Apple held its Mac-focused "Scary Fast" event this week. During the quick 30-minute presentation, Apple announced new 14-inch MacBook Pro, 16-inch MacBook Pro, and 24-inch iMac models with M3 series chips.
Below, we have recapped four key things to know following Apple's event. The event can also be replayed on Apple's website if you missed it.
New MacBook Pros
The new 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models are equipped with M3 Pro and M3 Max chips, and there is now an entry-level 14-inch MacBook Pro available with the standard M3 chip as well. These chips offer performance and power efficiency improvements, and they include a rearchitected GPU with support for hardware-accelerated ray tracing and mesh shading for improved graphics rendering in games.
The new MacBook Pro models are available in a dark Space Black finish when configured with the M3 Pro or M3 Max chip, but otherwise the laptops have no external design changes. All of the new MacBook Pro models feature 20% brighter displays for standard content, with their 600 nits peak brightness matching Apple's Studio Display.
The new MacBook Pro models are now available to order, and most configurations will begin arriving to customers and launch in stores on Tuesday, November 7. M3 Max configurations will be available later in November.
Apple discontinued the 13-inch MacBook Pro following the event, meaning that the Touch Bar has now been completely phased out after seven years.
New iMac
Apple updated the 24-inch iMac with the M3 chip for up to 35% faster performance compared to the previous model with the M1 chip. The all-in-one desktop computer features the same design and color options as the 2021 model. There are only a few other changes with the new iMac, including Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth 5.3 support.
Magic Accessories Still Use Lightning
Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reported that Apple's event would likely include updated versions of the Magic Keyboard, Magic Mouse, and Magic Trackpad for the Mac with USB-C ports for charging, but the accessories are still equipped with Lightning.
It was quite surprising that Apple did not switch the Magic accessories to USB-C, as the company has been gradually phasing out its proprietary Lightning connector. All four iPhone 15 models are equipped with USB-C ports, as is the latest Apple Pencil, Siri Remote for the Apple TV, AirPods Pro charging case, and several other products.
No New iPads
Apple often announces new iPads in October, but the "Scary Fast" event focused entirely on Macs. Gurman recently reported that Apple does not plan to introduce any new iPads until March 2024 or later. If that proves to be true, 2023 would be the first calendar year without any new iPads released since the device launched in 2010.
