What's Next for the Mac: M3 iMac, 15-Inch MacBook Air, Mac Pro, and More

[MacRumors]

Apple last week announced a slate of new Macs, including an updated Mac mini with M2 and M2 Pro processors and faster 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pros with the all-new M2 Pro and M2 Max chips.

With just modest updates, the new Macs have left some wondering if there is anything else in store for the Mac in 2023 and what's planned for the years to come. Below, we've outlined the latest rumors on what Macs Apple continues to work on for launch this year and what the company plans for the future.

MacBook Air

Apple last updated the MacBook Air with a new design and the M2 chip in June 2022. The updated MacBook Air features a 13.6-inch display, an overhauled design that does away with the previously iconic tapered chassis, and starts at $1,199.

For 2023, Apple is reportedly working on a larger 15-inch MacBook Air to join its Mac lineup. The new MacBook Air will feature the upcoming M3 chip, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. The 15-inch MacBook Air is expected to feature the same design as the current 13.6-inch model but with a larger display and longer battery life thanks to the efficiency of the M3 chip and the inclusion of a larger battery.

Further down the line, an updated MacBook Air with an OLED display is expected to debut as soon as 2024, according to reliable display analyst Ross Young.

iMac

The last time the iMac saw an update was in April 2021, when Apple debuted a redesigned 24-inch model with the efficiency and power of the M1 chip in an array of seven colors. The 24-inch iMac with M1 is the second most outdated Mac after the Mac Pro currently in Apple's lineup, making it long overdue for an upgrade.

Gurman has reaffirmed in his latest Power On newsletter that Apple plans to update the iMac family with the M3 chip later this year, likely around the October or November timeframe, given past precedent. Gurman describes the M2 family of chips as a "stopgap" for Apple silicon and suggests Apple is waiting for the more advanced M3 chip, based on the 3nm process technology, before updating its all-in-one desktop computer.

Rumors have circulated that Apple is allegedly working on a 27-inch "iMac Pro" to join its current lineup, but Apple's plans remain unclear. The M3 iMac update expected later this year could be a direct follow-up to the 24-inch model currently in the lineup or a larger, more professional iMac. Apple announced an iMac Pro at WWDC in 2017, but it failed to be the success the company was hoping for and was ultimately discontinued in March 2021.

• Apple's Next iMac Pro: Everything We Know

Mac Pro

The most outdated and only remaining Intel-based Mac in Apple's lineup is the Mac Pro. The Mac Pro is the highest-end and most "powerful" Mac available, but with the transition to Apple silicon, the Mac Pro has taken a back seat in performance thanks to chips like the M1 Ultra in the Mac Studio.

Apple said the transition to Apple silicon would take around two years, and Apple missed the two-year mark in the summer and fall of last year. Nevertheless, Apple is reportedly preparing to announce its Apple silicon Mac Pro sometime this year. The updated Mac Pro will reportedly have the same design as the current model announced in 2019, according to Gurman, but will benefit from the performance of the M2 Ultra chip.

MacBook Pro and Mac Mini

The MacBook Pro and Mac mini were just updated, so don't expect updates this year. For 2024, however, Apple will bring the... Click here to read rest of article

Article Link: What's Next for the Mac: M3 iMac, 15-Inch MacBook Air, Mac Pro, and More

 

[asdfjkl;]

It's hard to imagine that Apple won't release updated M2 Studios soon. The only thing holding them back would be sufficient M2 yield.

 

[asdfjkl;]

I'm very interested to see what the heck they do with the Mac Pro. Upgradeability was really its thing and they seem to have boxed themselves out of that architecturally. Rumors that there'll be no Mx "Extreme" are very puzzling.

 

[HobeSoundDarryl]

Rumored 15" Air with M3 seems towards ideal laptop for me... and I've only ever purchased MBpros. It seems some could do their power using on a good desktop at home and let the presumably cheaper Air be the road tool.

I fully expect iMac "Bigger" to be branded "pro" and priced accordingly. Basically take Studio Display screen and MBpro 14" guts (for the Mac portion), merge them together and you have a 27" iMac Pro. My guess at "starting at..." is $3499 but maybe some really limited spec gets that to $2999. Nicely configured is probably north of $4K like the former iMac Pros.

 

[asdfjkl;]

Rumored 15" Air with M3 seems towards ideal laptop for me... and I've only ever purchased MBpros. It seems some could to their power using on a good desktop at home and let the Air be the road tool.

I fully expect iMac "Bigger" to be branded "pro" and priced accordingly. Basically take Studio Display screen and MBpro 14" guts (for the Mac portion), merge them together and you have a 27" iMac Pro. My guess at "starting at..." is $3499 but maybe some really limited spec gets that to $2999. Nicely configured is probably north of $4K like the former iMac Pros.

Sad, but likely true.

 

[HobeSoundDarryl]

It's hard to imagine that Apple won't release updated M2 Studios soon. The only thing holding them back would be sufficient M2 yield.

...or they don't have the ULTRA version quite ready to roll just yet.

 

[k1121j]

Sign me up for the 15 inch MBA.

 

[Spock]

Rumored 15" Air with M3 seems towards ideal laptop for me... and I've only ever purchased MBpros. It seems some could to their power using on a good desktop at home and let the Air be the road tool.

I fully expect iMac "Bigger" to be branded "pro" and priced accordingly. Basically take Studio Display screen and MBpro 14" guts (for the Mac portion), merge them together and you have a 27" iMac Pro. My guess at "starting at..." is $3499 but maybe some really limited spec gets that to $2999. Nicely configured is probably north of $4K like the former iMac Pros.

