Apple MacBook Pro (14-inch, M3) Review – Nearing Perfection but we Have Some Remarks

Design and construction

The notebook appears somewhat boxy and bulky, yet the aluminum chassis with rounded corners imparts a premium feel to the touch. Hats off, the build quality has been top-notch ever since the unibody design debuted in 2008. Bends and flexes are virtually non-existent, especially when the lid is closed.

MacBook Pro 14 can be opened with a single hand and this happens super smoothly. One of the few disadvantages of the build is the sharp front top edge of the base. This can lead to discomfort if used frequently. The device weighs 1.55 kilos and the profile is just 15.5 mm. The gadget can be found in Space Silver and Space Gray colors, the Space Black option is reserved for the M3 Pro and M3 Max models.

The bezels around the display are thin. The notch is a rare find these days and some users may not like this “feature”.

It houses a 1080p FaceTime Web camera. Its image quality is enhanced by the image signal processor and Neural Engine of the SoC.

The angle of the opening is limited to just 135 degrees which is a bit of shame.

The backlit magic keyboard with Touch ID is a good unit for long typing sessions. Sure, the key travel isn’t among the longest out there but the feedback is clicky. The backlight is great – the keycaps are very well illuminated and this can be appreciated in a dark environment. The big and wide touchpad is awesome because of its smoothness. Moreover, the accuracy of the pad is out of this world.

Here’s the bottom plate. Yep, no grills here. You can see four rubber feet and a cutout on each side for ventilation. The hot air is exhausted via a vent on the back of the device.

Ports

On the left side, you can see the MagSafe 3 charging port, two Thunderbolt 3 / USB 4 connectors (that support 40 Gbps data transfer, DisplayPort, and Power Delivery functions), and an Audio jack. On the right, you get a HDMI port and SDXC card slot.

Author: Nikolay Palaozov

Author: eng. Kroum NikolovHead of Engineering at LaptopMedia.com, inventor and innovator with 40+ years of experience in electronics and high technology.

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Parmar Gautam

2 years ago

Gautam

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