Yes but do you really think it wasn’t designed from the start with apple silicon in mind. The intel version was probably a placeholder essentially.
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Apple Event to Include 13-Inch MacBook Pro, 16-Inch MacBook Pro, and 13-Inch MacBook Air With Apple Silicon Chips [Updated]
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I know they’ve done it before, but this feels different from that time as its Apple chips inside So I thought they’d want to make a really big impression with great performance and new designs.
It wouldn’t surprise me if they just swap the internals out, but I’ll still be disappointed.
Apart from the Macbook Air, who will be buying the Pro machines if we know there’s a re-design coming next year? Or am I over-estimating how many people outside of forums like this actually care so long as their software runs?
Well Bloomberg just like to come and deflate any sense of anticipation and puncture surprise, don’t they now?
Small bezels mean less room for palms - stop complaining! You'll lose what you need.
The report states that both the 13" MBA & MBP are getting Apple Silicon. IF you're right and only the entry-level 13" MBP will be getting it then it doesn't make sense. Better to consolidate the entry-level 13" MBP & MBA into one Apple Silicon model and just call it Macbook. Then the MBP lineup can still Intel until next year.
Considering how well Macs are selling now I don't think most people care. Not everyone is an edge lord like us.
I’m honestly curious to see how badly Apple just whiffs this transition. They’ve treated the Mac line like a red headed stepchild for so long and now they are asking users to make a massive and potentially very expensive shift. They are going to have to make one hell of an argument to get users onboard with the compromises they’ll have to make, and I’m sorry but better battery life and increased profit margins for Apple don’t quite cut it. That’s why I went out and picked up a spec’d out 2020 and plan on keeping it for at least six years, or until Apple works out all the bugs.
I just wish Apple would commit to supporting macOS on Intel until at least a specific date (such as until at least 2025). With the switch from PPC to Intel, they said PPC would be supported for years to come, but then just 3 years later, OS X was Intel-only. I've already gotten a year of use out of my 2019 iMac, but that replaced a late-2012 one. I bought high specs on both (i7-3770 + GTX 680MX + Fusion Drive for the 2012, and i9-9900K + Vega 48 + SSD for the 2019) because it would be several years before I needed to upgrade.
The first MBP with Intel, while not unibody, was a redesign. It was the first MagSafe mac, was thinner, had a slightly larger screen, included a front facing camera, dropped a number of outdated ports...
Not necessarily. The initial Intel models were fairly conservative designs. Perhaps Apple sees too much overlap with the 12.9” iPad Pro, but it’s also conceivable that there is a “combo” iPad/MacBook in the works (Apple says no, but they always say that until they release something). But first let’s get the transition underway.
Oh, oh WOW. I wasn’t expecting a new 16” until next summer or later.... they’re definitely going to get me next week. I wonder if the chassis is going to be exactly the same or at least a little thinner and lighter.
Do you not think they’ve made good on their claim that the Mac line does matter to them over the last couple of years? They finally sorted out the keyboard issues; listened to developers about the keyboard layout; made the 16” MBP bigger & heavier to accommodate a larger battery, better speakers; priced the 16” MBP the same as the 15” it replaced, despite lots of crazy speculation on here it was going to cost $$$$ more.
They’ve also been doing regular spec bumps on their machines which is something they failed to do when the Macs did feel neglected.
If they do just swap the internals out for Apple Silicon, what are the compromises you’re worried about?
Given their experience with the chips over the last however many years in the iPhones and iPads, this feels very different to the previous transitions don‘t you think?
This is not the phone market. MacBooks don’t need numbers and surnames like “12 Pro”, little design changes, etc. And Apple knows a lot about that, because from time to time you hear things like “they should ditch the numbers in the phone”, or the opposite here, “if there’s not a redesign, it’s boring”.
I never undervalue performance improvements in phone chips, but on computers it’s a totally different story, because maaaany many things are far away from being instantaneous, unlike phones. Even for mid non-pro use cases.
So yes, things like big increases in speed, 15 hours of battery life, fanless maybe? aren’t conceptual changes, but they’re so dramatic that effectively bring another generation more than any visual change. And, most importantly, that’s something that no other company, tied to the “real” Windows/x86, won’t be able to match.
TBH, Apple will be the laughing stock if they don't release a 16" AS replacement at the get go, after claiming the AS has higher performance. Releasing an Air, and 2 sizes of Pro makes perfect sense to me.
If this turns out to be true... I bet they're going to pull a repeat of the Intel transition by underpromising and overdelivering.
And if that's the case, my guess is we see the entire line-up switch to ARM by WWDC, most likely with the Mac Pro being the last announced, AT WWDC.
And if that's the case, my guess is we see the entire line-up switch to ARM by WWDC, most likely with the Mac Pro being the last announced, AT WWDC.
You don't need a desktop calibre chip in order to make a 16" machine much faster than the current one. Apple is ready - they have been working on this for years.
My guess is that designing the Mac Pro made it obvious to Apple that they needed to move on to inhouse silicone.
I think it makes a ton of sense to update both the 13” and 16” MBPs at the same time. It would be really messy to have a concurrent Intel model with way worse battery life, thermals, and performance. I imagine they'll finally ditch the 2 port 13” MBP, which was originally meant to be a holdover for MBA users.
Even on 100+Mbps connection Zoom, Skype and Facetime calls have mediocre frame rates at the best of times. Upping the resolution doesn't fix video call quality. Choppy frames at HD resolution does not a better experience make.
Sure for live-streaming via OBS or similar it would make a difference... but anyone serious about streaming is most likely going to use external cameras rather than the one built in.
Yep, better low light performance would be nice, but the built in cameras on laptops are an OOTB convenience rather than designed for Serious Live streaming. If they do decide to put an actual decent camera (not just more pixels) into one of their portables they would have to contend with "thinness" issues (optics gotta go somewhere) and maybe an increase in those bezels we all love to hate.
Sure they might be able to add one of their iPhone selfie cams, but I'd expect the price to jump $100 or thereabouts for that "Privilege".
The iMac Pro facetime camera is pretty amazing for a built in webcam, but definitely is not thin enough for a laptop.
If the MacBook Air performs as well as a Tiger Lake (or even Ice Lake) MacBook Pro, then maybe that temperature management system isn’t such a joke.
One can only hope that Apple have surpassed the power and technical capability of the existing line up rather than having to go sideways to enable them to settle in the new silicon technology.
Let's face it, they're already underpowered compared to PCs and the general public won't care that much about a new chip if they can get last year's Microsoft Surface models for half the price and more power than the new Macs.
Let's face it, they're already underpowered compared to PCs and the general public won't care that much about a new chip if they can get last year's Microsoft Surface models for half the price and more power than the new Macs.