Apple MacBook Pro (M4, 2024) review: The same, but different

If I told you the MacBook Pro had been around for nearly 20 years, would you believe me? Probably not right? Well, it has. It was revealed in January 2006 by Steve Jobs and even back then it had an aluminium body and MagSafe, so I suppose you could say it was significantly ahead of its time. Of course, the MacBook Pro we know today looks quite different to that 2006 model, but look closely and you’ll see the similarities that have carried this line of MacBooks through those two decades. 

When it comes to the MacBook Pro (M4), it would be a pretty crap game of spot the difference compared to the MacBook Pro (M3) because from a design perspective, there are very few differences. That doesn’t mean there’s nothing to say of course, but this year it’s predominantly about what’s on the inside rather than the outside. I’ve spent over a week with the MacBook Pro (M4) and this is what I learned.

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The Disconnekt Downlow

The MacBook Pro (M4) is an excellent laptop with a great design, superb performance and what I can finally say is an excellent battery life for this Mac line. The increase in SDR display brightness, extra port and Nano-Texture screen option might all seem minor, but add them up and throw in a bump in power and you have yourself a truly great computer. If you have the MacBook Pro (M3), you won’t need to upgrade but, for those considering an upgrade from an older Intel MacBook Pro, or a switch from the MacBook Air, the MacBook Pro (M4) won’t let you down. The design is solid, performance is slick, battery life is brilliant and there’s a decent software experience. It’s superb.

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The reasons you should choose the MacBook Pro (M4)

I’ve been a MacBook user for a long time – we’re talking over 20 years but the MacBook Pro was never the model I opted for back in the day. It was too expensive, had more power than I ever needed, and honestly, the white plastic MacBook was far more fun. As the years have gone by I’ve switched between the MacBook Air and the MacBook Pro, struggling to decide between the two. I preferred the MacBook Air for its lighter weight and better battery life, but I preferred the MacBook Pro because it has a sturdier base and an SD card slot. With the MacBook Pro (M4), I might have finally made up my mind.

The MacBook Pro (M4)’s design is great and I can say that very confidently because the MacBook Pro (M3)’s design is also great and well, they are the same apart from an extra Thunderbolt 4 port on the M4 and Nano-Texture display option. My opinion of that design also hasn’t changed in the last year but I’ve found a new love for it with the MacBook Pro (M4) because the Nano-Texture display option is an absolute delight. I was a big fan of it on the iPad Pro (M4), and I like it on the iMac (M4) too, but it really works on a laptop. Working outside is much easier without the glare and reflections, and that applies inside too, with ceiling lights, spotlights or windows having much less impact on your screen.

The display is brighter too, offering 1,000 nits SDR brightness compared to the MacBook Pro (M3)’s 600 nits, and that makes a noticeable difference. Elsewhere, the 14-inch size is perfect for plane tables when travelling, the Magic Keyboard is a delight to type on (I should know, I do it every day) and the base is as solid as they come. It’s a very well balanced laptop, and while the MacBook Pro (M4) is heavier than the MacBook Air, as I mentioned, it won’t be doing any tipping no matter how precariously you balance it on your knees.

The Space Black finish is lovely too and my favourite of the two MacBook Pro colour options. It’s also great to see Space Black for the standard M4 model this time around. For the 2023 MacBook Pro, you had to opt for the M3 Pro or M3 Max specification to get it and that meant spending quite a lot more. The black finish behind the keys is a small design detail I’m also particularly fond of, while the trackpad below the keyboard is superb – responsive and a pleasure to use – and the speakers either side of the keyboard offer good performance too.

Speaking of performance, the MacBook Pro (M4) is fluid, consistent and silky smooth in operation. Now, I’m not a 3D model designer or video editor so I’m not going to sit here and pretend my day-to-day work will test the MacBook Pro (M4) to its limits. What I can say is that tasks like image editing were absolutely no bother with quick and speedy performance, and that was the case even when I was editing RAW images, whilst rendering a large video file in the background and testing Apple Intelligence features – more on those in a second.

