Key takeaways
- Apple announced the 14-inch MacBook Pro with the M6 chip on October 27. It starts at $1,999 with 16GB of memory and 1TB of storage. Pre-orders open October 28, and it arrives November 6.
- The M6 brings a 12-core CPU and a 12-core GPU, up to 30% faster graphics, Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6. The faster 170GB/s memory bandwidth comes only on the 24GB and 32GB models. Apple says everything else is the same as the M5 model.
- My view: this is a real work machine, and I thank Apple for the M6. The absurd part is not this laptop. It is the iPhone Duo, a phone that costs almost the same.
Apple announced the new 14-inch MacBook Pro with the M6 chip on October 27. It starts at $1,999 with 16GB of unified memory and 1TB of storage, in silver and space black. Pre-orders open October 28, and the first orders arrive November 6. The M5 Pro and M5 Max models stay on sale.
The M6 has a 12-core CPU and a 12-core GPU, up from 10 and 10 in the M5 model. Apple claims up to 30% faster graphics and up to 25% faster AI performance than the M5, and the Neural Engine is now a dual 16-core design. The laptop adds Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6 through Apple’s N1 chip and can drive two external 4K displays at up to 165Hz.
There is one catch: the faster 170GB/s memory bandwidth is only on the 24GB and 32GB configurations, while the base 16GB model stays at 153GB/s, like the M5. Apple says everything else is unchanged. For context, the M5 model launched a year ago at $1,599 with 512GB, and Apple dropped the 512GB option in March. Bloomberg reports that OLED touchscreen MacBook Pro models could be announced today, at around $2,899 for the 14-inch version.
| 14-inch MacBook Pro M5 | 14-inch MacBook Pro M6 | |
|---|---|---|
| CPU | 10-core | 12-core |
| GPU | 10-core | 12-core, up to 30% faster |
| Memory bandwidth | 153GB/s | 170GB/s (24GB and 32GB only) |
| Wireless | Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.3 | Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6 |
| Starting price | $1,599 with 512GB (at launch) | $1,999 with 1TB |
| Design, display, camera | Same | Same |
In this article: A work machine, not a handbag accessory · Who should upgrade · Faster memory only for pricier models? Fine · The price went up. And still · The real absurdity is the iPhone Duo · A touchscreen? I don’t care · A new wallpaper? Really? · FAQ
A work machine, not a handbag accessory
I have said it a few times already: for me, the MacBook Pro is a work machine. What matters to me is what is inside. And I thank Apple for giving us the M6 and not the M5, because many of us, me included, expected only the M5.
This computer handles everything I throw at it, from heavy design programs to motion design. Everything that is heavy, it pulls, and it runs like clockwork.
Who should upgrade
Some people say the upgrade is for people with Intel or an M1. That is a fair point. And it will be the same story again: whoever has an M5 will not feel the difference. I think that is the point. Two or three generations apart, you will not feel such a big difference between M chips.
But when someone with an M1 or M2 upgrades now, he will say: “My God, this is a monster.” That is what I like about it. I would recommend this laptop to people who have older Pro models and want an upgrade.
Faster memory only for pricier models? Fine
Yes, it is true that Apple gave the fastest memory to the more expensive models. But that is OK. Whoever needs a beast for work can afford it. People’s needs are different: someone is fine with the cut-down version, someone needs the strongest one, like me. I see nothing wrong with Apple offering a cut-down version here. They do it almost every time, and I take it as normal.
It is different with gadgets made for watching content. When Apple cut down the chip in the new iPad mini, a tablet for Netflix and YouTube, that was laughable. Here it is the opposite. Hardly anyone buys a MacBook Pro just to have a gadget at home for Netflix.
The price went up. And still
I don’t want to say that I don’t mind the price going up. It did, and that is not good. The only thing I understand here is that even if it got more expensive, I know it is a work machine. And for $2,000 you now get 1TB. When we look at other gadgets, it did not go up that much. It is not such an expensive machine for what it does.
The real absurdity is the iPhone Duo
Only one thing here makes no sense. The iPhone Duo is completely beside the MacBook Pro, like a toy. It is just a phone. And it came out at almost the same price as this work machine. That is the absurdity of the whole thing.
How could Apple mess up so badly and put a folding phone at the price of one of the most powerful gadgets it makes? It is a joke. A phone that is much weaker in performance, and let’s not forget, still only a phone. And next to it, the high-performance MacBook Pro.
And the funny thing? People pay $2,000 for a phone without blinking, a phone that looks like a powder compact and is fragile, and then they complain that a work machine got more expensive. Come on. The Duo is what’s expensive, not the MacBook Pro.
A touchscreen? I don’t care
If Apple puts touch only into the more expensive models today, I don’t care at all. I doubt anyone will even use it. You can’t fold the display all the way back so that only the screen stays in front of you, so working by touch doesn’t really work. The feature is not important.
I don’t believe anyone will now run to buy a MacBook because of a touchscreen. It is just marketing. Apple has to add something so it looks like innovation from the outside.
A new wallpaper? Really?
What fascinates me more are the people who expected a new design, a thinner body, new colors, even a new wallpaper. I have one question: what do you use this MacBook for? Is it some design piece in your handbag, where you sit in a café, read emails and just show that you have a Pro? For people like that, there is always the MacBook Air.
The Pro is called Pro because it is for work. It is not made for design. OK, a small change once in a while, everyone tolerates that. But I take this machine as almost the best work laptop on the market, and it makes no difference to me whether something changed since last year or four years ago. I only care about speed and what it has under the hood.
And people complaining about the wallpaper? You buy things because of a wallpaper that you can change in three seconds? Who even writes such nonsense? In my opinion, that person just sits there thinking about what to write in the comments.
Also on Evolt News: iOS 27.2: Siri AI in six languages · New iPad mini: 60Hz for $699
Photo: Apple.
This article is opinion.
MacBook Pro M6: FAQ
How much does the MacBook Pro M6 cost?
The 14-inch MacBook Pro with M6 starts at $1,999 with 16GB of memory and 1TB of storage.
When is the MacBook Pro M6 released?
Pre-orders open October 28, 2026, and the first orders arrive November 6.
What is new in the M6 MacBook Pro?
A 12-core CPU, a 12-core GPU with up to 30% faster graphics, a dual 16-core Neural Engine, Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6 and support for two external 4K displays at up to 165Hz.
Does the base 16GB MacBook Pro M6 get faster memory?
No. The 170GB/s memory bandwidth is only on the 24GB and 32GB configurations. The 16GB model stays at 153GB/s.
Should I upgrade from an M5 MacBook Pro?
Probably not. Apple says everything except the chip and wireless is the same. The upgrade makes most sense for owners of M1, M2 or Intel MacBook Pro models.
Sources: Apple, MacRumors, 9to5Mac, Bloomberg, MacRumors Forums.
Our Take
The MacBook Pro M6 is a real work machine, and I thank Apple for giving us the M6 instead of an M5. Faster memory only on pricier models is normal for a Pro, and 1TB for $1,999 is not crazy for what it does.
The real problem is the iPhone Duo, a phone that costs almost as much as this laptop. And anyone who wanted a new wallpaper should buy a MacBook Air.
