done some battery tests on his channel. www.youtube.com/@AZisk/videos

[@CanYouCodeMe]

Not even close sorry. I tested heavily with 3 separate Max models. And also 2 Pro models. The pros get close to 20 hours on the 14” model under light or normal usage. Pros also get around 10 hours of constant Xcode usage. But the Max tops out around 4 hours with Xcode usage. Normal use maybe 10. I spoke directly with  with all machines and we got consistent results for over a month. These were all restored from the same backup and had identical usage. Not automated. Real world testing only. I sent the Max back and kept one of the Pro’s. I’m happy with that. If you really need the performance over battery the Max is amazing. But otherwise I’d avoid it unfortunately.

[@CanYouCodeMe]

Also I should add @azisk did do a lot of battery testing but I wouldn’t use that as a reference since he mixed 14” and 16” across specs which changes the results considerably. Also the Max gets warmer more often and even fans came on during some compiles. None of that seems to occur with the Pro models at all in my testing.

[@GlobalWave1]

Where did you get the awesome background with cactus???

[@khoifoto]

I get close to 5 hours with screen brightness around 50% on M4 Max 14 in, 128GB RAM and 2TB internal nvme with an external nvme drive.

[@VolrathMTG]

I am buying this specific MacBook (without the nano texture screen) as my first ever MacBook. I probably don't need 90% of the power, but it will be there if I need it, and it will somewhat future-proof me for at least 5 or 6 years.

[@JerrySchulze]

Heck ya!

[@bren.r]

Apple's glossy displays is exactly why I use Apple displays. I like sharp, non-fuzzy text. I like good contrast. I like better reflection of handling of glossy. Matte just spreads out reflections and washes out your screen.

[@theoddgamer7147]

Real, I was wondering what was wrong with the macbooks display till he said he got the nano display option.

[@andyH_England]

That is why Apple offers it as an option rather than forcing it on people like the Galaxy S24U from Samsung. If you work indoors, you will probably find it a negative, but if you are on-site outdoors, then the nano texture will be a benefit. Choice is great.

[@Tigerex966]

Yea some people eyes just can't take reflections they will gladly pay $159 and give up a little contrast and sharpness I'm glad there is a choice but wish there was no extra charge

[@t87h21]

I have the 16-inch Macbook Pro M1 and now also the 14-inch Macbook Pro M4 Pro with the Nano texture display. Today I compared both displays in completely different situations. The Nano Texture display looks so much higher quality, cleaner, the matte look. In the future I won't buy any more Macbooks without Nano texture.

[@JerrySchulze]

its surprisingly good!

[@artmeansartificial]

nano texture is rubbish if you are an artist/ designer or video editor, for common user like you, yes, nano maybe is better solution

[@t87h21]

Sometimes it's better to say nothing if you have no idea. Your statement is pointless if you only know Apple devices from the Apple Store.

[@VegasGuy1975]

This should be a great review. Been looking for a review of someone who bought the Nanotexture display.

[@JerrySchulze]

And did it help?

[@wankim1]

That’s the exact same device I have, except the color and nano texture display. I’ve noticed it runs marginally warmer…but that’s me noticing it coming from a 14” M1 Pro. Battery life is surprisingly good as you mentioned. The only thing I’m regretting is not getting the nano texture display..👍🏻

[@rtpHarry]

I'm emotionally committed to an 16" m4 max, 64gb, 4tb, nano texture. I keep watching all these videos, and for my dev work, it seems that i'm massively overspeccing the device, but I can't find a compelling reason not to. I'm just going for the best of the best. It's going to be sticking around for 4-5 years minimum. The price difference between pro vs max, even at an extra £1k, is negligible spread over that time frame, and for my primary work device. Part of my reasoning is that every reviewer only talks about its performance today, but I still want top of the line performance in 5 years. So as the software requirements slowly creep up, i'll still have something that can chomp through it.

[@JerrySchulze]

Great point. Buy the best you can now and use It as long as possible.

[@MattHalpain]

I need a powered Thunderbolt dock. I have two non-powered Thunderbolt docks and one of them I have to unplug and replug in the Thunderbolt port on my M2 Mac mini, to get the USB devices recognized. It never did this on previous macOS running on my M2 Mac mini. I love my M2 Mac mini.

