Mini-LED Shortages Reportedly Delayed Production of Redesigned MacBook Pro Models

[visualseed]

I paid $169 for 64 GB of Corsair Vengeance last fall. Paid $366 last month. A lot of mundane parts have doubled.

I was just noticing the price of spinning hard disks is creeping up again. not a double yet, but getting close.

 

[HarryWild]

I pull the trigger on a Dell 14" notebook that had Memorial Day pricing on it! No more discount starting today! 🙂

 

[pshufd]

I was just noticing the price of spinning hard disks is creeping up again. not a double yet, but getting close.

I bought an 8 TB WD MyBook last fall for a Time Machine disk. I shudder to think of what they cost today. Apple's prices for Intel systems, like the iMac 27 haven't changed through the parts shortages. I don't know if they have long-term contracts for the parts or just eat the higher prices of GPUs and RAM. The one nice thing about their Intel systems - the prices of Intel chips continues to drop and there are no shortages.

Just checked. I paid $129.99 last year for a WD 8 TB Elements drive. They are $199.99 right now on Amazon.

 

[visualseed]

Is better than 60 useful for anyone besides gamers? I run 60 and have run 30 in the past and can't tell the difference. I don't think that any faster would matter to me.

Scrolling and panning is more pleasant. Also useful if you are producing content to target 120Hz displays and media systems. Once you work on high refresh displays you notice strobing and flicker on even 60Hz displays. And once you see it, you can't unsee it.

 

[James Godfrey]

If there is an 14" MBP expect the 13" to be discontinued, doesn't make much sense today with MBA performing so similar.

I doubt this will happen either, unless they drop the price of the entry level MBP… they like having low entry prices of product line ups, hence why the iPad Pro still starts at $799.

Having the MacBook Pro line starting at $1799 vs the current $1299 is very strange… as there laptop line up will be:

MacBook Air - $999
MacBook Pro - $1799

Too much of a price jump between Air and Pro.

 

[visualseed]

I bought an 8 TB WD MyBook last fall for a Time Machine disk. I shudder to think of what they cost today. Apple's prices for Intel systems, like the iMac 27 haven't changed through the parts shortages. I don't know if they have long-term contracts for the parts or just eat the higher prices of GPUs and RAM. The one nice thing about their Intel systems - the prices of Intel chips continues to drop and there are no shortages.

Just checked. I paid $129.99 last year for a WD 8 TB Elements drive. They are $199.99 right now on Amazon.

I'm noticing a similar price increase with the 8TB Seagate I bought last August.

 

[8CoreWhore]

LETS GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[pshufd]

Scrolling and panning is more pleasant. Also useful if you are producing content to target 120Hz displays and media systems. Once you work on high refresh displays you notice strobing and flicker on even 60Hz displays. And once you see it, you can't unsee it.

My workload has refresh rates of 1 to 2 seconds so I'm pretty sure that it's lost on my use. I use Dell Ultrasharp monitors and they have 60 hz refresh rates and they sell tons of them to businesses (they're pricier than their consumer models) so 60 hz must be good enough for most work.

 

[visualseed]

That’s the exact reason I don’t think we are going to get this major redesign everyone is talking about, yes we had the leaks from the ransom attack… BUT…

The Mac leaked had several ports including HDMI and USB-A, seriously doubt those are coming back… again with the Touch Bar seems odd to not have this Apple dubbed ‘Pro’ feature on their entry level MBP but not have it on their higher end models… that ransom leak could quite easily have been an old potential redesign, a redesign planned years in advance or perhaps even a prototype (would explain why the supplier wasn’t really bothered about them leaking the design) forcing them to approach apple for the money.

I feel that leak is what every ‘leaker’ has just fed off since, presuming it to be the next MBP which it probably isn’t.

We also have to remember there was no mention of a chin or white bezels, I don’t even think MagSafe was mentioned (not sure though)… they reported miniLED coming to it (didn’t happen), the only thing the leakers got right was it coming in colours, that was literally it.

HDMI may be coming back simply because HDMI 2.1 requires the port and cannot be delivered over the USB C / Thunderbolt connector. I done't believe USB A was anywhere on the leaked design and I'm doubtful Apple is bringing it back. SD card slot, maybe.

 

[skoor101]

All leakers said the new MacBook Pros would be announced at WWDC. It's funny how Digitimes sources knew nothing about a delay BEFORE WWDC but predicted a delay after the MBPs were not shown! So let me make share some information from my 'inside sources' (ahem), we should expect new MacBook Pros as early as this year.

