Me too! Those were the days. I remember I got the first Black MacBook. Those plastic things were built terribly!
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3nm M2 Pro Chip for MacBook Pro Reportedly Entering Production Later This Year
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Me too! Those were the days. I remember I got the first Black MacBook. Those plastic things were built terribly!
if it makes you feel better... My Apple //c "process node" would have been about 8000 nm
Based on this table from Anton Shilov at Anandtech summarizing TSMC's advertising claims, it looks like the N3-based M2 will have a 10-15% per-core performance boost over the current N5-based M2 (assuming Apple uses the node change for performance rather than efficiency, i.e., keeps the per-core power usage the same). So, assuming Apple does this, and TSMC's figures are accurate, expect an SC Geekbench score of 2100–2200.
I suppose Apple could increase that by upping the clock speeds on the M2 Pro/Max/Ultra over the 3.5 GHz on the base M2, but they didn't do that with the M1 (the clock speeds on all the M1 chips are the same--3.2 GHz). Then again, maybe the M2 microarchitecture has a better performance curve.
Source: https://www.anandtech.com/show/17469/tsmc-first-n2-node-to-use-gaafets-skip-backside-power
That is NOT where the interest lies.
What's interesting is that more transistors allow for a smarter core. There is still a HUGE amount of smarts that can be added to Apple's cores to increase IPC. It's a question of will (definitely there!), time (everything takes time!), and having access to a larger transistor budget.
But take any aspect of the core you like and I can probably give you a recommendation or paper that tells you how to boost performance in that aspect by 10% or more.
Bring forth a 17" Macbook Air!
Seriously, there are some people / use cases that don't need a lot of computing power but do need a larger screen, larger battery and lots of RAM.
Apple chips are so much faster than Intel chips but a big part of that is the technology being used. Apple is using 5nm and switching to 3nm. Intel is still stuck on 10nm I believe. I wonder how much faster and much less power Intels CPUs would be if they were using the same tech as Apple.
What you miss is that I (and most others) have been discussing the content and implications of the original post, which says they're going to take the existing M2 microarchitecture and move it to a 3 nm process. So, for M2 on N3, which is what the post was actually about, there will not be an increase in IPC. In order to get an increase in IPC you need a new microarchitecture, and we won't see that until M3*—or, a bit sooner, on the next iPhones that have A16, which we should see in November, since M3 will be A16-based.
[*At least for the CPU cores. What you might instead get is advancements in the coprocessors (video decoders, neural engine, etc.) on the prosumer versions of M2 as compared with the base M2.]
So, contrary to your loud pronouncement saying what I took the time to post wasn't interesting, of course there's going to be interest in M2 on N3, because it looks like that's what's going to be in the next generation of prosumer Macs. Thus your hyperbolic capitalized "NOT" statement declaiming otherwise is a bit ridiculous. And of course what Apple could accomplish subsequently with M3 on N3/N3E (or whatever is current when they introduce) with increased IPC and other enhancements is also interesting. What puzzles me is that you fail to see that the latter does not preclude the former.
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one can argue that the "max" chip IS the greatest or highest in the lineup. the ultra and rumored "extreme" are just a bunch of max chips running together
I doubt Apple releases MacBook Pro 14” and 16” updates before 2023. Just doesn’t make sense. They’re all ready getting all the Mac sales they need there. Should release the Mac Pro, new iPad Pros and most importantly the AR/VR glasses soon!
Agreed. Performance is usually more than adequate for most people.
A line of MacBooks are waiting for this new chip! MacBook Pro with M2 Pro might be launched in early 2023.
Absolutely, Apple being about 1.5 process generations ahead (because Apple has the deep pockets to buy TSMC leading technology; though, it was rumoured that Intel might buy some of it up as well, but they may now not?) makes a BIG difference.
The kicker is, Apple's chips are not always "so much faster than Intel chips", what they are is "so much faster than Intel chips at the same power envelope". That difference is HEAVILY impacted by chip process.
That being said: ARM is also just more efficient AND Apple is willing to make HUGE chips... those two things make up a lot of the the rest of Apple's lead.
Thats On Apple, not Intel. Apple too tight to change their boards sockets.
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Who cares about the colour. Bring out a bigger iMac with more ports some of us have work to do
Yes they did.
For example, A5 was on two different process nodes.
Also, A9 was dual sourced from two different companies simultaneously on somewhat different process nodes.
EDIT:
I see that @name99 already mentioned that.
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it's not. going from beginning of production to producing a good yield take more than a month.
Should be easy to get a third the price on it, I'd happily pay that for a previous model used Mac and I have no business owning such a powerful computer!
No offense but the absolute vast majority of apple users are like me and have never created anything. I like the 20hr battery if my MacBook Pro along with the best screen and speakers for content.
I’m a pilot and for me the MacBook was the only way to go. I have a USB port in the cockpit I can plug it into and run it from in the event I don’t charge it for several days. It’s the first machine I haven’t been scared to make sure is at 100% before walking out the door. I once delivered a jet to Dubai then had to fly home the next day on Emirates. 16hr flight and MacBook made it the whole way home. I also like how I can take picks of receipts of screenshots of Lyfts, etc, and airdrop them to the MacBook for when I’m doing my expense reports. The MacBook is amazingly good for productivity and my pro m1 still cost less than anything worth anything from Lenovo, the only one I’d look at besides the Huawei Matebook X Pro (if I could get my hands on one again). My only knock on my m1 13” isn’t the bezel, couldn’t stand seeing it on the 14” at the store, but the lack of durability. I REALLY REALLY REALLY wish apple would give another options besides the current builds that have no ruggedness. Lenovo steals the show here with their carbon fiber builds. Just as thin, lighter, lid opens further, dust and spill proof, survives in a bag much better. I did a safari in Africa and took my Thinkpad x1 (sold it) because I knew it’d survive the trip but once lost a 15” MBP on a flight due to a few bumps and a gin and tonic spilling over the keyboard.
On a side note I have no idea why apple is naming them like they do but it’s stupid to me. They should have called it the M5 series and now the M3 series based on nm size. That alone tells me more than anything else.
For the 13-inch Pro, sure. The 14-inch Pro is too expensive for "I like that it says 'Pro'" folk.
For one, that's a nerdy detail. It also doesn't change every generation. And lastly, it gets confusing once we go below 1nm. M5, then M3, then M2, then M1.8?
What process node is the Watch chip on? It could really benefit from a 30% decrease in power consumption.