There was buttery smooth scrolling too and overall, it really is an excellent experience. I also noticed an improvement in battery life compared to the MacBook Pro (M3 Pro) that I was using prior to switching to the MacBook Pro M4, so much so that I think this model could give the MacBook Air a run for its money (and that really is saying something).

What MacBook Pro (M4) could do better

The display on the MacBook Pro (M4) is glorious and I already mentioned how much I like the Nano-Texture finish, but I would like to have seen the notch at the top reduce for this model. Or disappear entirely. It goes relatively unnoticed in use, but with the bezels so nice and slim, it’s a shame to have the interruption at the top of the otherwise crisp and detailed screen. 

It’s an even bigger shame when you consider that there is no Face ID on the MacBook Pro still, despite the iPad Pro models adding this way back in 2018. Now, don’t get me wrong, the Touch ID fingerprint sensor on the Magic Keyboard is more than up to the task, but for such a wide notch, something more packed within it other than a 12-megapixel sensor would have been good to see. That said, the camera is at least new on the MacBook Pro (M4) with Centre Stage and support for Desk View, allowing you to show off a top-view of your workspace, but some extra functionality on the authentication front would have been great.

There’s not a huge amount else to complain about with the MacBook Pro (M4) except to say that the design hasn’t moved on much. Does it need to? Probably not – I have already harped on about how great I think the design is – but that also means that there’s less reason to upgrade from older models, unless you are purely after more power. The aluminium unibody continues to love a fingerprint too, as does the keyboard and display, but whether it’s my imagination or not, I have noticed less marks on the Nano-Texture display than previous MacBook Pro models I’ve used, so I’ll take that.

Apple Intelligence and macOS Sequoia on the MacBook Pro

The MacBook Pro (M4) runs on macOS Sequoia out of the box, and with that software comes a range of new features. It’s worth mentioning that older MacBook Pro models also support macOS Sequoia and Apple Intelligence, as do the MacBook Air models, older iMac models and the Mac mini and Mac Studio. It means you don’t need the new M4 Macs to get the latest features or access to Apple Intelligence, but you might find they run some of the features more smoothly.

Let’s talk about those then, shall we? Siri has become a little smarter, and you can also type to ask Siri. There’s still more to come from Apple’s assistant as Apple Intelligence develops, but what you get at the moment is a good start and I like the shortcut of double pressing the Command key to access.

Writing Tools allow you to rewrite, proofread and summarise words, which some may appreciate, and Clean Up lets you remove unwanted objects in your images. It’s the priority notifications and priority inbox in Mail that I found the most useful of the Apple Intelligence features so far however, and while the summaries aren’t always spot on, it’s helpful to be able to glance at the notifications coming through in the top right corner of your MacBook screen and get an idea of whether you need to read an email or message.

Apple Intelligence is still in the first stages and you will need to set your MacBook Pro (M4) to US English to access the features, if you’re in the UK, but there are plenty of other macOS Sequoia elements worth mentioning. The iPhone Mirroring feature is probably the biggest benefit, allowing you to control your iPhone without having to get it out of your pocket or your bag, as well as drag and drop files between your iPhone and your Mac, and get iPhone notifications on your MacBook with your Mac notifications. Where that comes in handy is in things like push notifications on authentication apps that you can action directly from your Mac without having to reach for your iPhone.

There are also improvements to apps like Messages and Notes with macOS Sequoia, as well as more flexibility when it comes to tiling apps. You can snap apps into a grid of four now, though this is less useful on the MacBook Pro compared to the iMac or Mac mini where a larger screen is at play.

Should you buy the MacBook Pro (M4)?

The MacBook Pro (M4) is an excellent laptop with a tried and tested design, superb performance and what I can finally say is a great battery life for this Mac line. The increase in SDR display brightness, extra port and Nano-Texture screen option might all seem minor, but add them up and throw in a bump in power and you have yourself a truly great device.

If you have the MacBook Pro (M3), you won’t need to upgrade, and the same probably applies for the M2 models too, unless you really are all about power. But, for those considering an upgrade from an older Intel MacBook Pro, or a switch from the MacBook Air, the MacBook Pro (M4) won’t let you down. The design is solid, performance is slick, battery life is great and there’s a decent software experience. It’s superb.

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