Apple Potentially Facing Worst Leak Since iPhone 4 Was Left in a Bar

[Daniel L]

The iPhone 4 was arguably the best iPhone upgrade ever

1) Retina screen - best screen on any phone by far
2) Thinnest smartphone on the market
3) First iPhone with front facing camera - FaceTime was introduced
4) A4 Processor - the first custom Apple SOC design


This MacBook leak is about equivalent to seeing an iPhone 16 come out of a box a month before release date

 

[Kaptajn Haddock]

Seriously?! Apple has had no earth shattering leaks since the age of Steve Jobs. They have become boring and predictable. Their updates are incremental. Their new products evolutionary, not revolutionary. God, I miss Steve Jobs with all his hits and misses.

 

[renargues]

I've noticed some people being iffy saying that Apple has never re-used artwork on their boxes. The 13-inch M1 and M2 MacBook Pro share the same wallpapers which were taken from the Intel 16-inch MacBook Pro.

I think the Retina iMac's also had a few cases of sharing the same artwork on their boxes year-to-year too.

 

[0186279]

Seriously?! Apple has had no earth shattering leaks since the age of Steve Jobs. They have become boring and predictable. Their updates are incremental. Their new products evolutionary, not revolutionary. God, I miss Steve Jobs with all his hits and misses.

Not even close to that. The iPhone has a much wider following and it will undoubtably have at least a slight design change. Your average consumer wouldn't even register the meaning of this leak.

 

[svish]

Looks like the leak is true. It is a huge leak. Hopefully the base model will have 16GB RAM.

 

[Chancha]

I'm not saying they've never done it, I know the m1-m3 have all been different. I know and have seen many different iMac boxes, and would legitimately be surprised if any 2 models were the same, but maybe. Which two are the same? I'm guessing something around 2012-2015 timeframe, I think they had a few that came out in the same year?

Edit: and I was mostly referring to MacBooks, I know Mac Minis and I assume the Mac Studio and things without screens reuse the box art, but they have usually at the very least updated the image on the screen for all or almost all Macs since Jobs return anyways. They seem to have no hesitation with making more box art than necessary, they even have boxes for each color and variation of the iMac M1/M3 (2 and 4 usb-c/tb ports, and each color, and new art-and worse box-for the m3) but they thought the m4 Mac Pro was not worthy of an updated box? Not that it can't happen, but I'd be very surprised.

Well. Even just for MacBooks, even just counting Apple Silicon era:

M3 MBA used M2 MBA box
M2 13" touchbar MBP used M1 box
M2 Pro/Max 14" 16" used M1 gen box, but with the M1 red/blue wallpaper changed from light to dark mode which is hardly different (then the website and everywhere else used the new purple and green diamond wallpaper)

So, yes, Apple frequently re-use the same box for whatever reasons. You just weren't paying enough attention.

 

[coredev]

I have no clue how supply chains work, but I have thought before that with the hundreds/thousands of workers (?) at Apple working on a specific product—and the thousands/tens of thousands (?) of workers making and moving specific products overseas in factories and warehouses—I'm amazed that things stay as secret as they do.

But they don't. Thanks to this site and many, many leakers, we know months in advance what Apple is working on. Take the last iPhone release for example. The exact specs were known before the reveal event, there was not a single surprise there. Same with the 2024 iPads, and last year's Macs.
I am pretty sure Apple goes to great lengths trying to prevent leaks, but with the ubiquity of good cameras in everyone's pocket, this might be impossible now. If you think about it, to some degree Apple has brought this on by themselves.

 

[coredev]

I just hope it’s fake because it means we have yet another wait and see whether the m5 will support thunderbolt 5 and promotion monitors if it’s not.

Based on all we know, the M5 will not be released for a while. Apple will release M4 Pro/Max/Ultra Macs before they go to M5.

 

[artifex]

Apples new products are so boring these days that I’m thinking this is just Apple marketing gimmick. I mean a new chip in the same laptop… why do we even care?

Letting the Russians have working hardware like this, especially before anyone else, would be a very bad look for them. Presumably the US Treasury Department's already looking into it.

 

[iPay]

Severance is the solution.

