Apple recently revamped its MacBook Pro lineup with the launch of the 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro with the new in-house M1 Pro and M1 Max chips. Now, the Cupertino giant boasted that M1 Max is the most powerful chip they have ever built. But to offer sustained workloads and deliver on this promise, Apple will be offering a new “High Power Mode” in macOS Monterey on these new MacBook Pro models.
High Power Mode in 16-inch M1 Max MacBook Pro
First spotted by MacRumors contributor Stever Mosser, the source code of the latest macOS Monterey beta includes references to the High Power mode. The report says that the feature will be limited to the 16-inch MacBook Pro with the M1 Max chip. It won’t be available on older-gen M1 or new M1 Pro MacBook Pro variants. The M1 Max 14-inch MacBook Pro is unlikely to have this setting.
And well, it is no longer a rumor as Apple has confirmed the existence of such a setting in the high-end configurations of the new MacBook Pro. Now, you must be wondering – what will the High Power mode help achieve in M1 Max MacBook Pro models?
Well, as per a screenshot of the macOS code shared by Mosser on Twitter, enabling the High Power mode will “optimize performance to better support resource-intensive tasks.” Moreover, it will spin up the dual-fan cooling system in the new MacBook Pro models to offer sustained performance during heavy workloads like rendering ProRes footage or exporting 3D objects.
Found more information on the high power power mode in the macOS RC: “Your Mac will optimize performance to better support resource-intensive tasks. This may result in louder fan noise.” https://t.co/4q3zlbyLnf pic.twitter.com/0mKVekGa0M
— Steve Moser (@SteveMoser) October 19, 2021
Now, the 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models with a notch and new M1 series processors will start shipping from 26th October next week. And the macOS Monterey update is set to start rolling out a day early on October 25. So, once we get our hands on the latest M1 Max MacBook Pro, it will be interesting to test how much of a difference the High Power mode makes in overall performance.
