You might want to skip the M4 MacBook — 5 reasons why

Apple hasn’t officially announced M4 Macs, but tipsters like Mark Gurman claim the company will unleash a new MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, Mac Pro, Mac Studio and Mac Mini sometime in the latter half of 2024. Considering how the iPad Pro (2024) packs an Apple M4 chip, it’s not unreasonable to assume we’ll soon see Macs featuring the latest M-series processor.

The prospect of M4 Macs is exciting, as each new M-series chip ups the ante in terms of power and efficiency. Based on our testing of the M4 processor in the iPad Pro, the next wave of Macs should be the most powerful yet. But is that enough justification for you to plunk down money for a new Mac?

Though I’m looking forward to M4 Macs, I don’t think most people need to rush out to get these machines. Here are 5 reasons why you might want to skip Apple M4 Macs.

M4 (probably) won't hold any surprises

Apple packed an M4 chip into the current iPad Pro. Because of that, we have a good idea of what to expect from Macs featuring this processor. We'll likely hear many of the same data points about M4 that we heard during WWDC, which makes things less exciting.

Based on our testing, we can confidently say the M4 chip is the fastest and most powerful M-series processor we've benchmarked. As you can see in the table above, the iPad Pro with M4 has excellent performance — even besting some of the best laptops. We should see similar results from M4 Macs.

That's what we could see from Macs with the entry-level M4 chip but things might be more interesting if Apple announces M4 Pro and M4 Max processors. We haven’t heard much about these potential chips, but considering how previous generations of M-series processors had Pro and Max variants (and Ultra for Apple M1 and Apple M2), the same should be true for M4.

Outside of those potential M4 versions, don’t expect anything surprising from the base M4 chip in the upcoming Macs.

The M3 chip is plenty powerful

M3 Macs such as the MacBook Pro 14-inch M3, MacBook Air 13-inch M3 and MacBook Air 15-inch M3 rank among the best MacBooks out there. They’re so good in terms of performance and battery life that it’s hard to justify getting an M4 MacBook.

Sure, the M4 chip performed about 25% better than M3 in our benchmark tests, but unless you’re editing 4K videos, M3 MacBooks have more than enough power for everyday tasks like web surfing and watching videos. The one area where we could see significant gains is with Apple Intelligence features in macOS Sequoia, but that may not be reason enough to upgrade. 

M2 Macs still deliver

Related to my last point, I’d argue that Macs with the M2 chip are still good enough for most folks. These machines impressed us when they first released and they’re just as good now despite the newer models on the market.

Devices like the MacBook Air 13-inch M2, MacBook Air 15-inch M2, MacBook Pro M2 and Mac mini M2 are still more than capable of handling everyday work and even some light video editing and gaming. The 13-inch MacBook Air M2 is also the most affordable Mac overall with its $999 starting price, making it one of the best laptops for college students or folks who want an alternative to the best Windows laptops.

Apple Intelligence feels half-baked

This isn’t specific to M4 Macs since Apple Intelligence is also coming to certain iPhones and iPads, but I wanted to bring it up since it’s tangentially related. 

We heard a lot about Apple Intelligence when the company announced the M4 chip. Like every company that has jumped on the generative AI hype train, Apple boasted about how its AI solution would benefit its customers. It’s meant to be the stand-out feature of the best iPhones and best iPads that support the feature.

After checking out Apple Intelligence features coming to iPadOS 18, iOS 18 and macOS Sequoia, I’m not convinced it’ll spark a revolution for the company’s devices. Yes, features like Writing Tools and the supercharged Siri can be useful, but they likely won’t be huge selling points for most.

Apple Intelligence may live up to the hype when the full versions of Apple’s operating systems arrive later this year. But you won't miss much if it’s anything like the generative AI we’ve seen on Copilot+ PCs and other AI laptops.

Wait for Apple M5 instead

Given our knowledge of M4 and how Apple Intelligence could underwhelm, it might be best to skip M4 Macs entirely and wait for M5. Apple M5 is effectively theoretical at this point since there’s been no official word or great abundance of rumors. That said, it’s safe to assume Apple will inevitably release a successor to the M4 processor.

If M5 follows the usual upgrade path of previous generations, it will likely be around 25% faster than M4. It’s also possible this chip could take better advantage of existing and upcoming Apple Intelligence features. If you currently own an M3 Mac (or older), waiting for Apple M5 to release would be smart.

Waiting for M5 Macs could also save you money on existing Macs. For instance, the 13-inch MacBook Air M2 received a price drop when its M3 counterparts arrived. Because of that, the company could do the same for M4 Macs (particularly MacBooks) when the first machines with M5 start popping up. And buying an M3 Mac when the first M5 Macs arrive could save you hundreds of dollars on a discounted device.

Outlook 

M4 Macs will likely be the best Apple computers yet. If you own an M1 or M2 Mac and need more power than even M3 provides, an M4 Mac should be worth your investment. This is especially true if you own an Apple computer that didn’t get an M3 upgrade, such as the Mac Pro, Mac mini or Mac Studio.

Though M4 Macs would be perfect for some people, the majority of folks may be able to skip M4 for the reasons outlined above. I could be wrong, but based on what we currently know, skipping M4 and sticking with M3 or perhaps waiting for M5 would be a wiser move.

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