We can't take you serious. With all the bad leaks, one now has to promoise to remove some permanent body part. Pemoval of precious body parts is the next escalation, if bad leaks continue.

 

[ZZ9pluralZalpha]

Make sense, they should push to release before the school period starts. Feel sorry for you who bought the M1 now because you dissapointed the new MBP didn't get released last WWDC 2021. Should've waited a bit 😉

Unfortunately I would think it’s the opposite: Tim Apple won’t want to give out free headphones with a brand-new product that would need no help whatsoever in uptake, therefore no release until after the back-to-school special ends.

 

[JMacHack]

Is better than 60 useful for anyone besides gamers? I run 60 and have run 30 in the past and can't tell the difference. I don't think that any faster would matter to me.

Smoother is always better in my opinion. The point of diminishing returns is somewhere around 160hz or so and the max perceivable screen refresh rate is like 240 or so.

 

[randfee2]

Although it unfortunately seems increasingly unlikely that the touch bar will survive, I do hope everybody is wrong about this. At least on my current M1 MB Pro, the touch bar is actually very useful: much more than I had assumed it would be. Going back to a row of hard-wired physical function keys in their place would feel like stepping down several notches with regard to functionality. To the extent that I'd consider not getting one of the new M2 MB Pro, if that was indeed the case. The current set-up with a physical "Esc" and power button left and right, and the bar for everything else, is pretty perfect. IMHO, that is.

Now that I have some months of hands on time with the M1 MB Pro, I'd even say that the return of the magsafe adapter is not 100% welcome. One uses a docking station with these things anyway, and one standard connector that does everything has a lot going for it. But unlike the touch bar (the loss of which would be a significant downside, with nothing good about it), magsafe returning is a toss-up: the "snap off cleanly" magnetic connector is definitely handy. And I'd assume one could charge the MB Pro via USB3 as well anyway.

I’m the opposite. Not being able to blindly type and use function keys was reason enough to not upgrade for years. I want no sliders, i want no emoji, but i definitely want tactile function keys i can use while looking elsewhere.

How about making it optional? 😂

even better… how about they offer an optional touchscreen with a detachable screen or 180degree flip screen.

 

[Bug-Creator]

Not sure how got here, but on my 2010 mPro I run 1 2560x1440 screen at 60 and the 4k at 30 (the modded Radeon just doesn't play nice, or maybe its the patched BigSur) but still I can't tell the difference when scrolling.

-> not gonna buy a new monitor til MikroLED is a thing.

 

[pshufd]

Not sure how got here, but on my 2010 mPro I run 1 2560x1440 screen at 60 and the 4k at 30 (the modded Radeon just doesn't play nice, or maybe its the patched BigSur) but still I can't tell the difference when scrolling.

-> not gonna buy a new monitor til MikroLED is a thing.

I just checked. I have 3 4k monitors and one WSXGA. One of the 4k monitors is at 60, two are at 30 and the WSXGA is at 60. I can't tell the difference between them for any of the stuff that I do on these displays.

 

[erich.j.k]

I also think the chip shortage situation is the reason why (in my humble opinion!) Apple may have shelved the M1X SoC. Instead, they'll use the delay time to complete the A15-derived M2 and M2X SoC's for introduction in the MacBook Pro models at the end of 2021.

I believe that depends on whether or not the MBP is redesigned. If it is, they will want to get it out as fast as possible.
Remember 2016 - the new MBP with the TouchBar? The first ones came along with that crappy Skylake processor. Just a few months later they updated it with Kaby Lake. They had the redesign ready to go and didn't want to wait another couple of months for that processor.
If there is a redesign, they will probably get it out once it's ready. The only thing holding them up could be parts they don't produce themselves but are essential for the redesign - like the display.

 

[goobot]

I doubt this will happen either, unless they drop the price of the entry level MBP… they like having low entry prices of product line ups, hence why the iPad Pro still starts at $799.

Having the MacBook Pro line starting at $1799 vs the current $1299 is very strange… as there laptop line up will be:

MacBook Air - $999
MacBook Pro - $1799

Too much of a price jump between Air and Pro.

Not when you consider all the tiny 200$ upgrades for the air

 

[SactoGuy18]

If there is a redesign, they will probably get it out once it's ready. The only thing holding them up could be parts they don't produce themselves but are essential for the redesign - like the display.

I think the issue with producing the 14" and 16" mini-LED panels is holding up the new MacBook Pro production. But it's already so late that Apple might as well just shelve the M1X and wait for the arrival of the A15-derived M2/M2X in December 2021 for the MacBook Air and MacBook Pro models.

