Apple Announces M5 Pro and M5 Max MacBook Pros

Apple has introduced new MacBook Pros featuring the M5 Pro and M5 Max chipsets. The big news here is speed because the design of the MacBook Pro has not changed.

According to John Ternus, Apple’s Senior Vice President of Hardware Engineering:

MacBook Pro with M5 Pro and M5 Max redefines what’s possible on a pro laptop, now up to 4x faster than the previous generation. With Neural Accelerators in the GPU, the new MacBook Pro enables professionals to run advanced LLMs on device and unlock capabilities that no other laptop can do — all while maintaining exceptional battery life. Combined with even faster unified memory and storage, it empowers users to take their work even further, unleashing new possibilities and pushing the boundaries of what they can do.

Let’s take a closer look at what Apple says these new laptops can do.

The specs are impressive. The M5 Pro and Max are based on Apple’s Fusion Architecture that combines two dies onto one system on a chip and features up to 18 CPU cores with 6 super cores and 12 new performance cores. According to Apple, that results in up to 30% faster CPU performance. As for the GPU with its Neural Accelerator, Apple says the performance exceeds the M4 Pro and M4 Max by up to 50%, which is a substantial single-generation increase. Apple also notes that the Neural Engine is faster and more powerful. As for unified memory, the M5 Pro supports up to 64GB with 306GB/s bandwidth, with the M5 Max doubling both the memory capacity and bandwidth.

Other specs and features include:

2× faster SSD read/write speeds

storage that starts at 1TB for the M5 Pro model and 2TB for the M5 Max model

a Liquid Retina XDR display with 1000 nit brightness for SDR content, 1600 nits for HDR content, and a nano-texture option

3 Thunderbolt 5 ports, plus HDMI with support for up to 8K output, an SDXC card slot, and MagSafe 3 charging

support for two external displays for the M5 Pro model and four external displays for the M5 Max model

Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6 via Apple’s N1 chip

a 12MP Center Stage camera, six speakers, and a microphone array, and

up to 24 hours of battery life with fast charging at 96W achieving a 50% charge in about 30 minutes.

Apple also lists substantial speed increases for the M5 Pro and M5 Max chipsets over the M4 generation they replace. The numbers are impressive but will require real-world testing to confirm.

I’ve been using an M4 Max MacBook Pro for over a year, and it’s the most powerful Mac I’ve ever used. I’m slightly stunned at the performance claims for the M5 Pro and Max just one generation later, but this is the kind of power needed for high-end workflows, including running local LLMs.

The new MacBook Pros come in silver and space black. The 14” model with the M5 Pro starts at $2,199, with the Max starting at $3,599. The 16” M5 Pro model starts at $2,699, with the Max variant starting at $3,899. All models also offer lower starting prices for educational buyers. Pre-orders begin tomorrow, March 4, with delivery and in-store availability beginning next Wednesday, March 11.