Aside from dramatically better chips, all of the new MacBook Pros feature MiniLED Liquid Retina XDR screens that can reach up to 1,000 nits for SDR (standard dynamic range) content. That's a 400-nit increase from before, and it should help make content far more visible in daylight or in very bright rooms. (HDR content, as usual, can push the display even further to a peak of 1,600 nits.) There's also a nano-texture glass option (for a $150 surcharge) that can make the screens more glare resistant, which is useful for working in bright environments. Note, however, that it can also make the screen appear less sharp.

Devindra Hardawar for Engadget

Apple also upgraded the MacBook Pros' webcams to 12-megapixels, a major leap over the previous 1080p camera. (Apple hasn't confirmed the megapixel figure for that camera, but it's likely around 2MP, the bare minimum to reach 1080p). Having a higher resolution camera also opens the door for Center Stage, which can keep you in focus as you move around your room.

Devindra Hardawar for Engadget

I didn't hate Apple's previous webcams, but mostly that's because I remember how mediocre its older 720p webcams used to be. The new models look far sharper with more accurate colors, and the overall image doesn't look as heavily filtered as the previous cameras. They also support Desk View (above), Apple's helpful feature for showing off objects below your screen.

If you're often dealing with large file transfers, you might also appreciate support for Thunderbolt 5 on the M4 Pro and M4 Max chips. It can support up to 120 Gb/s speeds, up from 40 Gb/s in Thunderbolt 4, which the standard M4 chip includes. That could make a huge difference if you're moving terabytes worth of 4K and 8K videos onto external drives – just note you’ll need to invest in similarly equipped Thunderbolt 5 storage. Thunderbolt 5 could potentially allow for external AI accelerators (unfortunately, Apple Silicon doesn't support external GPUs).

Devindra Hardawar for Engadget

In use: The best MacBook Pros yet

I didn't really expect much from the new MacBook Pros, especially since the previous M3 models were already very impressive. But, once again, Apple managed to surprise me with its mobile hardware. The M4 chip, which was in our 14-inch review unit, was a solid performer. But the M4 Pro in our 16-inch MacBook Pro was an astonishing leap ahead of its predecessor, and it's also faster than every other computer we've tested this year (aside from the new Mac mini, which also had a M4 Pro chip).

Unfortunately, we didn't have an M4 Max-equipped MacBook Pro to test, but given that it's filled with more M4 CPU and GPU cores, I'd expect another major performance jump.

In Geekbench 6's CPU benchmark, the 14-inch M4 MacBook Pro scored 1,000 to 1,500 points higher than other recent laptops when it came to single-threaded work. Its multi-threaded performance lead was more slim, but it still beat out Intel's new Lunar Lake chips and Qualcomm's Snapdragon X Elite. The M4 Pro 16-inch MacBook Pro scored similarly for single-threaded work, but it blew the competition by 9,000 to 12,500 points. That performance gap alone is equivalent to the multi-threaded Geekbench 6 scores from other laptops this year! (It’s also slightly faster than last year’s M3 Max chip in the 16-inch MacBook Pro, another major achievement.)

Cinebench 2024 scores tell a similar story. Both the 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro scored well above the competition in the single-threaded test. The M4 system was on-par with the best multi-threaded scores we saw from the Surface Laptop 7 (powered by a Snapdragon X Elite chip) and HP Omnibook Ultra 14 (AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 375). But the M4 Pro 16-inch MacBook Pro, once again, handily outclassed other systems with its multithreaded score, which was nearly double what we've been seeing throughout the year.

Cinebench's GPU benchmark puts the M4 Pro's graphics performance in line with NVIDIA's RTX 4070 in Dell's XPS 16, while the M4 chip is in line with the Framework Laptop 16's Radeon 7700S. That's all about what I expected after testing the Mac mini with an M4 Pro chip, and it's simply astonishing to see that level of performance from a mobile-focused GPU.

