October Apple Event was Scarily Short

Apple held its final product release of the year on the night of October 30th. The press conference, which was announced with a short 5-day prior notice, was taken by surprise by journalists and fans alike. Dubbed “Scary Fast”, the Halloween-themed production was rumored to bring new Mac computers just in time for the holidays, and big updates on the state of development of Apple Vision Pro, the VR headset Apple announced back in June. However, what viewers did not expect was that the event would last only 31 minutes.

After a brief introduction, Apple CEO Tim Cook addressed the public, foreshadowing them about the upcoming releases. Here is an overview of what was announced:

The M3 Chip

With 3 nanometer processors, the Cupertino-based corporation claims their latest entry in their computer chip lineup is the most advanced silicon available for personal computers. Thanks to its sleek design, more transistors can be packed into a smaller space drastically improving performance and responsiveness.

The new, next-generation integrated GPU uses the company’s flagship technology: Dynamic Caching. Dynamic Caching increases performance for hardware-accelerated features for the most intensive graphics tasks, without sacrificing more power. For those who work with high-resolution video, the new custom video engine will generate a boost in performance when editing and analyzing media.

The new Apple Silicon can be loaded up with an enormous amount of memory. The premier Unified Memory Architecture has been expanded to support up to 128GB of RAM. The tech giant declared that this expansion would enable individuals with profoundly intensive tasks – such as AI developers working with real-time learning models – to perform smoothly, with zero latency. Plus, the redesigned CPU and further architectural improvements enable the chip to perform 30% faster than its predecessor.

Apple also showcased the accompanying chips that would follow the M3 chip’s introduction; M3 Pro, and M3 Max. With further performance improvements, M3 Pro brings 37 billion transistors and an 18-core graphics processor, that delivers even faster responsiveness on the most demanding tasks. However, M3 Max delivers 92 billion transistors, a serious processing power that Apple claims is “nearing the limits of computing”. The 40-core GPU is tremendously fast in rendering 3D objects and cinema-grade video, with two separate ProRes engines that enable fluid editing workflows.

MacBook Pro

Alongside the release of the M3 family of chips, Apple also announced the new devices that would embody them. The new MacBook Pro brings the full potential of the brand-new silicon to be taken on the go. Starting at $1,599, the device is targeted at artists, doctors, developers, and other industry professionals.

The new portable computer is now also available in a Space Black color, a palette choice the company claims to be “unmistakably pro”. The decorative tint features a chemical anodization seal that minimizes fingerprints, similar to the process used to bring color to the iPhone 15 that was released early in the year.

Equipped with a Liquid Retina XDR display – similar to the display that has been sold as a separate accessory for the Mac starting at $4,999 – Apple claims the new MacBook Pro carries the world’s best laptop display. Peaking with 1,600 nits of brightness, the screen is designed to accurately portray HDR content, and vivid colors, and provide an extraordinary viewing angle.

The manufacturing of the device aligns with the corporation’s carbon-neutral goals, by using recycled aluminum across the entire enclosure, and recycled earth elements on magnets, soldering, and plating. This adds to the removal of dangerous substances such as beryllium and mercury. Plus, the wood fiber on the packaging of the device is recycled from responsibly managed forests.

In a nutshell, the new MacBook Pro brings visible changes in the screen resolution and brings the versatility of the new M3 chip. The recent introduction also marks the start of the discontinuation of the 13-inch MacBook Pro with Touch Bar. Customers who are interested in pre-ordering the device can place their order today, as Apple will begin to distribute them by November 7.

iMac

The new 24-inch iMac has also been refreshed to be powered with the M3 chip. Starting at $1,299, the all-in-one remains to be available in the existing spectrum of 7 different colorful tones. The exterior enclosure of the device is complemented by the color-matching keyboard and mouse that comes along with it.

With new advanced connectivity antennas, the desktop computer brings faster WiFi speeds with WiFi 6E, and Bluetooth 5.3, which will enable a faster wireless connection with iPhones and other accessories. It also comes with four USB-C ports, with two of them designed for exceedingly fast data transfers, and Ethernet support on select models.

Apple claims their new iMac to be the “World’s Best All-in-One”, citing the inclusion of the latest wireless connectivity, best-in-class camera, speakers, and microphones, in a compact, thin package. The design, which measures 11.5 millimeters, is made possible by the use of Apple Silicon, which dramatically reduces the size of the internal components. The speakers, built-in with Spatial Audio support, bring a theater-like experience to users, followed by the 1080p camera that delivers an exceptional video calling experience.

Customers who are interested in acquiring the device can pre-order it today, with first deliveries arriving at the same time as the new MacBook Pro, on November 7.

What’s next?

The event’s short duration led internet users to believe that Apple was running out of ideas to improve the overall design of their devices. Some have even mocked it by comparing the length of the pre-recorded announcement to a TikTok.

Apple has had its fair share of ups and downs with its recent product releases. For example, in September; users had reported that the new iPhone 15 had overheating issues. Apple quickly reacted to this issue by deploying a software update to all users.

Overall, Apple remains its plans for the future veiled. While it is certain that the company will not conduct further announcements during the rest of the year, we can expect more information on projects like the Apple Vision Pro by the beginning of next year.