New MacBook Airs and 13-Inch MacBook Pro Will Reportedly Feature M3 Chip

[BenRacicot]

Absolutely. M3 won't happen so soon lol

These leakers are delusional. Check your sources MR

Always dilusional yes!
BUT there’s a big but here. We know Apple bought the first round of N3s from TSMC. And N3 is here to stay for at least 3 years.

N2 is not going to be ready in 2024.

So getting N3 products asap is important to Apple. Also the N3E chips after that would be a perfect late 2024 upgrade.

There is logic behind M3 soon.

 

[Mega ST]

I just hope they get the pricing right. I might need to size down to a 13 for affordability.

 

[Warped9]

I strongly suspect M3 is going to arrive sooner rather than later.

M2 Max & Pro will still be more powerful than M3, so MacBook Air 13 & 15 having M3 will not eclipse MacBook Pro 14 & 16 in terms of performance. Neither will an M3 iMac eclipse a Mac Studio Max or Pro or M2 Pro Mac Mini.

But M3 will make MacBook Air and iMac even more appealing in terms of performance for the money. iPad Pro will eventually get M3 and iPad Air will get M2—good machines getting even better. Seriously the now lowly M1 MacBook Air is still a killer device for the money and arguably Apple’s best bang-for-the-buck computer. Even with it’s now four year old, and still cool looking, wedged chassis design it makes pretty much everything under or near it look like a joke. The current Microsoft Surface looks ridiculous next to the M1 MacBook Air.

I think M3 sooner rather than later is a sign of Apple getting back onto it’s intended update schedule. M2 wasn’t so much a stopgap move as much as M1 going longer than initially planned due to Covid induced delays. Hence widespread use of M2 being shorter lived than initially planned.


I was initially critical of Apple making the MacBook Pro 14 & 16 so expensive, but in light of what we’ve seen of the baseline M1 and M2 it now makes sense. The MacBook Airs with M1 & M2 are now capable of “pro” level work to a large extent—that makes them truly versatile devices that can fulfill the needs of most mainstream and general pro level users while the MacBook Pros are aimed at heavy pro use. And while there are powerful Intel machines to rival Apple’s M computers Apple looks really attractive with the convenience of significantly longer battery life and cooler operation.

I can only imagine what the eventual M3 Max and Pro will be like.

 

[Queen6]

I strongly suspect M3 is going to arrive sooner rather than later.

M2 Max & Pro will still be more powerful than M3, so MacBook Air 13 & 15 having M3 will not eclipse MacBook Pro 14 & 16 in terms of performance. Neither will an M3 iMac eclipse a Mac Studio Max or Pro or M2 Pro Mac Mini.

But M3 will make MacBook Air and iMac even more appealing in terms of performance for the money. iPad Pro will eventually get M3 and iPad Air will get M2—good machines getting even better. Seriously the now lowly M1 MacBook Air is still a killer device for the money and arguably Apple’s best bang-for-the-buck computer. Even with it’s now four year old, and still cool looking, wedged chassis design it makes pretty much everything under or near it look like a joke. The current Microsoft Surface looks ridiculous next to the M1 MacBook Air.

I think M3 sooner rather than later is a sign of Apple getting back onto it’s intended update schedule. M2 wasn’t so much a stopgap move as much as M1 going longer than initially planned due to Covid induced delays. Hence widespread use of M2 being shorter lived than initially planned.


I was initially critical of Apple making the MacBook Pro 14 & 16 so expensive, but in light of what we’ve seen of the baseline M1 and M2 it now makes sense. The MacBook Airs with M1 & M2 are now capable of “pro” level work to a large extent—that makes them truly versatile devices that can fulfill the needs of most mainstream and general pro level users while the MacBook Pros are aimed at heavy pro use. And while there are powerful Intel machines to rival Apple’s M computers Apple looks really attractive with the convenience of significantly longer battery life and cooler operation.

I can only imagine what the eventual M3 Max and Pro will be like.

M3 15" Air that's what I think as the MBP in some regions is fast becoming stupidly priced for the average user. If turning coin with the MBP very much a different matter as the notebook should pay for it's self in a matter of days...

Q-6

 

[Macalway]

You know what they say about a fool and his $$ ?

You know what they say about if not having something nice to say.....

 

[spnc]

Always dilusional yes!
BUT there’s a big but here. We know Apple bought the first round of N3s from TSMC. And N3 is here to stay for at least 3 years.

N2 is not going to be ready in 2024.

So getting N3 products asap is important to Apple. Also the N3E chips after that would be a perfect late 2024 upgrade.

There is logic behind M3 soon.

Agreed.

 

[lambertjohn]

Exact same. Probably won’t end up upgrading since although it would be a nice jump forward it would still really be a waste of money. My M1 Air meets my usually-paltry needs without breaking a sweat.

A 13” M3 Pro would (will) probably be my dream laptop, though…at least until M4, etc. 🙂

Until the M4 comes out a few months later…

 

[steve123]

Absolutely. M3 won't happen so soon lol

Let's analyze this. The release cadence for the A series AS has been yearly since the A4 was announced in 2010. M1 was announced in 2020. We had a pandemic raging around the world that year disrupting supply chains everywhere. The M2 was announced at WWDC 2022. Speculation is M3 will be announced at WWDC 2023. I think it is compelling M3 will be announced at WWDC 2023.

 

[James Godfrey]

Always dilusional yes!
BUT there’s a big but here. We know Apple bought the first round of N3s from TSMC. And N3 is here to stay for at least 3 years.