Devindra Hardawar for Engadget

When it comes to games, the M4 Pro 16-inch MacBook Pro was able to maintain 60fps in Lies of P, Resident Evil 4 and Myst while playing in 1,440p with the graphics settings cranked to the max. 4K was possible, but typically slowed things down to around 30fps, which isn't very playable on a computer. The M4 14-inch MacBook Pro, meanwhile, handled those same games in 1080p at 60fps. We typically wouldn't recommend gaming much on Macs, but Apple's graphics hardware is hard to ignore at this point, and the company is also working to get more high profile titles in the App Store, like Remedy's Control.

To put Apple's Neural Engine to the test, I also used the Whisper Transcription app (AKA MacWhisper) to turn an hour and nine-minute long podcast episode into a transcript. The M4 14-inch MacBook Pro took three minutes and two seconds, while the M4 Pro 16-inch model took two minutes and 11 seconds (similar to what I saw on the M4 Mac mini). In comparison, an M3 14-inch MacBook Pro took three minutes and thirty-seven seconds.

Devindra Hardawar for Engadget

While the speed upgrades are more than welcome, in my testing I noticed that both of the MacBook Pros' screens were easier to see in bright sunlight. That alone isn't enough to upgrade for if you've already got an M2 or M3 MacBook Pro, but it's definitely something to look forward to. And even though Apple's keyboard and enormous trackpad haven't changed, they're still among the best in the industry. I also still appreciate having a wide variety of ports on these systems: three USB-C connections (Thunderbolt 4 with the M4, Thunderbolt 5 with the M4 Pro), an HDMI port, a headphone jack, a MagSafe power connector and an SD card reader.

Both MacBook Pros also continue to deliver excellent battery life. The 14-inch lasted for 34 hours and 15 minutes while looping an HD video, whereas the 16-inch went for 30 hours and 16 minutes. That's the first time we've seen our video rundown test go beyond 30 hours. In real-world usage, I could typically use both machines for general productivity work for two days without needing a recharge. That's the benefit of relying on power-sipping mobile hardware.

Devindra Hardawar for Engadget

Should you buy the new M4 MacBook Pros?

There's no doubt these new MacBook Pros are compelling, especially if you need the raw power of the M4 Pro (or conceivably, the M4 Max). If you're running an M1 MacBook Pro, or still trucking along with an Intel model, you'll definitely see some notable performance gains from these machines. But if you've got an M2 or M3 MacBook Pro, the M4 hardware is less of a qualitative leap. You're probably better off waiting for the eventual OLED refresh, which is rumored to happen in 2026.

What's new with the Mac mini?

Just look at it! The Mac mini's redesigned case is less than half the size of the previous version, so you won't have to devote as much desk space to it. It also features front connectivity for the first time — two USB-C ports and a headphone jack — something that previously required upgrading to the $1,999 Mac Studio. Most people will likely be better off with the 3.5mm jack up front, but if you’re the rare user who needs to connect speakers, you’re better off relying on a USB-C dongle in the rear, or a high-quality audio interface.

More so than aesthetics, the Mac mini's biggest upgrade this time around is Apple's new M4 hardware, as well as the fact that it – like all new Macs going forward – now comes with 16GB of RAM standard. The M4 sports a 10-core CPU (four high-performance cores and six high-efficiency), a 10-core GPU and a 16-core Neural Engine. For $1,399, you can bump up to the dramatically more powerful M4 Pro chip (which is what's in our review unit), featuring a 14-core CPU (10 high-performance and four high-efficiency) and 20-core GPU.

Devindra Hardawar for Engadget

The M4 chip includes support for Thunderbolt 4 on its three rear USB-C ports, while the M4 Pro brings Thunderbolt 5 to Macs for the first time, with triple the data transfer speeds (120 Gb/s compared to 40 Gb/s). Every Mac mini also includes a full-sized HDMI connection (supporting up to 8K 60Hz or 4K 240Hz), as well as an Ethernet port (gigabit standard, or upgradable to 10GbE). While it lacks the integrated SD card reader of the Mac Studio, the Mac mini is otherwise well-equipped to meet the demands of many creative professionals.

