Apple’s new MacBook Pros with M2 Pro and M2 Max chips, here’s what you need to know

Apple has unveiled its next generation of its 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pros: the biggest change is that the laptops now feature Apple’s new M2 Pro and M2 Max processors.

SEE: Everything you need to know about the Apple M2 chip 

Apple’s next generation silicon gives the MacBooks up to 22 hours of battery life, the longest battery life on a Mac, according to Apple. The chips also give the laptops superior performance, making them capable of tackling demanding tasks such as effects rendering six times faster than the fastest Intel-based MacBook Pro. 

The MacBook Pro with M2 Pro allows for up to 20 percent better performance than the M1 Pro, according to Apple. The MacBook Pro with M2 Max is able to handle extreme workflow with a much larger GPU and 400GB/s of unified memory bandwidth, double that that of M2 Pro. 

The new MacBook Pro models with M2 pro and M2 Max are available to order today on the Apple website and will be available in Apple Store locations starting January 24. The 14-inch MacBook Pro with M2 starts at $1,999 and the 16-inch MacBook Pro with M2 Pro starts $2,499.

With the M2 Pro MacBook Pro compiling in Xcode is up to 2.5x faster than the fastest Intel-based MacBook Pro and nearly 25 percent faster than the previous generation, and image processing in Adobe Photoshop is up to 80 percent faster than the fastest Intel-based MacBook Pro and up to 40 percent faster than the previous generation, Apple said.

SEE: Apple’s M2 MacBook Air: ZDNET Product of the Year

Another major highlight of the new MacBooks are its Wi-Fi 6E capabilities that are twice as fast as that of previous generations and allow for faster wireless connectivity and expanded coverage. The MacBooks also support 8K displays for the first time with an advanced HDMI. 

Other notable specs include a liquid Retina XDR display, all ports including an SDXC card slot, 1080p camera and macOS Ventura.