ON M3 PERFORMANCE GAINS:
The jump from M2 to M3 seems smaller than M1 to M2, especially for the regular M3 chip. Some speculate this shows limits in further scaling down process nodes.
The M3 Pro reduced performance cores from 8 to 6 compared to M2 Pro, suggesting a focus on efficiency, yields and costs rather than maximum performance.
But the M3 Max increased performance cores from 8 to 12 versus M2 Max. It matches or exceeds the M2 Ultra, indicating significant gains at the high end.
The M3 line overall shows Apple is diversifying core configurations across the range. This makes comparing performance gains more complex than simple core counts.
There is debate around how much benchmarks like Geekbench reflect real-world usage. Things like frequency management and cluster configurations affect multicore performance.
The 20-30% gains over M2 may seem small yearly, but comparing to M1 shows solid doubling of performance over 2 years.
ON EFFICIENCY CORES:
Some argue the M3 wasted the process shrink on just frequency gains rather than wider cores or gains in other areas.
But others note efficiency is still improved. The regular M3 efficiency cores clock higher while using the same power as M1's.
Efficiency cores handle lightweight threads well, not just background tasks. Their performance can be significant when frequencies are maximized.
ON THERMAL MANAGEMENT AND BATTERY LIFE:
The M3 line generally favors efficiency and thermal management over peak performance. This suits laptop use cases well.
But it's unclear if a future M4 will tune for performance over efficiency in desktop models, or just add more cores.
Either way, the 22 hour battery life on M3 Air is seen as a major achievement showing efficiency strides.