According to a recent overseas securities filing, Apple plans on rolling out a host of new iMacs, powered not only by turbocharged M1 Pro and M1 Max processors but also by the next generation M2 chip.
There’s also talk about modernizing the first models to get the Silicon treatment, namely the Mac Mini and the Macbook Air.
A Possible Apple Silicon Workstation?
According to Mark Gurman, Apple Watcher for Bloomberg, Apple is also planning on announcing not only a larger M1 Max Mac Pro tower but also a more compact model, which he says is maybe half the size of the current Intel rig.
2019 Mac ProCredit: Nana Dua
Here’s a complete breakdown of what he’s seeing from Apple’s filings:
- A new Mac mini with an M1 Pro chip
- A 13-inch MacBook Pro with an M2 chip, to succeed the 2020 model and sit below the 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro in the line
- A Mac mini with an M2 chip
- A 24-inch iMac with an M2 chip
- A redesigned MacBook Air with an M2 chip
- A larger iMac Pro with M1 Pro and M1 Max chip options
- A half-sized Mac Pro, the first with Apple Silicon, with the equivalent of either two or four M1 Max chips
iMac and Macbook ProCredit: Alex Bachor
Frankly, that’s an ambitious modernization, with the Mac Pro mainly being the head-scratcher.
The Mac Pro is clearly aimed at the professional market, thanks to its spec sheet and price tag, so it’s a little confusing as to why Apple would push out iMacs and the Mac Mini with an M2 chip, and leave the Mac Pro, which doesn’t get updated as often, with an older chip design.
The new M2 chips promise to be faster (Apple usually shoots for around a 40% boost in performance), with its onboard graphics GPU enjoying perhaps up to a 10 core architecture.
Apple Silicon M1Credit: ifixit.com
Talk about redefining beastly!
Gurman goes on to speculate that if history is any barometer, the development cycle will bring along M2 Pro and Max versions next year, along with the introduction of the M3 chip in early models in the latter half of the season.
Over the Horizon
Look for Apple to introduce at least some of their 2022 models around the first week in March for round one, followed up by a few models in June with the Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC), and then a few laptops in the fall, just in time for the holiday shopping season.
Chip shortage permitting, that is.
Then again, Apple has been able to lessen the effects of the shortage by buying out entire runs of processors, a strategy that has paid off with huge profits—at least so far. And it doesn’t look to be slowing down any time soon.
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