Apple Planning USB-C iMac and Faster Notebooks in 2017, Mac Pro and Touch Bar Magic Keyboard in Question

[MacRumors]

Apple is preparing modest updates to its Mac lineup for next year, including new iMac models with USB-C ports and new AMD graphics chips, and "minor bumps" in processing power for 12-inch MacBook and MacBook Pro models, according to Bloomberg.

Mac fans shouldn't hold their breath for radical new designs in 2017 though. Instead, the company is preparing modest updates: USB-C ports and a new Advanced Micro Devices Inc. graphics processor for the iMac, and minor bumps in processing power for the 12-inch MacBook and MacBook Pro. Cue the outrage.

KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo likewise said new iMacs will launch in the first half of 2017 in a research note shared earlier this year, while current iMac models have not been updated in 434 days per our Mac Buyer's Guide, so updates to Apple's consumer desktop lineup would be unsurprising. USB-C ports on new iMacs would likely double as Thunderbolt 3 ports akin to the new MacBook Pro.

Apple designers are also said to be exploring standalone keyboards with a Touch Bar and Touch ID for desktop computers. The report claims Apple will decide whether to release the keyboards depending upon how well the touchscreen strip and fingerprint scanner are received on new MacBook Pro models released a few months ago. Apple's current Magic Keyboard was released in October 2015.

Meanwhile, some Apple engineers have reportedly raised the possibility of moving Mac Pro production back to Asia, as these people believe the supply chain workers have the "required skills" for "ambitious" products. Apple currently assembles the Mac Pro in Texas as its only "Made in USA" computer, but the professional-oriented desktop machine has not been updated in three years.

Three years on, the Mac Pro is ripe for an upgrade with its chips and connector ports lagging rival products. Because of the earlier challenges, some Apple engineers have raised the possibility of moving production back to Asia, where it's cheaper and manufacturers have the required skills for ambitious products, according to a person familiar with those internal discussions.

President-elect Donald Trump recently said he will offer Apple incentives to bring manufacturing back to the United States, including a "very large tax cut" and reduced regulations. Apple CEO Tim Cook himself has said the majority of its products are made in China because the U.S. workforce has a smaller number of individuals with the "vocational kind of skills" needed.

Overall, the article suggests the Mac is "getting far less attention than it once did," partly due to "a lack of clear direction from senior management, departures of key people working on Mac hardware, and technical challenges."

Apple, for its part, told employees it has "great desktops" in its roadmap. Cook said the desktop is "very strategic" to Apple because the performance desktops can provide is "really important" to a lot of people and "critical" for others. He says the current iMac is the best desktop Apple's ever made and its 5K display is the best desktop display in the world. The fate of the Mac Pro and Mac mini is less clear.

Article Link: Apple Planning USB-C iMac and Faster Notebooks in 2017, Mac Pro and Touch Bar Magic Keyboard in Question

 

[bunnicula]

"Great desktops. The best desktops. Bigly."

Sorry... could not resist.

Seriously, though... I'd like targeted display mode to come back for the iMac.

 

[Zwhaler]

Nooo Mac Pros? That would be a disgrace! If there are no new Mac Pros I'll probably just use mine until the desktops and/or laptops put out a higher 64-bit multicore Geekbench (it's going to be awhile). By desktops I feel like Tim means the iMac. Does he even do anything that requires a Mac Pro?

 

[Swazaloo]

I'd like targeted display mode to come back for the iMac.

Yes, and if it worked with my Windows gaming rig, my dreams would come true.

 

[Bryan Bowler]

Timmy better deliver on his promise! Hopefully his vision of a great desktop is more than an emoji bar on the iMac keyboard.

 

[gramtrax]

It is a total shame that Apple can take a great product line and kill it off by simply ignoring it. My next laptop will not be a Mac, and once I switch to Ubuntu or Windows, I won't care as much about an iPhone or iPad. Seems like a bad marketing move to me, but hey...they make so much money on phones they clearly don't care. Right now, any way.

Tim Cook = the modern John Scully.

 

[scott911]

I would like:

Access to upgrade / replace ram.
Access to upgrade / replace the SSD or drive.
Port (s) I can actually reach and use - in lower lip, or on front
Speakers aimed towards me to - front of lower lip.

and I don't care in the slightest how thick or thin it is.

thank you!

added: and please keep the Ethernet port.
And consider offering a manly keyboard.

