I've been using a MacBook Pro 14 with M1 Pro as my home laptop since early 2022. The M1 Pro can still handle a truly unhinged number of Chrome tabs, multiple applications, and consistent Photoshop use, and still has enough battery life to last a full workday. So, despite all the performance gains we've seen with Apple's newer M-series processors, I haven't had any reason to upgrade my laptop.
But just because I haven't had a reason to upgrade yet doesn't mean one isn't incoming.
If Apple adds these three features to the M4 MacBooks expected this month, I just might turn in my M1 MacBook in favor of an M4 version.
These 3 features reportedly coming with M4 MacBooks could convince me to upgrade
Better battery life
Look, battery life is the biggest reason to upgrade a laptop if it can still meet your day-to-day needs. While my MacBook Pro 14 M1 Pro still has decent battery life, despite several years of consistent use, it doesn't hold up as well as last year's MacBook Pro 14 M3.
But, the recent Windows Copilot+ laptops have been chipping away at Apple's battery life supremacy. The Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite Dell XPS 13 (9345) lasted over 19 hours on our battery test, while the Intel Lunar Lake XPS 13 (9350) lasted 18:35.
I am a big fan of benchmarks, so of course I'm looking forward to how the M4 MacBooks will crush Geekbench 6 scores from Intel, AMD, and Qualcomm. However, I'm mostly interested in seeing if the M4 can take back the battery life crown from Dell.
Multi-monitor support
One of the main differences between the MacBook Pro 14 and MacBook Pro 16 is multi-monitor support. The MacBook Pro 14 has only been able to support one external display. A recent leak indicates that the MacBook Pro 14 M4 will support up to two external displays.
The MacBook Pro 14 M3 can only support two external displays if the laptop's lid is closed, and can only support one external monitor if the lid is open. The M4 version reportedly sports three Thunderbolt 4 ports, so it is expected to support two external monitors with the lid open.
If the M4 update supports additional external monitors, it would make the MacBook Pro 14 the ideal workspace companion.
Apple Intelligence
Apple Intelligence is Apple's approach to AI integration. It's the Apple variant of the Microsoft Copilot+ ecosystem, but honestly, it seems like a more useful investment than Copilot+ AI.
Apple hasn't detailed all of the Apple Intelligence features we can expect to come to macOS, and the M4 Macs may get some special features the way the iPhone 16 Pro and Pro Max will. However, based on what we already know about Apple Intelligence, we can expect AI features like text and image generation, AI-powered email prioritization, call transcription, and custom emojis.
Apple will also be updating Siri courtesy of a partnership with OpenAI, so Siri should be more helpful than ever and able to help you remember important information. Apple's new Apple Intelligence data security system is a better approach to helpful AI memory than Microsoft's controversial Recall feature, which helps elevate it over the Copilot+ AI features.
However, both Copilot+ and Apple Intelligence suffer from the same issue. Both Apple and Microsoft's AI features can be replaced by third-party AI applications. So if Apple Intelligence can find a way to be truly unique, it will be a serious selling point for the M4 MacBooks.
How likely are they?
While we can only speculate about the M4 MacBooks' battery life until we get the laptops in the lab, the display support leaks are credible. So multi-monitor support is likely coming to the entire MacBook Pro line with the M4 update.
We also know for sure that Apple will be bringing a version of Apple Intelligence to laptops, as M1 MacBooks and newer will be getting access to the AI features. So all Apple needs to do is up with a truly unique AI feature, and I'm sold there.
Apple is expected to unveil the first M4 MacBooks sometime between October 29th and November 19th. So, it seems pretty likely that my wishlist will be fully checked off once the M4 Macs appear in the next few weeks.
Which means I should really start setting aside a MacBook Fund again.
