M1 Max MacBook Pro Beats $50,000 Mac Pro in 8K RAW Export
M1 Max MacBook Pro Beats $50,000 Mac Pro in 8K RAW Export

M1 Max MacBook Pro Beats $50,000 Mac Pro in 8K RAW Export

2021-11-07
2 mins read

Yes, we know we’re over-drilling about the new MacBook Pros. BUT, as reviews are popped out, we’re more and more being amazed. This one is from Marques Brownlee the compared the M1 Max and Pro chips to the maxed-out Mac Pro. The results: The $50,000 Mac Pro was defeated by the MacBook Pro in exporting 8K R3D (REDCODE RAW) footage. Apple explains why. Is there a reason to buy the Mac Pro anymore?

The M1 family. Picture: Apple
The M1 family. Picture: Apple

M1 Max/Pro MacBook Pro= Maxed out Mac Pro

These results continue to surprise us. It appears that the new MacBook Pros are more powerful than the flagship Mac Pro. As we wrote a couple of articles about it (The new MacBook Pro is More Powerful for 8K Video Editing Than the Mac Pro, and Apple Senior Executives: “The Mac Pro with the Afterburner card is left in the dust by the M1 Pro and M1 Max”), this is supposed to be a well-known fact! However, we didn’t see an actual examination of the comparison of maxed-out Mac Pro that costs $50,000 to the M1 Max/Pro MBP. Fortunately, YouTuber Marques Brownlee has compared to exporting times of an 8K R3D project between the M1 Max to a specced-out Mac Pro. You can find the results in the video below, starting from this specific export. The $50,000 was defeated by the MacBook Pro. That is a mind-blowing finding:

Unified architecture defines the chips evolution

In another awe-inspiring interview held by Rene Ritchie, participating Tom Boger, Vice President of iPad & Mac Product Marketing, and Tim Millet, Vice President of Platform Architecture, more and more secrets are revealed. The interview focuses on the evolution of the new chips and their secret sauce. For instance, Boger says that: We don’t ever talk about performance without also talking about the energy that goes into delivering that performance” which is the best definition of the M1 Max/Pro chips, as opposed to other beats like RTX Studios (read: What’s the Ideal Laptop for Video Editors: RTX Studio or Apple M1 Max?). The main principle is making the new chips totally unified with the system. “The new Apple MacBook Pros, they’re kindly gently hugging these chips. Like they’re embracing them…they’re built right in” adds Boger. Below you can find an excellent scheme crafted by Fred the Frenchy that demonstrates the evolution of the M1 Pro chip compared to the first M1 chip.

M1 Pro evolution. Scheme: Fred the Frenchy
M1 Pro evolution. Scheme: Fred the Frenchy 

The new Apple MacBook Pros, they’re kindly gently hugging these chips. Like they’re embracing them…they’re built right in.

Tom Boger, Vice President of iPad & Mac Product Marketing

Watch the great interview below:

Apple: “We worked closely with the Mac Pro workload team”

Appel admits that the Mac Pro Afterburner was burned into the M1 MAX/Pro chips: “When we moved those acceleration engines from the Afterburner and integrate them into the SOC, we saw dramatic improvements, and that’s because you move them closer to the memory system” Boger states. Also, he adds that the MacBook Pro team has worked closely with the Mac Pro workload team. Hence, it’s not surprising that those laptops can beat the Mac Pro beast, especially in professional content-creation tasks. If so, is there any reason for someone to invest in the Mac Pro anymore?

Product List

Here’re the products mentioned in the article, and the links to purchase them from authorized dealers. 

Yossy is a filmmaker who specializes mainly in action sports cinematography. Yossy also lectures about the art of independent filmmaking in leading educational institutes, academic programs, and festivals, and his independent films have garnered international awards and recognition.
Yossy is the founder of Y.M.Cinema Magazine.

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