Intel and AMD are already lagging behind

After the M4 Pro chip, the M4 Max which equips the latest MacBook Pros is making waves. Press and content creators are testing the latest MacBook Pros, and they’re launching benchmarks. We can therefore easily retrieve the results.

To go further
Apple M4, M4 Pro, M4 Max: here is a comparison to choose the chip for your MacBook Pro or Mac mini

Suffice it to say that the M4 Max chip does not just surpass its predecessors: it goes much further.

A spectacular rise in power

Apple has pulled out all the stops with its new processor. In Geekbench tests, the M4 Max displays dizzying scores: 4,060 points in single-core and 26,675 points in multi-core. To the uninitiated, these numbers may seem abstract, so let’s translate: it’s like the fastest consumer processor in the world.

The most impressive? The chip exceeds the performance of AMD’s Ryzen 9 9950X and Intel’s Core Ultra 9 285K by 15%, two power monsters that have until now dominated the market. Especially since we are comparing processors for desktop PCs to processors for laptop PCs.

But be careful. First downside: the price. 3,799 euros in its minimum configuration and up to 5,849 euros for a MacBook Pro equipped with the M4 Max in its maximum configuration, we border on indecency.

In addition, these benchmarks must be taken with a grain of salt. Geekbench isn’t the only metric that matters, and we look forward to testing on other platforms like Cinebench to get a more complete view of real-world performance.

Another aspect to consider is the integration of this chip into the Apple ecosystem. If you’re already in the apple world, you’ll take full advantage of this raw power. But for the others? That’s another story. Compatibility with some professional software may still be a problem, despite the progress made since the switch to Apple Silicon chips.

Finally, there is also gaming. The gaming ecosystem on Mac remains limited compared to Windows. Despite Apple’s efforts to attract game developers and the arrival of AAA titles, the library of compatible games still remains too limited to make the Mac a true gaming machine.