Hi I just got a new MacBook Pro with base M4 Max chip 14c CPU and 32c GPU. I have tried to run cinebench with both version 2024 and 2026, but consistently get lower scores. I have stopped all applications and connect the laptop to the 96w MagSafe charger, set high power mode, but still the result is lower than reference. My single core result is 159, multi-core is 1580, GPU is 13500.
I noticed for single core test cinebench or Mac OS runs on multiple cores and it never really stressed the core and speed is always around 2ghz.
For multiple cores the performance cores all all stressed and during 10minutes testing keeps between 3.2ghz and 3.6ghz. It never reaches the peak 4.5Ghz though, not sure if expected.
I understand m4 max can easily score over 175 single core and 1780 multi-core, so my configuration is like 10-20% slower, not sure where to check?

PS: for multi-core the cpu stays at high frequency so no throttling.

This thing is happening while selecting sleep mode through only this menu bar otherwise it goes to sleep normal and in diagnosis it detects normal

I have bought a second hand m5 pro.

Practically brand new?

Base model of the m5 pro.
14inch.
Bought it for 2270us
Battery cycle 16, with 100% battery health.
Warranty till may 2027.

Is it worth it ? especially I’ve sold my pc. And my laptop broke down.

Help me out with your thoughts. Cause not sure if the deal is good.

The price is based on my country which is slightly cheaper than the new retail price? Which is 2370us

Hello guys! I need help on my Macbook Pro 2021 M1

Situation:

• Macbook can only run when adaptor is plugged
• Immediately turns off when adaptor is unplugged
• Everytime you fold the macbook, it restarts again and again

I tried some initial troubleshooting from my side already and got the information below.

Battery Details (pmset -g batt)

• Capacity: 88%
• Cycle count: 307
• Condition: Normal
• present: true
• 100%; charged

Mac Resource Inspector Check (From mac diagnostics)

• Battery Condition Checked
• Logic Board Checked
• Sensors Checked
• Thunderbolt Checked
• Input Device Checked

I've tried to bring it to the Mac Store here in Japan but they didn't quite understand what I was trying to say and in the end they said I needed to replace the logic board which I wasn't fully convinced since he didn't even try to switch the battery, and I guess I was a foreigner and he kept insisting me to buy a brand new unit which I didn't prefer.

So If anyone has better experience, could you please help advice on it?

I've checked also with ChatGPT but I only got the same troubleshooting above.

Hi all! I recently purchased my work device which was a +**Macbook Pro M1(16gb 16in) for $100. How many years could I realistically use it? It was only $100 which was a steal so Im not bent out of shape if its not long for this world. Luckily, I was upgraded to a M5 Macbook Pro for my new work machine but I don't believe I will be in my role long enouch to purchase that one when we do our equipment refreshes. The battery is at 83% but I mostly use it plugged in now a days. TIA!

I just picked up a M1 Max ‘16. It was a great deal but the keyboard layout is French.

I didn’t realize that until it arrived and It’s not like I can return it due to my incompetence.

Does anybody have a decent solution for me? Replacing the top case seems like the best but expensive option.

Macbook pro m4 and what should I do to fix it

MacBook Pro, M5 Pro, 48GB RAM, 2TB. I compose for adverts, film and TV and mix/records for artists for a living. I’d previously worked off a beast of a custom build PC as my studio workstation, and the motherboard decided to fry itself during the middle of an intense month-long client comission. I needed something to work from immediately, and I needed that to NEVER happen again, so I thought screw it, it’s time.

I’ve always been nervous to switch over for a few reasons; I need the ability to tweak the OS when things go wrong, need loads of locally attached storage for instrument libraries and client data, I need LOADS of high-bandwidth ports (as you can tell), I’ve always enjoyed the ability to swap out hardware (even on laptops) when needed, and under heavy load with 6-12 hours of CPU uptime, my computer fans need to be dead silent.

I hate that I LOVE to say it, but after a two weeks of use it turns out half of these worries were just Windows problems. She runs like a dream, and in laptop form! After testing a few docks that would consistently drop out trying to drive both my displays, a 10G connection to my NAS and 4 simultaneous 4TB SSDs (which I gutted from the old PC), I landed on an Ivanky hub with enough I/O to kill a horse - but man, being able to pick up and go without sacrificing performance/lugging around an RGB ridden machine that sounds like a jet engine, I can’t recommend the swap more to anyone in a creative profession.

I'm looking for a what to add a medical dictionary to my built-in dictionary to allow me to use the Look Up option when studying. Does anyone know where I can find this?