There are some curious design choices, though. For one, the Mac mini's power button is along the bottom of its rear end, which leads to some awkward finger gymnastics whenever you want to turn it on. (Read into that what you will.) That means you probably wouldn't want to hide it in an unreachable corner of your desk. The previous Mac mini also hid the power button along its rear, but at least that was right beside its ports, and it didn't require tipping over the device.

Apple likely doesn't expect its users to be completely turning off their devices very often, but that's also clearly at odds with its sustainability efforts. (The company loudly claims the Mac mini is carbon neutral, for example, as it's mostly built with recycled metals and other materials.)

Devindra Hardawar for Engadget

How fast is the Mac mini?

The Mac mini was the fastest computer I've reviewed this year, at least when it comes to CPU benchmarks. I've grown used to being impressed by Apple Silicon, but the M4 Pro in our review unit (which was also equipped with 48GB of RAM) was still a bigger leap ahead than I expected. While running in high power mode, which cranks up performance, the Mac mini’s Geekbench 6 single-threaded score of 3,943 was well above the typical 2,500 to 2,800 point range we've seen in PCs this year. Its multithreaded Geekbench 6 score reached a whopping 22,850 points — the only other systems that cracked 14,00 points this year were the Snapdragon X Elite-powered Surface Laptop 7 and XPS 13.

Naturally, other laptops with dedicated, power-hungry video cards outclassed the Mac mini in the Geekbench 6 GPU test, but Apple's tiny desktop still beat out the RTX 4050 in Dell's XPS 14, as well as the Radeon 7700S in the 16-inch Framework Laptop. That's still a very impressive result for graphics built into a single system-on-a-chip.

Outside of benchmarks, the Mac mini impressed me by running Lies of P in 1,440p with maxed out graphics settings at 60fps. It even managed to run the game in 4K with medium graphics settings, but the frame rate hovered around 30fps, which wasn't very playable. That's not a huge surprise though — what's more important is that I know the GPU is powerful enough to run modern games at more reasonable resolutions. Resident Evil 4 and No Man's Sky also held a steady 60 fps in 1,440p.

To test out the Mac mini's AI capabilities, I used the Whisper Transcription app to transcribe an hour and nine-minute long episode of the Engadget Podcast. That took two minutes and nine seconds, using the small language model. In comparison, the M4-powered 14-inch MacBook Pro took three minutes and three seconds, while an M3 14-inch MacBook Pro took three minutes and thirty-seven seconds. These figures tell us Apple's M4 hardware can help students quickly get notes from lecture recordings, or even transcribe classes in real-time without much effort.

Devindra Hardawar for Engadget

As I threw benchmarks, games and encoding jobs at the Mac mini, I was constantly impressed by how much it could tackle without making any discernible fan noise. But Apple can’t escape heat. The Mac mini has a large intake fan along its bottom that sucks in cool air and spreads it out throughout the entire system. However, when I started running Cinebench's multithreaded benchmark, the fan kicked into high gear and the Mac mini sounded like it was getting ready to take off.

It's not an unpleasant sound — it's more like a calming white noise machine than the obnoxiously loud Mac fans of yore — but it's certainly noticeable. If you're typically wearing headphones or blasting music, it may not be an issue, but it could make the Mac mini very annoying in a shared office setting. If you're planning to constantly throw heavy workloads at it in high power mode, you might be better off with the larger Mac Studio, which can better handle heat. Apple still hasn't updated the Studio with M4 chips, though — you'll have to wait until next year for that.

Devindra Hardawar for Engadget

Should you buy the Mac mini?

