How many watts will power and charge new 14" macbook pro?

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Schudy Author

Level 1

5 points

How many watts will power and charge new 14" macbook pro?

I am looking to purchase a new MacBook Pro 14", higher spec version:

Apple M1 Pro chip

10-core CPU with eight performance cores

and two efficiency cores

16-core GPU

It comes with a 96W USB-C Power Adapter, however I have a variety of USB-C power supplies for my current MacBook Pro (13-inch, 2016, Four Thunderbolt 3 Ports) - wall chargers, 12v vehicle chargers, battery bank chargers etc) all with a variety of wattage ranging from 30 to 75W.

Does anyone know the minimum Watts needed to power and to charge the new 14" 10-core MBP?

MacBook Pro (2020 and later)

Posted on Nov 2, 2021 12:16 AM

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Answer 1

Top-ranking reply

BobTheFisherman

Level 10

81,655 points

Nov 2, 2021 7:52 AM in response to Schudy

96 watts. This is why it comes with a 96 watt charger.

About Mac power adapters - Apple Support

"Power adapters for Mac notebooks are available in 29W, 30W, 45W, 60W,

61W, 85W, 87W and 96W varieties. You should use the appropriate wattage

power adapter for your Mac notebook. You can use a compatible higher

wattage power adapter without issue, but it won't make your computer

charge faster or operate differently. If you use a power adapter that is

lower in wattage than the adapter that came with your Mac, it won't

provide enough power to your computer."

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Answer 2

Nov 2, 2021 7:58 AM in response to Schudy

That Mac can NOT be used with a plain battery charger that just puts out a raw Voltage.

It requires a "smart" charger that implements USB Power Delivery Protocol.

The computer sends a query to the charger, and the charger responds with its capabilities. The computer chooses what it wants (or none) from what is available, and sends a command to the charger to provide exactly that power.

Old Magsafe chargers are much simpler and will not work, they have different query and different commands that do not map to the modern ones. They were likely the prototype for what turned into USB Power Delivery Protocol.

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Answer 3

Schudy Author

Level 1

5 points

Nov 2, 2021 9:51 PM in response to BobTheFisherman

Hi BobTheFisherman,

thanks for your reply. Is the section you included that is in quotes from an offical apple source?

In my experience for that last 10+ years of Apple MacBook laptops pretty much every iteration has had some cross compatibility between power supply wattage and computer charging requirements, regardless of what Apple's offical specifications claim. This was the case for the Magsafe 1/2, the circular connector before them as well as for the USB-C models. Almost in every instance the charger that was supplied for a MacBook would work in some for or another with the model above it.

I am currently using a MacBook Pro (13-inch, 2016, Four Thunderbolt 3 Ports) - of which the offical specifications claim requires a " 61W USB-C Power Adapter". However I have 45W USB-C wall chargers and 45W 12v car charger sources which provide power and charging while I am still using the MacBook. I am also aware of other scenarios where a MacBook may provided power, but not charge the battery (as in you can use the MacBook and the battery won't deplete), or where the MacBook battery will get charged but only if the computer is shut down or put into sleep mode - when being connected to a USB-C power source that is less that is stated in offical apple specs.

I am very keen to get rid of this USB-C model MacBook Pro and replace it with a Magsafe 3 model, but have invested in quite a few USB-C chargers and battery packs etc which are all between 45W and 60W), so keen to know if the 14" 10-core model will work in any way with them and/or if the 14" 8-core will be more backward compatible.

The USB-C has to be the least reliable, least stable and least durable of any USB version every created (with perhaps the exception of Micro USB!) and to have it as the sole connection on a Laptop is ridiculous, which luckily Apple finally acknowledged and undertook are very rare reversal of their usual "bulldoze through with changes regardless of how much it annoys people" strategy of recent years!!! (yes we do still want to replace batteries and add more RAM on a MacBook and have Kensington slot and we do want an audio jack on our iPhone, but we don't care about reducing the thickness of our iPhone of MacBook by 1.45mm at the cost of reducing battery life, and yes a MicroSD slot on an iPhone would be great even if it messed with your hypersensitive minimalistic design aesthetics....)

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Answer 4

Schudy Author

Level 1

5 points

Nov 2, 2021 9:53 PM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder

Hi Grant Bennet-Alder,

thanks for your response, however I was not planning on attempting to use an old MagSafe charger. Only looking at USB-C PD sources that currently work with my MacBook Pro (13-inch, 2016, Four Thunderbolt 3 Ports), namely 45W and 60W USB-C PD and to what extent, if any, they would power and/or charge a 14" 10-core new MBP

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Answer 5

Nov 3, 2021 7:55 AM in response to Schudy

We do not have access to any special insider information beyond what appears in Apple articles and general background knowledge. That said, knowledgeable Readers here have internalized and synthesized that information to make modest additional suggestions based on that information.

It is fair to say generally that use of a larger-than-specified USB Power Delivery charger has no impact except that it weighs more, and may run slightly cooler. It will charge exactly the same way under normal circumstances.

Apple never recommends the use of a smaller-than-specified USB Power delivery charger. But while we generally agree that such a smaller charger should not be used to RUN your MacBook Pro, it can be used for emergencies to re-charge when your Mac is nominally off.

If you decide to run your MacBook Pro using a much smaller charger, you are heading into uncharted territory, and you will have to decide for yourself whether the risk of damage to your multi-thousand dollar computer is worth the modest savings on power adapter and weight.

In my opinion, using a 60-ish Watts USB Power Delivery charger with the 14-in M1 Pro MacBook Pro should be reasonably safe.

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When operating on Power Adapter, your Mac freely 'borrow' additional power from the battery, and battery charge level may even decline under heavy loads. If power levels can not be maintained with that combination, your Mac may slow down a little. On battery alone, it can slow down substantially when heavily loaded.

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How many watts will power and charge new 14" macbook pro?

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