 

[JPack]

I am pretty sure Apple goes to great lengths trying to prevent leaks, but with the ubiquity of good cameras in everyone's pocket, this might be impossible now. If you think about it, to some degree Apple has brought this on by themselves.

Most of the leaks don't even rely on a camera. They just rely on plain memory. Smartphones aren't allowed in production areas of the factory. But Apple can't erase the memories of workers and stop people from talking.

Weeks before iPhone 14 launched, a worker from Foxconn drew out the box design from memory using MS Paint. People thought it looked fake and didn't believe when he said all models come with 6GB RAM.

 

[Risco]

Nothing like the iPhone 4 leak. At the time, Apple was much better at keeping secrets plus Steve Jobs was still alive which added to the aura as he was mad as hell about it leaking!

The design was revolutionary and beautiful, there was nothing out there like it.

This MacBook is just a refresh, same design with bumped specs.

 

[wanha]

Honestly, If there were more leaks, it might create a market environment that forces more innovation, so I don't really care if their products are leaking like a rusty bucket. Step it up.

If there’s more crime in a neighborhood, the most likely increased innovation will be around locks and other anti-theft measures, not the products that got stolen

 

[MinEderPlayz]

Most of the leaks don't even rely on a camera. They just rely on plain memory. Smartphones aren't allowed in production areas of the factory. But Apple can't erase the memories of workers and stop people from talking.

Weeks before iPhone 14 launched, a worker from Foxconn drew out the box design from memory using MS Paint. People thought it looked fake and didn't believe when he said all models come with 6GB RAM.

I recall a similar leak last year which was, however, less accurate. The described artwork was basically the 14's design but sideways (the "S" shape was kind of close, but the style was different of course).

 

[toto75]

Updates bricking devices, services that are down every other week, new phone almost entirely marketed based on software features that haven't shipped yet and now this.

It's almost as if being hyperfixated with the stock price above pretty much everything else isn't the best way to deliver quality products and service

Never has a Mac been this much more powerful and efficient than a PC. Apple Silicon is a truly outstanding achievement that has injected new life to the Mac and, alone, should make Tim Cook recognized as a great CEO. Sorry but I don't miss the old days.

 

[ds2000]

Bold claim, the M4 Mac would have to be as anticipated a product drop as the iPhone 4 to be true and that’s just not the case.

Completely agree, the M Macs are wonderful but this is mostly a tick tock tock tock tock tock set of updates.

 

[iZac]

I was dubious because of the same packaging, but maybe that’s the point. Perhaps the old box lid was accidentally used on a palette full of new machines and the warehouse workers just did a visual inspection on the box lid and sent it out with the old inventory?

 

[Smartass]

WTF is with the title?

 

[AndiG]

Hoping that Apple finally ends its stupid 8GB entry model strategy.
And happy awakening to all those users of 8 GB models. If you want to enter the next century with at least some AI support - get a (new) mac. Yours is vintage.

 

[toto75]

Hoping that Apple finally ends its stupid 8GB entry model strategy.
And happy awakening to all those users of 8 GB models. If you want to enter the next century with at least some AI support - get a (new) mac. Yours is vintage.

I don't think my MBA will last until the next century anyway.

 

[Newbee2025]

Yawnzilla… biggest apple leak? Zzz

 

[one more]

Well, at least iPhone 4 was something quite different from 1-3, so generated a lot of buzz. This MacBook is essentially the same as its predecessors with an extra port and bumped up RAM. Not a major development, IMO.

 

[miiwtoo]

no way, the iPhone 4 is the worst "leak" for Apple,

 

[Reason077]

The 512 gb storage makes me thing this is the mid range, not the standard option.

Nvm they start with 512 now.

It might still start with 8/12gb

Pretty sure it's been established 16GB is the new RAM baseline, at least for the MacBook Pro. Hopefully the Air too? 🤞

 

[Reason077]

also, what i'm amazed about with this leak is that the leaked models appear to be US-bound product versions of the MBP, as the first youtuber showed off the charger brick that came in the box and that was a USA / North American Apple power brick, while Russia just uses what the rest of the Europe uses. (the euro plug or schuko standard).

There are no official Russian-market Macs or official Apple resellers in Russia any more due to sanctions. All Macs sold in Russia are grey market imports, diverted from other country's supply chains.