 

[iHack13]

I am getting a new AMD Ryzen System that is for sure. If Apple doesnt consider a nice powerful APU maybe custom designed by AMD..... it would be a bummer. Because I couldnt use mine as a hackintosh then

 

[bunnicula]

Yes, and if it worked with my Windows gaming rig, my dreams would come true.

Yep. I need it for Windows... cannot have my forced work PC laptop and my MacBook on one monitor and all my other stuff on the iMac. Takes up too much desk real estate in my home office.

 

[bjjp2]

"This is the best 'modest update' we've ever released."

 

[TMRJIJ]

Alright, Timmy. I want a 27" iMac. No AMD, Nvidia, please. USB-C but keep the Ethernet port. Kaby Lake of course. Touch Bar Magic Keyboard with Touch ID. And two Apple Stickers please
And for god's sake, make sure your supply can keep up.

 

[ghostface147]

Mac Pro and China where there are skills for ambitious products. Are Americans not capable of that?

 

[jwm]

You are going to love our new Mac Pro line up. It's our thinnest product yet. In fact it's so thin you can even see it!

 

[Chupa Chupa]

Overall, the article suggests the Mac is "getting far less attention than it once did," partly due to "a lack of clear direction from senior management, departures of key people working on Mac hardware, and technical challenges."

Suggests? It's plain as day. One can state this declaratively as fact at this point.

 

[Chicane-UK]

It is a total shame that Apple can take a great product line and kill it off by simply ignoring it. My next laptop will not be a Mac, and once I switch to Ubuntu or Windows, I won't care as much about an iPhone or iPad. Seems like a bad marketing move to me, but hey...they make so much money on phones they clearly don't care. Right now, any way.

Tim Cook = the modern John Scully.

I know a lot of folks on here have been saying the same, but it's hard to look at it any other way. It just seems they're being purely business focussed - the iPhone / iPad has better margins and ships in higher volumes, so why waste time on the Mac? It sucks for those who have invested into the Mac desktop ecosystem and are now being left hanging

Really hope they release some killer new desktops in 2017.

 

[mozumder]

Mac Pro and China where there are skills for ambitious products. Are Americans not capable of that?

Americans don't want to do factory work. We're a first-world white-collar country now.

Tim Cook is smart enough to know this.

 

[trip1ex]

Tell us something we don't know

 

[JustinBW]

This rumor aligns with what everyone was thinking.

2017 = updates to the iMac and the Mini and Mac Pro go ignored...

 

[oneMadRssn]

Apple CEO Tim Cook himself has said the majority of its products are made in China because the U.S. workforce has a smaller number of individuals with the "vocational kind of skills" needed.

I wonder if Apple is just trying to bait a nice tax subsidy out of Trump.

 

[Jaekae]

Nooo Mac Pros? That would be a disgrace! If there are no new Mac Pros I'll probably just use mine until the desktops and/or laptops put out a higher 64-bit multicore Geekbench (it's going to be awhile). By desktops I feel like Tim means the iMac. Does he even do anything that requires a Mac Pro?

It failed because it was built in usa so think we wont get a refresh until they fixed the overheating design and poor margins on having US workers with poor electronic mass production skills. So when they have china manufacturing ready it probably come again. They sold/sell way to little of them to care to much

 

[ike1707]

..And everything is going to be glued and soldered, so make sure to buy the configuration you want.

 

[pat500000]

I never took Cook seriously. He never was the "man" of his word.

 

[sputnikv]

it's really not complicated. you design your products to cater to the people that will be using them. a "pro" computer for professionals should be versatile and be capable of handling their needs. this means new ports and old ports, performance over thinness, comfortable and clear design etiquette. function cannot march several steps behind form

 

[Zarniwoop]

Next iMac will have a revolutionary power switch located in the power cord next to the socket. To turn on your new iMac, you'll need Apple Watch (sold separately) - or you can crawl under the table, which is free.

I have a bad feeling about iMac going to be the only desktop from Apple in 2018.

 

[Altis]

Make a new Thunderbolt/USB-C display/hub... consider ditching the iMac.

Make new Mac Mini with desktop-power CPU, replaceable internals, easily mounted to the TB display.

Update the Mac Pro.