Introduction

Apple introduced the M1 system-on-a-chip in 2020, surprising even the most cynical users and reviewers with its remarkable advances in performance, battery life, and memory utilization. Then Apple blew people’s minds again with vastly more powerful M1 Pro and M1 Max (October 2021) and M1 Ultra (March 2022) versions of the chip. In June 2022, the company embarked on the next step in this journey, announcing Macs with the first in the M2 lineup.

M-series Macs sport a range of firmware and hardware changes that make them different in many ways from all Macs that come before them. This includes unique advantages, such as running iOS and iPadOS apps, and providing even stronger protections baked into hardware against attackers trying to take over your Mac.

Take Control of Your M-Series Mac digs into the important stuff that lets you take advantage of new features, while also performing routine tasks that have changed in large and small ways, such as backing up your Mac and protecting it.

That starts with understanding how the M-series chips work, what makes the series different from Intel processors, and how to migrate successfully from an Intel Mac. The book then moves into specifics: How do I back up an M-series Mac? Can I create a backup on an external drive that I can boot from? How do you manage the long battery life? What’s different when I restart in recovery mode?

The book also digs into system security, which covers the changes that Apple introduced in Big Sur, and which remained stable in the Monterey and Ventura releases. You’ll learn the Apple silicon twist on those macOS differences. Finally, I explain the ins and outs of using iOS and iPadOS apps in macOS, and how to run Windows within macOS.

When you finish reading this book, you will have a complete mastery of what makes an Apple silicon Mac tick and how to tune it and keep it running to your best advantage.