Review: The Base M4 MacBook Pro
Review: The Base M4 MacBook Pro: It doesn’t make sense to own a dedicated desktop computer anymore. Just get the base M4 MacBook and use it for all your computing needs. when Apple introduced an even smaller Mac Mini late last year, most of my tech media peers and fellow tech enthusiasts were in love with the machine. It’s so cute, a former reviewer at Input Mag told me. It’ll perfectly on my small desk, another journalist tweeted.
But I, perhaps a contrarian at heart, questioned aloud on Twitter: Why the need for the Mini?
In my opinion, the need to own a dedicated Apple desktop computer doesn’t make much sense these days,
With Apple’s entire line of computers (both portable and desk bound ones) running on the same silicon.
The Base M4 MacBook Pro
Review: The Base M4 MacBook Pro: Even a few years ago, the argument could be made that the larger casing for a desk bound computer allows for better
coiling, but as Apple silicon continues to break boundaries and set impossibly high performance bars, the reality is a
MacBook can performance bars, the reality is s MacBook can perform 99% of the daily tasks that 99% of us will ever
do on a desk bound computer.
All of this is a long winded way of saying: instead of having desktop computer and a laptop, you can just own one laptop.
When it’s at home, plug it into a larger monitor, and maybe pair with a mechanical keyboard and mouse. If you need to
work on the go, simply unplug and take the MacBook with you.
And of all the Apple computers that are out right now, I think the recently released M4 MacBook Pro, especially the 14-inch model, is the best overall option in terms of price, performance, and usability.
Note: the M4 MacBook Pro comes in both 14-and 16-inch models; this review focuses on the 14-inch machine
No longer the awkward middle child
Review: The Base M4 MacBook Pro: Last generation’s base 14-inch model MacBook Pro was in a weird spot: it was only a bit more powerful than the cheaper and lighter
MacBook Air, but it was clearly not as powerful as the larger 16-inch Pro machines due to having one fewer USB-C port, a weaker CPU,
and starting with a measly 8GB of RAM. That made it the awkward middle child neither the most capable nor the most sleek.
This year, Apple finally gave the 14-inch machine parity with the 16-inch machine. For starters, the 14-inch port selection is now the exact same as the 16-inch’s, no longer short one port. Second, the base RAM is now at 16GB, and the base CPU is also 10-core like before. This 14-inch model finally feels like a proper machine.
The outer hardware is almost identical to previous few MacBooks – typical boxy aluminum unibody shell with a notch eating
into the screen. The display, however, has an optional upgrade in the form of an anti reflective matte coating. It does cost a
hefty $150 extra, but I think most Apple fans would be okay to splurge on it, because it drastically improves how the screen
looks in many situations such as outdoors or by a window. Not only does the screen not reflect light as easily, it also does not
attract fingerprint and smudges as much too.
The M4 silicon
Review: The Base M4 MacBook Pro: This current line of MacBooks can be powered by either the M4, M4 Pro or M4 Max series of Apple silicon. I opted for the baseM4 chip because I have already tested a M2 MacBook Air and M3 MacBook Pro in the past, so I wanted to see how the base Applechip would fare on a Pro computer.
First, some spece: the M4 chip is about 20% faster overall compared to the M3 chip, and in benchmark apps, this machine does score
almost exactly 20% higher than the M3 model. But where the M4 excels is it’s more efficient at multi core processing, and on the
Cine bench multi core app, the score is 50% better than last generation. It is worth mentioning that I configured my MacBook with
32GB of RAM (the base model comes with 16GB).
More useful Siri, usually
Review: The Base M4 MacBook Pro: This MacBook also ships with the latest version of MacOS with a new version of Siri that’s part of Apple Intelligence.
I’ve found Apple Intelligence to be hit or miss, with some features being useful while others clearly inferior to Google’s
alternatives.
The only computer most of us would need
Review: The Base M4 MacBook Pro: The webcam has also been improved, and the speakers are still best in class, so this is an excellent machine for video calls.With the ability to output to two external 4K monitors, and tremendous battery life (over 16 hours for office type work,
and solid 5-6 hours if doing intensive video editing work), I feel like this is the only computer most people would need.
Conclusion
Review: The Base M4 MacBook Pro: My computer setup before I got this machine was I’d use the powerful but bulky 16-inch M3 Max MacBook Pro at home
(plugged to a monitor), and a 13-inch M2 MacBook Air on the go. But the 14-inch M4 MacBook Pro sort of makes both
of those machines redundant, because it offers enough power to be my main work machine, but at 14-inch, it’s also portable
enough that I can have it in my backpack all day without finding it annoying. I will take another month to think about this,
but I am tempted to sell both my 16-inch Pro and 13-inch Air and use solely the 14-inch M4 MacBook Pro for everything.