[@JerrySchulze]

Which ones are you considering?

[@JethroRose]

re: thunderbolt 5 - I'm convinced there are bugs. I am having a lock/crash if I have had thunderbolt dock plugged in and then unplug the machine and wake/sleep it. if I haven't plugged into the dock, it's fine. machine is 100% rock solid stable under load etc. its just wake from sleep and only after I've used an external dock. Yes its expensive, but it is cheaper than the two machines it replaced (M1 Pro MacBook Pro 14 plus a desktop Ryzen DIY box).

[@bryans8656]

Great review, thanks. The M4 Max it WAY overkill for me, and my M3 Pro MBP 14 is paid for. Easy choice for me.

[@JerrySchulze]

Good choice!

[@lucio20006]

I have the 16 M3 max and the 14 M4 max, for work. Im in love with the 14".

[@ivanivanovich5904]

@@lucio20006 battery life ?

[@joesalyers]

Finally someone has the full size 14 inch M4 Max I have been searching for content on this exact machine!!! I already have an M1 Max 16 inch but I really want to try a 14 inch but I don't want to downgrade the chip I want the full M4 Max. I am a Music Producer, Tracking and Mixing Engineer so I need as many cores as I can get and the fastest memory bandwidth. The GPU is not really very important, but those 2 extra CPU power cores is and the faster memory bandwidth is a bigger help for music than a lot of people would think. But my girlfriend has the M3 base 14 inch and I love that size its perfect to lug around from the tracking studio to my home studio over the 16 inch!! Thanks for reviewing this model!!!

[@JerrySchulze]

It's a nice size, for sure.

[@NetvoTV]

I am a freelance logo designer, would you like to have a logo and artwork for your music production business?

[@--AnonymousUser--]

Gonna pick the M4 Pro chip for pro photography and light video editing. Which use case would make 48 GB RAM absolutely necessary and when would 24 GB be enough?

[@JerrySchulze]

You will absolutely get by with 24. If you are planning to have the laptop for 5 years or more it might make sense to upgrade.

[@artmeansartificial]

64 is minimum for video editing in premiere pro + ae + photoshop. I gonna buy 128 gb, because adobe software are hungry of RAM!

[@SoftwareManiacLSM]

I was concerned about less fan power on the M4 Pro Max 14, so I bought the M4 Pro Max 16. I have ALSO found the issue with attempting to run two thunderbolt external disks plugged into the left side ("not enough power" message)!?>!?! i will try one on each side. I wonder if one internal Thunderbolt controller is managing the two ports on the left? good review, Jerry

[@Wunderkinddd]

I think I will get the M4 pro 12-core chip, 24gb ram, 1tb ssd and with nano texture, do you recommend this specs?

[@JerrySchulze]

I think that is a great spec.

[@bren.r]

Why would you get nano texture? Apple's glossy panels handle reflections better than any matte finish.

[@huyanh995]

@@bren.r The reason is pretty obvious in the first two minutes of the video itself.

[@JerrySchulze]

Apples anti reflection is better than pretty much any non apple glossy display but it is not better at handling reflections than the nano texture.

[@filipr6070]

Max Tech says that the M4 Max 14" has problems with thermal throttling. The M4 Pro seems to be a better buy. Personally I prefer a Mac Studio Max M4 when it will be released.

[@JerrySchulze]

That assuming you are pushing to 100 all the time. If you are only pushing to 50, 60, 80, the task will probably complete before any throttling happens. And yes, the Pro is the more sensible choice for nearly everyone.

[@ivanivanovich5904]

40 cores. Come on. You will have trade offs

[@ctjh373]

Great video again. Do you find multitasking difficult on the 14? Side by side programs/windows open ok for you? Or do you use MacOS spaces a lot? Thanks!

[@JerrySchulze]

I usually only use spaces for Remote Desktop type apps but sometimes will use one for work email and chat. I am ok with 14 because I use it more at a desk with a monitor.

