The new Apple M3 chips only offer a meager CPU boost. The GPU in particular catches the eye with many new functions.

With the introduction of the new MacBook Pro models and the new iMac, Apple is bringing new M3 chips onto the market for the first time, which are baked in 3 nanometers for the first time. The focus is on a significantly improved GPU, but the CPU will also receive a small improvement. The three models M3, M3 Pro and M3 Max will be available as a refresh for the MacBook Pro devices from November 7th.

The base Apple M3 has eight CPU cores, four performance cores and four efficiency cores and, according to the manufacturer, is up to 18 percent faster than the M2 chip and 35 percent faster than the very first M1 chip. The 10-core GPU is significantly faster, up to 65 percent better than the M1.

Apple M3 Pro and M3 Max

The Apple M3 Pro has a 12-core CPU with six performance cores and six efficiency cores. This is coupled with an 18-core GPU, which Apple says is 40 percent faster than the M1 Pro. The CPU is said to be up to 30 percent faster than that of the M1 Pro. Apple doesn’t compare it to the M2 Pro anywhere in its presentation.

The fastest of the three chips, the Apple M3 Max, has a 16-core CPU with twelve performance cores and four efficiency cores. The 40-core GPU is the biggest upgrade with 80 percent better performance than the first-generation M1 Max. After the M2 Max saw a 30 percent increase in GPU performance last year, the leap forward with the Apple M3 Max is now significantly greater.

Much better GPU support

The new Apple M3 chips focus heavily on the GPU. For example, they support ray tracing and hardware-accelerated mesh shading, which is important for game developers. Apple is also introducing dynamic caching, where only the exact amount of memory is allocated to each task in real time. According to Apple, it could significantly speed up the performance of professional apps (and games).

The M3 chips also contain a new Neural Engine to accelerate machine learning models and, for the first time, there is an AV1 decoder that can efficiently play AV1 content.

The switch to 3 nanometers ensures better performance but also longer battery life. Apple says the new 16-inch MacBook Pro lasts 22 hours on a single charge, the longest runtime ever for a Mac.

The new chips are available starting today in the MacBook Pro models and the updated iMac, which finally gets an upgrade from the now-antique M1 chips.