Apple
Apple MacBook Pro 14-inch M6 (24GB/1TB)
Apple MacBook Pro 14-inch M6 (24GB/1TB)
Our Verdict
The benchmark for premium laptops - the new M6 chip adds a real speed bump to the same superb display, build and beyond-all-day battery, and 24GB of memory keeps it useful for years.
Why it's number one: The only laptop here with a mini-LED 120 Hz display and more than 19 hours of measured battery (Tom's Guide and TechRadar both), top-tier build, and the fastest chip on the list by TechRadar's Geekbench 6 numbers. Its 2 nm M6 and 24GB of memory give it the longest useful life of the seven.
Apple's M6 is the first laptop chip built on a 2 nm process, and in the 14-inch MacBook Pro it is a straightforward upgrade over the M5 model it replaces: TechRadar's Geekbench 6 runs came in around 11% faster single-core and 18% faster multi-core, with Tom's Guide seeing a similar 10 to 15% lift across its lab tests. The 12-core CPU adds six efficiency cores, which is why both outlets measured just over 19 hours of web browsing on a charge, an hour better than last year's already excellent result. Everything else carries over unchanged, and that is no bad thing: the Liquid Retina XDR mini-LED display at 120 Hz, the best speakers on any laptop, a sharp 12MP webcam, and the full port set of three Thunderbolt 4, HDMI, an SD card slot and MagSafe. Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6 are new. This configuration pairs the M6 with 24GB of unified memory and a 1TB SSD; memory is soldered and cannot be upgraded later, so the extra headroom over the 16GB base model is what keeps a machine like this comfortable five years out. It is not cheap, and reviewers are right that this is a spec bump rather than a reinvention, but if your livelihood depends on a fast, quiet, reliable machine it remains the laptop to beat. The drawbacks are the same as ever: macOS is not for everyone, the base M6 is still a step below the M5 Pro and Max for long video exports, and the price stings if you only need it for browsing and email.
This listing has no Amazon AU ratings yet, so Owners falls back to the category average. Critics averages 2 published reviews. Tick marks show the category average.
How we scored it
Each measure is marked against the category's rubric, where 10 is the best you can buy, 8 is strong, 6 is basic but sound and 4 falls short. The bars show that mark on the Top7 scale (a 6 reads as 7.0, an 8 as 8.5); the notes quote the rubric mark.
- Performance 9.3 (rubric 9): Base M6 (12-core CPU, 12-core GPU) with 24 GB of unified memory; TechRadar measured Geekbench 6 at 4,752 single and 21,184 multi, about 18% ahead of the M5, with no throttling reported. Not the M5 Pro or Max, so 9 rather than 10.
- Display 10.0 (rubric 10): 14.2-inch Liquid Retina XDR mini-LED at 120 Hz with 1,000 nits sustained and 1,600 peak HDR, unchanged from the M5 model.
- Battery 10.0 (rubric 10): TechRadar measured 19 hours 5 minutes of web browsing and Tom's Guide 19 hours at 150 nits; Apple rates 16 hours of web and 24 hours of video.
- Build 10.0 (rubric 10): Aluminium unibody, class-leading keyboard and trackpad, three Thunderbolt 4 ports, HDMI, SD and MagSafe.
Critic scores: Tom's Guide 4.5/5 · TechRadar 4/5
Pros
- + M6 chip is around 11% faster single-core and 18% faster multi-core than the M5 in TechRadar testing, with barely any fan noise
- + Tom's Guide and TechRadar both measured just over 19 hours of web browsing on a charge
- + 24GB of unified memory as standard, with a 1TB SSD
- + Stunning Liquid Retina XDR mini-LED display with ProMotion 120 Hz
- + Best-in-class speakers, a 12MP webcam, Wi-Fi 7 and a full set of ports including HDMI and SD
Cons
- − Steep price tag that is hard to justify for basic tasks
- − A spec bump rather than a redesign; the display and chassis are unchanged from the M5 model
- − macOS is not for everyone, especially if you rely on Windows-specific software
- − Memory and storage are sealed in at purchase, and the base M6 still trails the M5 Pro and Max for heavy video work