There's no doubt the M4 Pro Mac mini is an absolute beast, but at $1,399 (with 24GB of RAM and a 512GB SSD to start), it's mainly targeted at creative professionals. I didn't have the $599 M4 model to test (which starts with 16GB of RAM and a 256GB SSD), but I benchmarked that exact same chip on the 14-inch MacBook Pro and still found it impressive. Its Geekbench 6 and Cinebench scores still beat out most of the computers we've tested this year, and its GPU is fast enough for solid 1080p 60 fps gameplay.

If you're just looking for a basic and adorably small Mac desktop, the $599 Mac mini will likely be all you need. And if you're looking to do a bit more serious work, and can't justify the $1,999 Mac Studio, the $1,399 model is a decent value compared to PC workstations. Just be prepared to stomach Apple's upgrade prices: You'll have to spend an additional $400 just to get 32GB of RAM on the base Mini, and another $400 to get a 1TB SSD. That's wildly out of step with prices outside of the Apple ecosystem, where you can easily find a decent 1TB NVMe SSD under $100. (That said, unlike a laptop, connecting a cheap but capacious external drive to the mini is a more viable option.)

Apple’s gonna Apple when it comes to upgrade pricing, but at least you can finally buy a $599 Mac mini with 16GB of RAM. That alone is reason to celebrate. The fact that it’s cute enough to impress my kid is a nice bonus.

What's new with the Mac mini?

Just look at it! The Mac mini's redesigned case is less than half the size of the previous version, so you won't have to devote as much desk space to it. It also features front connectivity for the first time — two USB-C ports and a headphone jack — something that previously required upgrading to the $1,999 Mac Studio. Most people will likely be better off with the 3.5mm jack up front, but if you’re the rare user who needs to connect speakers, you’re better off relying on a USB-C dongle in the rear, or a high-quality audio interface.

More so than aesthetics, the Mac mini's biggest upgrade this time around is Apple's new M4 hardware, as well as the fact that it – like all new Macs going forward – now comes with 16GB of RAM standard. The M4 sports a 10-core CPU (four high-performance cores and six high-efficiency), a 10-core GPU and a 16-core Neural Engine. For $1,399, you can bump up to the dramatically more powerful M4 Pro chip (which is what's in our review unit), featuring a 14-core CPU (10 high-performance and four high-efficiency) and 20-core GPU.

Devindra Hardawar for Engadget

The M4 chip includes support for Thunderbolt 4 on its three rear USB-C ports, while the M4 Pro brings Thunderbolt 5 to Macs for the first time, with triple the data transfer speeds (120 Gb/s compared to 40 Gb/s). Every Mac mini also includes a full-sized HDMI connection (supporting up to 8K 60Hz or 4K 240Hz), as well as an Ethernet port (gigabit standard, or upgradable to 10GbE). While it lacks the integrated SD card reader of the Mac Studio, the Mac mini is otherwise well-equipped to meet the demands of many creative professionals.

There are some curious design choices, though. For one, the Mac mini's power button is along the bottom of its rear end, which leads to some awkward finger gymnastics whenever you want to turn it on. (Read into that what you will.) That means you probably wouldn't want to hide it in an unreachable corner of your desk. The previous Mac mini also hid the power button along its rear, but at least that was right beside its ports, and it didn't require tipping over the device.

Apple likely doesn't expect its users to be completely turning off their devices very often, but that's also clearly at odds with its sustainability efforts. (The company loudly claims the Mac mini is carbon neutral, for example, as it's mostly built with recycled metals and other materials.)

Devindra Hardawar for Engadget

How fast is the Mac mini?

The Mac mini was the fastest computer I've reviewed this year, at least when it comes to CPU benchmarks. I've grown used to being impressed by Apple Silicon, but the M4 Pro in our review unit (which was also equipped with 48GB of RAM) was still a bigger leap ahead than I expected. While running in high power mode, which cranks up performance, the Mac mini’s Geekbench 6 single-threaded score of 3,943 was well above the typical 2,500 to 2,800 point range we've seen in PCs this year. Its multithreaded Geekbench 6 score reached a whopping 22,850 points — the only other systems that cracked 14,00 points this year were the Snapdragon X Elite-powered Surface Laptop 7 and XPS 13.

