Apple’s “Scary Fast” was the first time Apple held an event at night. Here’s everything you missed, including a recorded stream of the event if you want to go back and watch it.
‘Scary Fast’ event: The biggest announcements
M3, M3 Pro, M3 Max: Apple unveiled its newest Mac processors.
iMac: The new iMac has an M3 processor but is otherwise identical to the 2021 model.
14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro: The newest laptops have Apple’s newest processors and slightly brighter displays.
13-inch MacBook Pro discontinued: The 13-inch MacBook Pro has been replaced with a new M3 14-inch MacBook Pro for $1,599.
‘Scary Fast’ event: Live updates
8pm ET: The live stream has started with people talking about using and loving their Macs.
8:03: After a spooky intro, Tim Cook says the event is dedicated to the Mac.
8:04: Tim is talking about the extraordinary performance and battery life in the MacBook Air and Pro.
8:05: First up, MacBook Pro!
8:06: Apple is launching M3, M3 Pro, and M3 Max built on 3nm technology.
8:07: The biggest improvement is in the GPU. Dynamic caching allocates the exact amount of memory needed for each task, which significantly increases performance for GPU-intensive tasks.
8:08: Mesh shading and ray tracing is coming to the Mac for the first time.
8:09: CPU cores are up to 30% faster than the M1, efficiency cores are up to 50% faster than the M1.
8:09: M3 uses half the power as the M1.
8:10: Neural engine is 60% faster than the M1 and has AV1 support for the first time.
8:11: M3 has 8-ore CPU, 10-core GPU; M3 Pro has 12-core CPU, 16-core GPU; M3 Max has 16-core CPU, 40-core GPU, up to 128GB memory
8:13: New MacBook Pro! Same as before with new chips, higher memory with the M3 Max chip
8:18: New MacBook Pros are 11X faster than the latest Intel model with 11 additional hours of battery life.
8:19: Displays are brighter than before
8:20: New color! Space Black!
Apple
Apple
Apple
8:25: 14-inch Pro gets a massive price cut to $1599; 16-inch is the same price, starting at $2499.
8:27: Next up iMac. Same design and colors with an M3 chip. Same price.
8:30: Um that’s it. Most of the new stuff is available to order tonight and shipping next week.
‘Scary Fast’ event: Latest news and rumors
Apple Store down: As usual, Apple has taken its online store offline ahead of the event.
Apple
Apple
Apple
No tricks, just treats: Tim Cook has teased that Apple has “something special” planned for tonight.
Global in-person events: Apple is holding small watch parties around the world to coincide with tonight’s event. Two of the confirmed events are in New York City and Mexico City.
Snacks and Max: A TikTok influencer has shared a box of “sweet and spooky snacks” Apple sent to him ahead of the event. Along with cookies, brownies, and candy, the box contained a booze-free cocktail and a pair of AirPods Max headphones.
No AirPods: Speaking of AirPods Max, Mark Gurman reports that Apple will not update the AirPods Max with USB-C at the “Scary Fast” event, and might not ditch the Lightning model until late 2024.
No 13-inch MacBook Pro: While Apple is widely expected to update the 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro at the event, the 13-inch MacBook Pro will reportedly keep its M2 chip.
Three M3s: Apple is expected to launch the M3, M3 Pro, and M3 Max all together for the first time. They are all expected to be 3nm chips, with much-improved performance over the M2 generation.
iPad mini: According to a Chinese regulatory database, Apple may release an updated iPad mini at tonight’s event.
USB-C Accessories: Apple is said to launch an updated Magic Mouse, Magic Keyboard, and Magic Trackpad that replaces the Lightning port with USB-C. It’s unknown if the mouse’s charging port will still be on the bottom, in the worst of all possible locations.
Apple’s ‘Scary Fast’ event: How to watch
You can watch Apple’s “Scary Mac” event live on Apple.com, the Apple TV app, or on YouTube. The keynote will begin at 5. p.m. PT (8 p.m. ET, midnight GMT).
‘Scary Fast’ Mac event: What to expect
The “Scary Fast” event is expected to focus almost entirely on the Mac, with the M3 processor likely to make its debut alongside the M3 Pro and M3 Max. Among the new Macs rumored to arrive are the 24-inch iMac, and 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro. However, there aren’t expected to be any major changes other than the new chip.
New USB-C Mac accessories (Magic Mouse, Magic Keyboard, Magic Trackpad) are also expected to arrive, and a new iPad mini may make an appearance as well.
Author: Michael Simon, Executive Editor, Macworld
Michael Simon has been covering Apple for more than 20 years. He started covering rumors with Spymac when the iPod was the iWalk, and has owned nearly every iPhone Apple has ever made. He lives in Connecticut with his wife, son, and far too many gadgets.