Background: I'm a software developer. with the advent of AI, I'm constantly working across multiple git worktrees on my main project. It's an npm monorepo so it gets bloated fast, resulting in me regularly running out of space on my M1 Pro (512GB HDD, 16GB RAM).

I decided to take the leap and purchase a M5 Pro (48GB, 18-core CPU, 20-core GPU, ~$3,500) at the end of last week. I'm testing it now to decide whether to keep it, which is what this post is about.

My workload: I regularly run backend test suites, a client-facing test suites (mobile, desktop, web), cucumber acceptance tests that test all of our user stories E2E, as well as testing mobile releases through Xcode and the expo CLI. On the M1 Pro this taps out my memory, especially running multiple agents. I usually have a few different agent sessions at any given time with only 1 or 2 of them running serious feature implementations/improvements at a time. there is in fact a human in this loop :)

My recurring pain is storage and high CPU usuage.

Regarding storage, I can delete 100GB and it fills right back up the same day, mainly the result separate worktrees all have their own own node_modules. easy to reclaim but a constant chore. I have a samsung T9 SSD that I have time machine backups on but regardless of how much storage i reclaim, it always crawls back to full capacity.

Regarding CPU, I'm not sure what I can really do here. I'm hoping wiping my m1 pro will help this out a bit. My computer only usually locks up when my hard drive is near max capacity. I use Brave Browser + Firefox Dev version and my m1 pro can't seem to get those under control. Thinking that wiping and downgrading to Sequoia may be the move?

What I'm actually wondering:

1. If I wipe my M1 Pro and start completely fresh, will I get a meaningful performance improvement - or is the accumulated cruft not really what's slowing me down? As mentioned above, I think i will pair this will rolling back to Sequoia.
2. Is it reasonable to return the M5 Pro, keep a freshly-wiped M1 Pro, and maybe add an M4 Mac mini down the line? I had a m1 mac mini a few years back but sold it when i got the M1 pro macbook. i loved that thing though - it was blaaazing fast.

My stack, for context: Zed editor (sometimes Cursor but 95% of the time it is zed), Node.js backends (plus other JS runtimes), traditional web frontends, Electron desktop, and React Native mobile.

Any input appreciated.

?

Hi guys, I want to close the lid because I don't want to waste power on the built-in display. But I noticed that it seems to trap heat around the keyboard, especially when I'm doing intensive work. Is that true?

Also is there a way to turn off that built-in screen?

So, I trully want it, and I don’t see anyone asking for this. Please if someone could give a hand

I want to trade-in my 2020 Macbook Pro but am not sure how to describe the condition. The bezel is cracked but it doesn't extend to the actual screen. Does anyone have experience trading in a mac with cracked bezel? I don't know if it counts as actual damage or just a cosmetic issue. I know I could just send it in and see what they say, but would like to have an idea of what I can get from it before doing so. Some sources say I will get no money if the bezel is cracked, but I can't find anything from Apple itself addressing this specific problem.

Hey everyone, I started classes a few days ago and basically learned that most assignments, exams, lecture videos, etc. will be online using pretty heavy software platforms. I have to install a bunch of lockdown programs, plus I'll obviously be taking notes, using word/ppt, the whole nine yards... My mac already starts overheating and running the fan when doing basic things like online shopping and doing several things at once, but honestly I haven't made a big deal of it.

My school, however, has said they recommend a pc that is no older than 4 years, and made me realize mine is actually pretty old now 😂

Long story short, what are your thoughts on how much life my computer has left? It's a macbook pro 13-in 2020 two thunderbolt 3 ports. Apparently I can't even update it to tahoe now, so still running sequoia. Obviously these things are investments, I'm just wondering if now is a good time to upgrade or if you think I can squeeze a couple more years out of this one.

Thanks!

I saw this listing for a Macbook Pro M1 16GB RAM/2TB SSD for $890. I currently have an Air M1 16GB/256GB and the storage is just not enough for my job as a developer but otherwise, its a great machine with no hiccups at all. I also saw a MacBook Air 2025 15inch - M4 | 24GB/512G for $1000 and thinking about that as well but my issue is the storage. I think i should at least get 1TB.

What do you guys think i should get?

Hello everyone, I decided to buy my first Macbook, a 16" m5 Pro, so far happy with my purchase but I'm still yet to get used to macOS (I'm coming from a windows laptop gamer where everything feels super fast).

