Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2023)
Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2023)
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GENERAL USE: Excellent—9.3/10
GAMING/AI: Very Good—8.1/10
ENG/DESIGN: Excellent—9.3/10
SOFTWARE DEV: Excellent—9.2/10
CONTENT CREATION: Excellent—9.2/10
PORTABILITY: Very Good—8.5/10
BATTERY: Excellent—9.1/10
OVERALL SCREEN QUALITY: Excellent—9.3/10
OVERALL PERFORMANCE: Very Good—8.9/10
SIZE: 14.2"
The Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2023) is a premium-priced laptop with a high-end build quality, excellent keyboard, and best-in-class speaker and webcam performance. It has a 14.2-inch Mini LED screen with a high resolution that doesn't support touch, but offers superb colors and a 120Hz refresh rate for smooth motion. The device is equipped with a powerful Apple M2 Max main processor and a GPU with 30 cores, making it highly suitable for intensive tasks like 3D rendering, machine learning, and engineering work, though it is not ideal for intensive gaming. It comes with 1 TB of storage and 32 GB of RAM but has no available slots for RAM or storage upgrades. It manages heat well and has a moderate weight of 3.5 pounds, balancing portability and high performance. Expect a battery life of around 13.5 hours of typical use, which can vary based on workload. For connecting peripherals, it includes 3 USB-C ports with Thunderbolt support. The laptop runs on MacOS, so it's vital to ensure compatibility with your required applications. If you prioritize top-notch display quality, powerful performance for creative and professional tasks, and are okay with its weight and high price, this MacBook Pro could be an outstanding choice. However, for those who need more portability or are price-sensitive, other options might be more compelling. Give Feedback
this description is based on the product variant with some specs. At the time of writing, the variant with some specs cost some dollars.
Evaluation
Pros
- Strong performance in general use
- Solid build quality
- Very good keyboard
- Great speakers
- Bright, high-resolution screen
Cons
- Heavier than some competitors
- High price point
- Not touch-enabled
- No available RAM slots
Ratings by Category
Build Quality:5.0
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, chassis rigidity, and overall reliability. Our assessment of build quality includes many details that are difficult to quantify. Our laptop experts use their best judgment to produce the final score.
General Use Screen Quality:4.9
The general use screen score is based on the screen technology, contrast ratio, resolution, brightness, color gamut and color accuracy. This score does not take into account specialized display features for specific use cases, such as high refresh rate for gaming.
Keyboard Quality:4.9
The Keyboard Quality score is based on the PerfectRec experts’ assessment of tactile feedback, typing comfort, keyboard reliability and typing noise.
General Use:4.8
The Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2023) is excellent for general use due to its high-quality CPU and ample RAM, ensuring smooth multitasking and efficient performance. Its Mini LED screen offers outstanding quality and resolution, while its lightweight design coupled with a long battery life make it highly portable.
Engineering & Design:4.8
PerfectRec’s Engineering and Design Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for graphic design, CAD and 3D work.
In addition to a strong emphasis on overall performance, this score also places very high importance on screen quality. Heat management, storage, keyboard and speaker quality are also incorporated, with fan noise rounding out this score.
Software Development:4.8
PerfectRec’s Software Development Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for software development.
In addition to a strong emphasis on overall performance, this score also places very high importance on screen quality. Heat management, storage, keyboard and speaker quality are also incorporated, with fan noise rounding out this score.
Content Creation:4.8
PerfectRec’s Content Creation Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for photo editing, and video editing work.
In addition to a strong emphasis on overall performance, this score also places very high importance on screen quality. Heat management, storage, keyboard and speaker quality are also incorporated, with fan noise rounding out this score.
Battery Life:4.8
PerfectRec’s Battery Life rating is based on hours of battery life in typical usage scenarios.
Portability:4.6
PerfectRec’s portability rating takes into account the volume and thickness of the laptop as well as its weight.
Operating Noise:4.6
PerfectRec’s Operating Noise Score is based on fan noise measurements. Laptops with a fanless design, such as Macbooks, receive the maximum score.
Gaming & AI:4.4
PerfectRec’s Gaming and AI Score strongly emphasizes graphics processing capability as well as AI performance, while also taking into account other factors that impact suitability for gaming and AI work.
While performance (especially graphics performance) is the most important factor determining this score, we also give modest weight to screen quality, heat management, keyboard quality, and storage.
Full Specs
GENERAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | |||
| Price | $2,800 | ||
Release Date | January 1, 2023 | ||
Overall Dimensions | 12.3'' x 8.7'' x 0.61'' | ||
Weight | 3.5 lbs | ||
INTERNAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Processor | Apple M2 Max (12C) | ||
Graphics | M2 Max (30C) | ||
Mux Switch / Advanced Optimus | No | ||
RAM | 32 GB | ||
DDR Memory Version | 5 | ||
BATTERY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Battery Life | 13.5 Hours | ||
Battery Capacity | 69.6 Wh | ||
SCREEN | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Diagonal Size | 14.2" | ||
Display Technology | Mini LED | ||
Resolution | 3024 x 1964 | ||
Refresh Rate | 120Hz | ||
Display Brightness | 489 nits | ||
RELIABILITY, APPEARANCE & ACOUSTICS | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Build Quality Score  | 10/10 | ||
Portability Score | 8.6/10 | ||
Gaming Laptop Appearance | No | ||
Fan Noise Score | 8.8/10 | ||
Keyboard Lighting Color | White | ||
Warranty Period | 1 year | ||
HARDWARE FEATURES | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Keyboard Quality Score | 9.5/10 | ||
Speaker Quality Score | 10/10 | ||
Webcam | 1080p | ||
Fingerprint Reader | Yes | ||
Backlit Keyboard | Yes | ||
Number Pad | No | ||
CONNECTIVITY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
USB Type-A | 0 | ||
USB-C ports | 3 | ||
USB-C Charging | Yes | ||
Display Outputs | 4 | ||
Thunderbolt Version | 4 | ||
Shopping
Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2023)
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Dig into reviews and images
NotebookCheck
Andreas Osthoff | January 2023
"In the Apple MacBook Pro 14 2023, the M2 Pro is slowed down. From the improved 5nm process, the new M2 Pro is a very solid upgrade. Graphics performance has increased by about 25% in tandem with a clear improvement in efficiency. The processor has also seen a performance leap of up to 20%, but this is accompanied by an increase in consumption of up to 25%. Fundamentally, Apple its maintaining its advantage over AMD and Intel, particularly in optimized applications where the results are very good in view of the comparatively low power consumption."
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This information was produced and vetted by the PerfectRec laptops team. We are a product research and recommendation organization that meticulously reviews and evaluates the latest laptop information and makes it digestible for you.
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Joe is an entrepreneur and lifelong electronics enthusiast with a Ph.D in Economics from the University of Michigan.
Jason Lew
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Jason is a staff expert and software engineer that has been making laptop recommendations for 7 years and moderates one of the largest laptop subreddits.
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Chandradeep is a staff expert and software engineer and expert in televisions and monitors. He’s been making monitor recommendations for ten years.
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