Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Computing

Apple’s High Power Mode could mean MacBook performance boost

By

In January 2020, it emerged that Apple was working on a so-called Pro Mode for its Macs. While that never became an official MacOS feature, it looks like it could be making a return under the name High Power Mode.

According to 9to5Mac, MacOS Monterey beta 8 contains references to High Power Mode in its code. Unlike the Pro Mode leak, there are no details as to how exactly this would work. However, Pro Mode itself could give us some clues.

Man using a Macbook Pro at a desk.
Ash Edmonds/Unsplash

That’s because when it was discovered nestled inside MacOS Catalina 10.15.3 code, Pro Mode was accompanied by text explaining its expected effects. For instance, one line mentioned “Apps may run faster, but battery life may decrease and fan noise may increase.” There was also a mention of “Fan speed limit overridden.”

Recommended Videos

If High Power Mode is indeed a continuation of Pro Mode, we would expect a similar outcome. That should mean better performance across the board, at the expense of battery life and fan noise. With that last factor in mind, it will be interesting to see whether High Power Mode gets enabled on the MacBook Air, which since its switch to Apple Silicon no longer needs a fan at all.

Related

The apparent addition of High Power Mode brings MacOS in line with Windows 10, which contains the rather dramatically named Ultimate Performance mode. This tweaks your system settings to ramp up CPU power management to 100% and disable sleep mode for your hard disks, among other things. Some PC laptop manufacturers offer similar tools through fine-grained fan control tools.

The High Power Mode leak comes at a good time for Mac users, as Apple is widely expected to launch revamped MacBook Pro models at an October event. These will likely come with an updated M1X chip, offering higher performance than the current M1 model. Then next year, a high-end iMac and half-sized Mac Pro are in the cards, both of which would likely benefit from High Power Mode.

That means if you’ve been looking for a way to eke every last drop of power from your Mac, there may not be long to wait. In fact, if you want to see the code for yourself, you can download the MacOS Monterey public beta right now.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Alex Blake
Alex Blake
Computing Writer
In ancient times, people like Alex would have been shunned for their nerdy ways and strange opinions on cheese. Today, he…
I ask again: Will Apple ever merge the Mac and iPad?
An Apple iPad and a MacBook together on a desk alongside a pair of headphones.

Every few months, we hear the same argument being made: Apple should bring the Mac and the iPad closer together -- or even merge them and their operating systems completely -- to create some sort of hybrid device that would solve all of Apple’s problems. While I don’t entirely agree with these assessments, they do provide an interesting look into how your Apple devices might work in the coming years.

Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman is the latest to throw his hat into the ring, and the reporter’s Power On newsletter has detailed what he believes Apple should do to shape the future of the Mac and the iPad.

Read more
4 high-end features Windows laptops still have over MacBooks
Lenovo Yoga 9i Gen 9 top down view showing tablet and pen.

Apple's MacBook lineup has exploded over the last several years, with its Silicon chipsets offering class-leading performance and efficiency. The MacBook Pro, in particular, is faster than many Windows laptops, longer-lasting than most, and has an excellent mini-LED display. There are many good reasons to choose a MacBook over a Windows laptop in today's market.

But all isn't lost for the Windows platform. Even aside from the upcoming Snapdragon X Elite laptops that look to be competitive, there are still some more basic features that you can only get on a Windows laptop at the moment. Here are the four that I keep coming back to.
Windows Hello

Read more
How to choose between a MacBook and a Windows laptop
The keyboard and trackpad of the MacBook Pro.

When shopping for a new laptop one of the biggest decisions you'll make is choosing between MacBooks or Windows laptops. And it's not always an easy decision. New advances in chip technology are propelling even entry-level MacBooks to high-performance targets, and a shift in Windows laptops away from cheap plastics evens the playing field between these two platforms. Both Windows 11 and macOS are intuitive and clean operating systems. But where they differ comes down to one key element: their ecosystems.

What this means for you is that choosing an option from a list of the best laptops isn't so simple. The laptop you choose today can greatly influence which accessories you buy, which apps you use, and even what kind of phone you carry. Your entire workflow will depend on the platform you go with, from how you manage windows to which keyboard shortcuts work best. It's not a light decision.

Read more