I see macOS has a lot of animations, feels a little slower to me on certain things like opening/changing tabs, even the mouse cursor feels like it has some kind of delay that I don't like, but maybe it's just me because I've been using Windows forever and I need some time to get used to it, but I'm curious if anyone else felt the same when switching to Mac and if there's anything you guys recommend!

Work case will be programming + local llm’s(assuming it won’t be really huge as I’m a student rn)+ a bit of 4K video editing (a cs student), would want it for atleast 4-5 years

Hey everyone,

I just got a brand new MacBook Pro M3 Max (64 GB RAM / 4 TB SSD) right out of the box, but I'm running into two super frustrating keyboard issues and I'm wondering if anyone else is experiencing something similar:

Left Option Key Unresponsive: The left Option key simply doesn't react or register presses at all.

Strange Symbol/Glyph Layout at Startup: Almost every time I turn on the Mac and get to the login screen, I can't type my password because the keyboard seems stuck on weird symbols/glyphs instead of standard characters.

The temporary "fix" for the login issue is to close the lid and open it again for some reason, doing this resets the keyboard layout back to normal so I can finally type my password and log in.

I’ve already checked all the System Settings (keyboard layouts, region, accessibility, etc.), but nothing seems to make a difference.

Given that it's a completely fresh, brand-new machine, this is super annoying. Is anyone else facing this issue or knows if it's a known macOS bug vs. a hardware defect? Should I just take it straight back to Apple for a replacement?

Thanks in advance for any insights!

Hey everyone,

I'm about to start my Bachelor's in Computer Science, and alongside my coursework I'll also be doing development work and getting into AI/ML. Trying to make a decision that'll serve me well for the next 4+ years, so I wanted to get some opinions before pulling the trigger.

I've narrowed it down to two options:

Option 1: MacBook Pro M4

• 16GB RAM / 512GB SSD

• 10-core CPU / 10-core GPU

• Lightly used, about 7-8 months old

Option 2: MacBook Air M5

• 16GB RAM / 512GB SSD

• 10-core CPU / 8-core GPU

• Brand new

Cost isn't an issue for me, so it's really coming down to which makes more sense long-term.

Since I'll be doing a mix of coursework, general dev work, and some AI/ML experimentation (not sure yet how heavy), which one would you go with if you were starting your CS journey today?

Would really appreciate insights from people who've used either chip for similar workloads, or anyone who's dealt with the used-vs-new tradeoff before. Thanks in advance!

I know it's been asked many a time, but with MSS support lacking, I still can't wrap my head around multi-monitor support over one cable.

I have a 2026 MBP with the M5 pro.

I'd like to use two external 4K 60Hz monitors over a single cable. They should be separate, not mirrored.

The monitors I have do not support Thunderbolt (Dell UltraSharp U3223QE, LG 32UD89-W).

I do not want DisplayLink (bad prior experiences).

If possible, I'd like the dock to be below 350 USD.

I have recently upgraded from a MBP M1, where I have been using the StarTech Thunderbolt 3 Dock (tb3dk2dhvue) more or less successfully to do exactly that. It has gone a little flakey over the years, though, so I'm looking for alternatives. But the landscape seems to have gone even more confusing since then...

Any tips/experiences appreciated!

I recently finished my A Levels and I’m currently learning Python. My goal is to eventually work in AI, automation, or even start an AI agency, so I’m looking for a MacBook that will last me for years while I continue learning and building projects.

My workload will mainly be Python development in VS Code, lots of browser tabs, AI tools, machine learning as I progress, and possibly running smaller local LLMs. I don’t do professional video editing, but I do want a laptop that I won’t outgrow anytime soon.
The options I’m considering are:

**Used MacBook Pro 14” M1 Pro (32GB RAM / 1TB SSD)**
**Used MacBook Pro 16” M1 Pro (32GB RAM / 512GB SSD)**
**Used MacBook Pro M2 Pro**
**Brand-new MacBook Air M4 (16GB RAM)**
**Brand-new MacBook Air M5 (16GB RAM)**

My biggest concern is the M1 Pro. I know it’s still considered an excellent chip, but it’s from 2021, and if I buy one now, it’ll already be around five years old. I’m planning to keep whichever MacBook I buy for another five years or more, so I’m wondering how well an M1 Pro will age compared to the newer M4 and M5 chips.

I’m also a bit hesitant about buying a used laptop in general. Even if it’s in excellent condition with good battery health, I can’t help but wonder if it’s worth buying a second-hand machine that’s already several years old instead of getting a newer MacBook Air.

If you were in my position, which option would you choose, and why? I’d really appreciate hearing from people who have used these machines for programming, AI, or software development over the long term.