[@CanInelli]

I have an M1 Max 16 inch MBP. I am thinking of upgrading to the M4 Max 16inch and considering Nano Texture. My local Apple Store had a 14inch Nano Texture ready for pickup so I got that one and testing it now and will return it soon and order my custom config. I don't see any difference between colors and contrast compared to my 16inch M1 Max Glossy. My main use case is heavy astrophotography, landscape photography and some video editing. I guess it's better to go with Nano since it's usable in more conditions and the tradeoff is almost none. (I see some slight RGB shimmer on white pages like Google, but not a big deal). Text is perfectly readable, photos look great on the screen. It doesn't look digital, looks like printed on a fine art paper. Do you think Nano is also better for eye strain? I am in front of the screen 12-13 hours every day.

[@JerrySchulze]

nice. I can't say for sure if it is better for eye strain as I am still using my studio display most of the day with it, but it certain places it just works better. In my living room I have a big window right behind out couch and without nano texture, I can't sit there with my laptop and do anything. With nano, no issue at all.

[@CanInelli]

@@JerrySchulze I am also planning to get the Studio Display for my home setup and have to decide on whether to go with glossy or nano.. Do you have the Nano on the Studio or the Glossy? I read that the Nano on Studio Display is not as good as the one on MBP.

[@JerrySchulze]

I don’t have on the studio display but tempted to get one. Haven’t compared side by side.

[@ivanivanovich5904]

I returned glossy one and waiting for nano. It is just tooooo reflective to be honest. If you have windows and day time lights - nano.

[@frankboyer1490]

What's the temp utility you are using in the menu bar? Have you run into the too many icons running into the notch issue? Do they just go behind?

[@radence]

Did you face any extreme heating and fan issues?

[@JerrySchulze]

Extreme? No but it got hotter and louder than the M2 Max when stressing it.

[@andyH_England]

You only get louder fans and warmer when you are doing very intensive workloads, and if that bothers you, do something else when doing a long render. Also, the 16-inch version would get less warm and not as loud and that may be a better choice for those that need less noise.

[@ivanivanovich5904]

I returned 16 inch in black coz it was impossible to remove - SALIVA spits. Yes sometimes I am getting emotional and can cough - man. I used iso to take it off and nope. Only water helped. Get silver everyone

[@1bhitte]

I would like to see how fast the max can render stable diffusion and flux.

[@anmolshelar134]

hi jerry, i’ve been looking to get the 16inch macbook pro too i just wanted to ask about your experience on the silver color? how does it hold up against smudges and fingerprints? did you do any research regarding it? ive been contemplating a bit too much and i honestly dont know which one to get still ive heard a lot of people return their space black to get the silver one and that silver lasts better overtime since its the actual color of the aluminium meanwhile the space black is a coating and it wears off at the palm rests and just fades off unevenly overtime. It def looks better than silver but longevity is questionable. What are your thoughts?

[@ivanivanovich5904]

Forgot to mention I’m gonna use nano Apple studio display too.

[@salut9658]

I want to buy this chip with maxed RAM I need for music production, just afraid it would be noisy in the 14 inch form factor because I need it to be as silent as possible, I won’t be using any GPU so maybe it won’t get as noisy as stress tests.

[@ivanivanovich5904]

You can always keep it in a drawer and put some noise damping around. Pretty sure it will be enough. Just leave an opening on the back or maybe an active cooler and you should be good.

[@salut9658]

@ ty

[@adl0815]

From what I read on gearspace and watching some videos regarding music production and M4 Macbooks the fans will go hardly on during most tasks. Only when you're really pushing the CPU (when running like 100+ tracks with CPU intensive vst's) the fans will kick in, but as the CPU is so powerful it'll take quite some time until the CPU is actually getting stressed.

[@salut9658]

@@adl0815 Yea that’s what I thought Thanks

[@ivanivanovich5904]

@@adl0815 basically better to get overdriven max with 64 (128 has bug. There is a coder who tested side by side same code and 128 crashed) and keep it at lowest load instead of getting average config ?

[@khoifoto]

128GB RAM is much needed. My memory pressure is always in the yellow and red. I wish apple just give us the M4 Pro with 128GB RAM instead of going for the M4 Max.

[@m1nhphuc]

What is your opinion on the binned version of the m4 max with 14cpu core and 32gpu core

[@JerrySchulze]

I had the binned M2 Max and would have got the binned m4 max if could get with 64. I’m sure it’s just fine.