N2 is not going to be ready in 2024.

So getting N3 products asap is important to Apple. Also the N3E chips after that would be a perfect late 2024 upgrade.

There is logic behind M3 soon.

There is logic, but I can guarantee that part of the agreement between Apple and TSMC was that Apple bought them now not later… that’s why they started production in December.

These chips are going to go in a lot of devices come end of 2023 so apple is likely preparing for the inevitable supply chain issues by stockpiling now.

 

[spnc]

Yes good points you made both.

I just want the M3 MBP out by 2024, it's a huge step up from my previous Machine with CPU power and other specs still not provided by early-2023 M2.

Then can quietly wait for the M10 5 years later hehehe no more FOMO they can release M4 the next day I won't care

 

[nquinn]

A 15" air with M3 or M4 in the future will be a crusher and good value for the money

 

[BenRacicot]

There is logic, but I can guarantee that part of the agreement between Apple and TSMC was that Apple bought them now not later… that’s why they started production in December.

These chips are going to go in a lot of devices come end of 2023 so apple is likely preparing for the inevitable supply chain issues by stockpiling now.

They don’t stockpile. It’s called just in time manufacturing.

 

[Dulcimer]

Dec production start for A17 seems far too early based on historical trends, which may lead credence to M3 coming out by WWDC. A14 and A15, for instance, reportedly started in March 2020 and May 2021, respectively.

 

[phillytim]

Remind me again, why are so we sure that these first 3nm chips are going to be M3 for Macs?

I would think Apple would utilize 3nm first for the upcoming iPhone 15's A17 chip - which will sell more than M3 Macs.

 

[steve123]

I would think Apple would utilize 3nm first for the upcoming iPhone 15's A17 chip - which will sell more than M3 Macs.

You need to ask yourself what sells the iPhone. Mac sales. Not the other way around which I think may people believe is the case. If Apple ever looses their legions of Mac users, the iPhone will slowly but surely die. So, the Mac is a necessary and essential part of Apple. This is what Apple realized a few years during the MP debacle. For every user that owns a mac, they likely influence the purchase of 100's or 1000's of other sales at Apple.

 

[NeonNights]

You need to ask yourself what sells the iPhone. Mac sales. Not the other way around which I think may people believe is the case. If Apple ever looses their legions of Mac users, the iPhone will slowly but surely die. So, the Mac is a necessary and essential part of Apple. This is what Apple realized a few years during the MP debacle. For every user that owns a mac, they likely influence the purchase of 100's or 1000's of other sales at Apple.

That's interesting.

The iPhone sells itself and, along with the iPad (and precursor iPods), were the gateway drugs into the Apple ecosystem. I personally love MacOS but the rest of my family only works with iPhones and/or an iPad. And despite me having two MacBooks, I actually don't use an iPhone (anymore). Perhaps our household is the exception to the Macs-feed-iPhone-sales ethos but the breakdown below suggests iPhones are, and have been, THE key revenue generator for Apple for many years. The link goes back to 2017.

It's the consumer mobile/portable devices that make Apple popular, not so much Mac/MacOS. Those historical lines outside Apple stores weren't for the new iMac or Mini. You're more likely to try an Apple computer based on your iPhone experience versus the other way around.

https://statstic.com/apple-revenue-by-product-category/

 

[steve123]

THE key revenue generator for Apple for many years. The link goes back to 2017.

I do not disagree with this. Apple has a lot of people that have a great deal of influence selling iPhones for them.

 

[phillytim]

You need to ask yourself what sells the iPhone. Mac sales. Not the other way around which I think may people believe is the case. If Apple ever looses their legions of Mac users, the iPhone will slowly but surely die. So, the Mac is a necessary and essential part of Apple. This is what Apple realized a few years during the MP debacle. For every user that owns a mac, they likely influence the purchase of 100's or 1000's of other sales at Apple.

You got that all backwards; iPhone's phenomenal sales always had a halo effect for Mac sales.

 

[Dulcimer]

Remind me again, why are so we sure that these first 3nm chips are going to be M3 for Macs?

I would think Apple would utilize 3nm first for the upcoming iPhone 15's A17 chip - which will sell more than M3 Macs.

I thought there were reports 3nm production had already started in Dec and Apple’s usually the first/biggest customer of newer nodes. If true, that’s too early for A17 production. So M3 would make sense.

 

[Spock1234]

… for the 50 to 100,000,000 iPhone 15 pros their going to sell this year.

That’s quite a range! Are you an analyst on Wall Street? 🤣

 

[Matrix1776]

They need a colorful M3 MacBook Air. At 13/15” it will be an instant hit. My M1 24” can accomplish anything for the normal user. I’ll buy one despite having 4 laptops, including a 3070Ti Alienware.

My gaming PC is an 80lb i9/3090 Origin PC, so I realize the limitations for graphics, but the M is great. Give me 20 hours for normal work.

 

[rkdiddy]

I hope they allow for more than 2TB of SSD. Please give us the option of up to 4TB with the M3.

 

[Dulcimer]

I hope they allow for more than 2GB of SSD. Please give us the option of up to 4GB with the M3.

Oh my, a time traveler from the 90s!

 

[rkdiddy]

Oh my, a time traveler from the 90s!

Haha, I need somewhere to store my 5.25 floppy drives!

 

[compwiz1202]

Oh my, a time traveler from the 90s!

Yea I was gonna say when I was younger you were a god with any HDD. GBs would make you beyond that.