Naturally, other laptops with dedicated, power-hungry video cards outclassed the Mac mini in the Geekbench 6 GPU test, but Apple's tiny desktop still beat out the RTX 4050 in Dell's XPS 14, as well as the Radeon 7700S in the 16-inch Framework Laptop. That's still a very impressive result for graphics built into a single system-on-a-chip.

Outside of benchmarks, the Mac mini impressed me by running Lies of P in 1,440p with maxed out graphics settings at 60fps. It even managed to run the game in 4K with medium graphics settings, but the frame rate hovered around 30fps, which wasn't very playable. That's not a huge surprise though — what's more important is that I know the GPU is powerful enough to run modern games at more reasonable resolutions. Resident Evil 4 and No Man's Sky also held a steady 60 fps in 1,440p.

To test out the Mac mini's AI capabilities, I used the Whisper Transcription app to transcribe an hour and nine-minute long episode of the Engadget Podcast. That took two minutes and nine seconds, using the small language model. In comparison, the M4-powered 14-inch MacBook Pro took three minutes and three seconds, while an M3 14-inch MacBook Pro took three minutes and thirty-seven seconds. These figures tell us Apple's M4 hardware can help students quickly get notes from lecture recordings, or even transcribe classes in real-time without much effort.

Devindra Hardawar for Engadget

As I threw benchmarks, games and encoding jobs at the Mac mini, I was constantly impressed by how much it could tackle without making any discernible fan noise. But Apple can’t escape heat. The Mac mini has a large intake fan along its bottom that sucks in cool air and spreads it out throughout the entire system. However, when I started running Cinebench's multithreaded benchmark, the fan kicked into high gear and the Mac mini sounded like it was getting ready to take off.

It's not an unpleasant sound — it's more like a calming white noise machine than the obnoxiously loud Mac fans of yore — but it's certainly noticeable. If you're typically wearing headphones or blasting music, it may not be an issue, but it could make the Mac mini very annoying in a shared office setting. If you're planning to constantly throw heavy workloads at it in high power mode, you might be better off with the larger Mac Studio, which can better handle heat. Apple still hasn't updated the Studio with M4 chips, though — you'll have to wait until next year for that.

Devindra Hardawar for Engadget

Should you buy the Mac mini?

There's no doubt the M4 Pro Mac mini is an absolute beast, but at $1,399 (with 24GB of RAM and a 512GB SSD to start), it's mainly targeted at creative professionals. I didn't have the $599 M4 model to test (which starts with 16GB of RAM and a 256GB SSD), but I benchmarked that exact same chip on the 14-inch MacBook Pro and still found it impressive. Its Geekbench 6 and Cinebench scores still beat out most of the computers we've tested this year, and its GPU is fast enough for solid 1080p 60 fps gameplay.

If you're just looking for a basic and adorably small Mac desktop, the $599 Mac mini will likely be all you need. And if you're looking to do a bit more serious work, and can't justify the $1,999 Mac Studio, the $1,399 model is a decent value compared to PC workstations. Just be prepared to stomach Apple's upgrade prices: You'll have to spend an additional $400 just to get 32GB of RAM on the base Mini, and another $400 to get a 1TB SSD. That's wildly out of step with prices outside of the Apple ecosystem, where you can easily find a decent 1TB NVMe SSD under $100. (That said, unlike a laptop, connecting a cheap but capacious external drive to the mini is a more viable option.)

Apple’s gonna Apple when it comes to upgrade pricing, but at least you can finally buy a $599 Mac mini with 16GB of RAM. That alone is reason to celebrate. The fact that it’s cute enough to impress my kid is a nice bonus.