Apple MacBook Pro 16 M2 Pro test: Another champion in all categories

Obviously, this part is what interests us the most, as it represents the real demarcation with the M1 Pro chip. In the MacBook Pro 16 (2023), the M2 Pro chip is only available in a single model with 12 CPU cores and 19 GPU cores, that is, two cores and three additional cores, respectively. Our test model was equipped with 2TB of SSD and 32GB of unified memory.

According to our CPU test benchmark, the M2 Pro is one of the best processors at the moment. It offers 20% more performance than the M1 Pro, nearly on the level of the excellent Intel Core i9-12900H and Core i7-12700H included in the Asus Strix Scar 17 and Lenovo Legion 5 Pro. This new chip from Apple beats the Ryzen 9 6900HS in the Zephyrus G14, but it’s a thin PC with a limited thermal envelope (TDP). As with all of our comparisons, let’s also highlight the fact that each processor performs more or less well depending on the software used and the optimization they benefit from. On the other hand, the 13th generation of Intel processors is fast approaching, as is AMD’s Ryzen 7000. The balance of power is likely to be different.

The MacBook Pro M2 Pro can handle any compute-intensive task, and it does it quietly. Now that Blender is optimized for Apple chips, the M2 Pro can use premium graphics cards, like the RTX 3070 Ti from the Lenovo Legion 5 Pro. It’s also faster in Photoshop, but Nvidia GPUs bury it in Adobe Premiere, which is better for it. Mac users will likely prefer DaVinci Resolve or Final Cut.

Like every year, we launched Shadow of the Tomb Raider To monitor the evolution of the in-game performance of homemade chips, even if they are clearly not intended for this use. At 1920 x 1200 pixels, the MacBook Pro M2 Pro, with the help of 19 GPU cores, managed to maintain an average of 58 i/s, slightly more than the 47 i/s of the M1 Pro (+23%). This good score in absolute terms allows you to take advantage of the (limited) catalog of games available on Mac.