 

[James Godfrey]

I think the issue with producing the 14" and 16" mini-LED panels is holding up the new MacBook Pro production. But it's already so late that Apple might as well just shelve the M1X and wait for the arrival of the A15-derived M2/M2X in December 2021 for the MacBook Air and MacBook Pro models.

Yeah if nothing comes out until the end of the year I can see the M1X MBP’s having quite a short shelf life tbh.

 

[Minxy]

Assuming the new MacBook Pros come out in Q3 as they are ‘just’ a spec bump with some more ports are they released without fanfare, or given their own press event, or included in the iPhone or October event?

 

[James Godfrey]

Assuming the new MacBook Pros come out in Q3 as they are ‘just’ a spec bump with some more ports are they released without fanfare, or given their own press event, or included in the iPhone or October event?

I would say their own press event especially as they will be using the new chip

 

[Woochoo]

So 14" and 16" will come with M1X (an M1 with more cores) and close to the A15 (thus M2) release. Unless they decide to leave the M2 for early 2022. This first gen "high end" MBPs is comming 6 months later than it should.

 

[James Godfrey]

So 14" and 16" will come with M1X (an M1 with more cores) and close to the A15 (thus M2) release. Unless they decide to leave the M2 for early 2022. This first gen "high end" MBPs is comming 6 months later than it should.

Basically the way to look at this is exactly the same as how the iPads have be done in the past…

The iPad Air always got the A?? chips whereas the iPad Pro always got the
A??X chip.

Now the A??X chips have now been rebranded so to speak as M? chips, which will go into the entry level products such as:

MacBook Air
MacBook Pro (entry level)
iMac (entry level)
Mac Mini (entry level)

All of which have already been transitioned over to the M1 Which are rebranded A14X chips.

Now presuming apple keep up with how they have done stuff in the past… the pro level Macs should get the M1X chips (which are basically an even better version of the M1 chips or A14X).

So currently we are on the M1 series… so now the M1X is believed to go into:

MacBook Pro (High End)
iMac (High End)
Mac Mini (High End)

Now that just leaves the Mac Pro, now presumably judging by the 2020 iPad Pro this could potentially end up getting the M1Z chip which is a step up again from the M1X.

Now once the M2 is released (M2 will be basically be an A15X), this will then start the ball rolling again with the entry level Macs getting it, with the high end macs getting M2X and the Mac Pro getting the M2Z… this does all depend on IF apple go with their usual naming scheme for chips, but they might not do it this way at all… but to me this makes the most sense…

Once the M2 roll out is complete, it all depends on apple what they will base the M3 on… it could be the A16X or the A17X… it just all depends… but I have a theory…

We may see a transition of the iPhones and iPad Airs etc over to M?C chips… there has been rumours of it floating around… like how the iPhone 5 and 5C were named…

So the next iPhone and iPad Air might get the M2C series chip (which is basically an A15) then iPad Pro and entry level macs getting M2, the higher end macs getting M2X/M2Z chips… but who knows

 

[Johnny London]

I am not convinced that shortages in an environment of overcapacity explain this. Asia, Russia, India running on prepandemic levels (60-70% productive capacity according to today’s Mises newsletter- anyone reading this?)

 

[James Godfrey]

The fact that the battery capacities were registered around the same time as the iPhone battery capacities suggests that these are heading for a fall launch.

Too much is pointing to a fall release at this point:

-Steady stream of reports of supply issues pushing them back to late 2021

-Most reliable leak from Gurman (although not always correct as he was quite far off his iMac prediticions) has only said ‘as early as this summer’, he could have just literally been told that if all goes to plan they could come this summer, but looking at reports it’s not going to plan at all at this point and summer ends on September 22nd in California (so they could have been planned for a late August launch initially which has now been pushed back a few months).

-The fact no other products are rumoured to be launching imminently makes it highly unlikely an ‘event’ will happen (which is needed for these MBP’s) apple always have at least 3 products to show off at an event usually, highly unlikely just a press release will happen.

-If Apple knew they were delayed for shipping til August, they would have most likely still announced them at WWDC anyway, pre orders end of June, shipping early August, Apple have announced Macs 6 months in advance in the past.

-The rumours are pointing to other M1X products coming in late 2021 such as iMac and Mac Mini, it would make sense for Apple to launch all the M1X gear together at one event.

So all in all I think Apple probably planned to launch the MBP’s at WWDC early on this year, but the decision was made to push back the launch to line up with their other M1X hardware a while ago.