[@andyH_England]

The M4 Pro MB Pro 14/16 is the best choice for many potential buyers. The Max is for niche users or those with higher disposable income. The base model is for those who want a de facto ultrabook, but the Air lacks some of the luxury features that would be nice for the next 4-6 years of use. For the latter looking for a nice ultrabook, the M1, M2, or M3 would serve the same utility, and as the new design is due in 2026, if you have one of those, hold on until then, as they will have OLED, under-display tech and the new 2nm chips.

[@akrabat]

Right until you need 64GB which Apple prevents the M4 Pro from having with the MacBook Pro, but not the mac Mini…

[@andyH_England]

@akrabat you can upgrade to the M4 Max to get 64GB. There are not many windows pro machines with a 64 GB option. Or 128GB like the MacBook. As RAM is on chip and 64GB in an M4Pro is low demand, Apple instead does it for the Max. This is economies of scale and essential to keep costs down

[@akrabat]

@@andyH_England Given that I can get a mac Mini with M4 Pro and 64GB RAM, I don't think it's related to anything other than Apple wanting to upsell to M4 Max on the MacBook Pro. Keeping costs down is not related at all to anything related to increasing RAM or disk space when buying a new Apple computer 🤣

[@ivanivanovich5904]

Hi Jerry. Pls advise since I’m going to buy same mbp you have. Was wondering if top configuration really heats it up and takes more battery compared to pro chip. I’m gonna use it with blender and video editing too. Thx. 16 is just too big and heavy

[@Mr_Beowulf]

How did you get 14 inch 16/40? Wasn't it only available for 16 inch pro max??

[@JerrySchulze]

Nope also in 14

[@Mr_Beowulf]

@JerrySchulze where? Send me a link where you can see it in 14 inch..

[@JerrySchulze]

Just in the Apple Store, unable to get more than 36gb of ram without the 16/40. Are you outside the US? Wonder if different spec options.

[@worfY-sn4dw]

how much ram you have for Max pro? 36 G?

[@JerrySchulze]

I have the m4 max with 64gb memory.

[@SJG33]

This is a one month review so why take the time to tell us about ports, screen etc there are a million other videos that cover that info. It's not just you be every longer term review appears to have this 101 overview. It's really useful to know what spec you went for other than that refer to another, "what you get video" and actually do the review promised. Not sure if anyone else feels the same way. Yes it's time stamped but if you are getting lots of people jumping forward that's maybe why.

[@JerrySchulze]

Appreciate the feedback

[@Bobbylopezcreative]

Which game was that you were playing there?

[@makka5877]

What system monitor are you using at. 8:49?

[@JerrySchulze]

www.tunabellysoftware.com/tgpro/

[@shawndsouza386]

Hello i was just wondering i currently have the m4 max mbp with 64gb ram n 1 tb but im seeing it get hot quite easily even with things that my old m1 air would not get hot with im starting to think its because of my ccleaner app but im not sure any suggestions?

[@ivanivanovich5904]

Yes. Get extended warranty from Apple.

[@JethroRose]

same exact spec machine here (but I went black this time). love it. no compromises, it has replaced my desktop

[@seattledude2022]

the 1 month later video, is almost the same as first impression video. Who needs to talk about design and other trah

[@doxologist]

Its worth mentioning. Over time you can get bored of a design, or start to notice major flaws with it (e.g. lack of ports). If the videos are the same, it shows this is a great laptop that can potentially last

[@canvasartful]

Very heavy and expensive

[@DudewheresmyKar98]

Seethe

[@ivanivanovich5904]

Whattttt?? Have you ever held 16 inch ?) that is heavy )) go with air 13 Sir. Wrong league

[@VolrathMTG]

...Heavy...? Have you seen or held old laptops?

[@ShubhamPawar-ln2yp]

looks very ugly

[@DudewheresmyKar98]

Cope

[@ivanivanovich5904]

Guess how your comment makes you look ? Guess u German ?)

[@artmeansartificial]

How does this max works with redshift in cinema 4d? the only question which interesting me.

[@rockjames-v7w]

M1 MAX still stronger than pro

[@artmeansartificial]

LOL! pricing is eye watering?? in Moscow all those macbook m4 pro/max OUT of stock already. so don't cry so much english speaker guy