What’s Changed? While the Apple 16" MacBook Pro with M2 Max Chip (Early 2023) looks identical to its predecessor, the upgraded M2 Max chip is the most powerful processor found in an Apple laptop, and it shows. Note: The M2 Max has now been replaced by the M4 Max MacBook Pro.

M2 Max. As with all Apple-made processors, the M2 Max is a fully integrated processor including the CPU, GPU, Neural Engine, and more in a single chip. The Max chip has a whopping 67 billion transistors- 10 billion more than the M1 Max, 27 billion more than the M2 Pro, and three times as many as the base M2. The 12-core CPU is comprised of eight performance cores and four high-efficiency cores, a 16-core Neural Engine supports on-device machine learning and upgraded camera performance, and the M2 Max supports up to 96GB of unified memory. The 38-core GPU delivers graphics speeds up to 30% faster than the M1 Max, and it supports up to four external displays and encodes video twice as fast as the M2 Pro.

16.2-inch Liquid Retina XDR. When people describe high-end displays, fancy words like “XDR” and “Liquid Retina” can say a lot, but mean very little to most people. What does matter is the 3456 × 2234 resolution (that’s nearly 8 million pixels!), the 1000 nits of sustained brightness (or up to 1600 nits at peak brightness), a 1,000,000:1 contrast ratio, over a billion colors, and ProMotion, a technology that enables a 120Hz variable refresh rate. Colors look vibrant, blacks are truly black, video runs flawlessly, and everyday tests feel fluid and easy, everything a pro user would want out of a MacBook Pro. Video editors can lock in a refresh rate that works for their workflow, and HDR content can be viewed and edited without needing a separate high-end display.

Pro Ports. Just like its predecessor, the M2 Max MacBook Pro includes a wide range of inputs and outputs: three Thunderbolt 4 ports, all supporting 100 W power delivery; one HDMI output that supports 8K displays at 60 Hz or 4K displays at 240Hz; MagSafe 3, a magnetic charging port that, when used for power, charges the MacBook to 50% in just 30 minutes; a 3.5mm headphone jack; and a UHS-II SD card slot.

Display Support. The M2 Max MacBook Pro supports up to three external displays at 6K resolution and 60 Hz over thunderbolt, or two external display at 6K 60 Hz via thunderbolt and one display at 4K 144 Hz via HDMI, or one external display at 8K 60 Hz, or one display at 4K 240 Hz via HDMI. Each of these options retain the ability to operate the built-in display at its full native display with a billion colors. When not using the native display, the M2 Max MacBook Pro supports up to four external displays.