I don't know, I don't think the iMac Pro is going to make a return. I think the most we will get will be the Pro chip in the current iMac. With the new Mac mini, I think it is clear that Apple wants the group of users that want a bigger, powerful iMac to buy the mini and the Studio Display.

 

[k1121j]

Rumored 15" Air with M3 seems towards ideal laptop for me... and I've only ever purchased MBpros. It seems some could do their power using on a good desktop at home and let the presumably cheaper Air be the road tool.

I fully expect iMac "Bigger" to be branded "pro" and priced accordingly. Basically take Studio Display screen and MBpro 14" guts (for the Mac portion), merge them together and you have a 27" iMac Pro. My guess at "starting at..." is $3499 but maybe some really limited spec gets that to $2999. Nicely configured is probably north of $4K like the former iMac Pros.

Same here all pros. But now I’m going for the Air cause it’s 15” and the pro sizes are either too big or small for me.

 

[HobeSoundDarryl]

I don't know, I don't think the iMac Pro is going to make a return. I think the most we will get will be the Pro chip in the current iMac. With the new Mac mini, I think it is clear that Apple wants the group of users that want a bigger, powerful iMac to buy the mini and the Studio Display.

Certainly could be. When speculating about the future, I tend to try to think like how I think modern Apple Inc. thinks... which seems to- more than ever- have the bean counters in charge. I suspect what made iMac 27" go away when Studio Display clearly looks like it could have easily fit a Mac in there, is the long-established value proposition of iMac 27" starting at $1999 or less did not sufficiently maximize profits Apple now wants.

So they kill it for a while, get the market to accept that the screen alone can sell for that much and then bring it back with a whole Mac inside for "only" $3499 or maybe $2999.

Step 1 (kill it): complete.
Step 2 (establish the monitor portion alone at old iMac 27" pricing): complete.
Step 3 (put a Mac back in there and rationalize the higher "starting at" price based upon Studio Monitor sans Mac pricing): TBD, but plausible.

Perhaps I'm just too cynical about profit maximization (beyond) dominating all decision-making at modern Apple. But there's the logic, Spock.

Incidentally, after well over a decade of making my living on iMac 27"s, I embraced the separates approach myself. The iMac value proposition is great at purchase but dreadful at the end when any one part failing basically kills use of the whole thing. Next time my Mac guts fail, I will continue using the separate monitor with the next Mac. Or vice versa.

But there is clearly a good number of people who want an iMac "bigger." Will they pay a lot more than they remember ("starting at") for it? I suspect we'll see in 2023 or 2024.

 

[Ceecephous]

Macbook air 2023 : 13 inch with MiniLED and M3. 15inch M3+OLED but more $$$$
Macbook air 2024: New laptop finish + OLED display

 

[orbital~debris]

Still love the power port 'hidden Mickey' on the back of the Mac Studio.

 

[JosephAW]

Be nice if they had another eMac for $799 with 17" lcd screen built in.

 

[Tyler O'Bannon]

The iMac 24” needs M2 and M2 Pro.

Larger iMac needs M2 Max and ultra. If it even gets made.

 

[orbital~debris]

Hopefully what's next for iMac is a return to a diversified lineup with multiple sizes.

Would love to replace my iMac (Retina 5K, 27-inch, 2019) with the new design and regain access to those colours, last seen on my iMac DV… Would be extra sweet if the display size increased!

 

[happydude]

I'm instantly in on a new 27" iMac. my current 2017 is getting a bit old...

 

[Bcn]

Same here all pros. But now I’m going for the Air cause it’s 15” and the pro sizes are either too big or small for me.

I totally agree, I had 3 Macbook pro all 15 inches and I find 14 too small and 16 a little too big. I am still going strong with my 2014 Macbook pro and am looking to update this year.

 

[PsykX]

It's hard to imagine that Apple won't release updated M2 Studios soon. The only thing holding them back would be sufficient M2 yield.

Honestly, I think the Studio line or the Mac Pro will die. Why would they co-exist, if the M2 Extreme is not going to exist ?

 

[HVDynamo]

I'm very interested to see what the heck they do with the Mac Pro. Upgradeability was really its thing and they seem to have boxed themselves out of that architecturally. Rumors that there'll be no Mx "Extreme" are very puzzling.

Here’s my guess…
I think they ran into too many scaling issues trying to put two Ultra’s together. It was fairly evident that the performance improvement from Max to Ultra was already pretty lacking due to this, and going even a step further may have proven that the scaling architecture just wasn’t up to the task of going farther than the Ultra. It seems they may have resolved this somewhat in the M2 Max, but maybe it still wasn’t enough to make an Extreme worth it.

Second, Even with their unified memory, they could potentially use it more as an extra cache layer, and allow the user to have upgradable additional RAM that’s just a bit slower. That could still allow very high amount of RAM upgradability, while also still providing some benefit from the speed of the Unified RAM. This also has some trade-off’s though, so you may be right that they haven’t really built for this.

 

[Blue Nova]

I don't know, I don't think the iMac Pro is going to make a return. I think the most we will get will be the Pro chip in the current iMac. With the new Mac mini, I think it is clear that Apple wants the group of users that want a bigger, powerful iMac to buy the mini and the Studio Display.

Yes, I agree, it looks like it, no more need for a big tower, chips are getting smaller, Apple found out, an iMac was a great deal, so they are making consumer buy a Mac mini, Mac Studio and buy an Apple Studio Display.
I have used iMacs since they came out, just last month my only option was to get the Mac Studio and Apple display. I didn’t see an iMac in the current line up. The 24” is not for me though.

 

[cwt2nospam]

Switching from M1 to M2 is a modest update???

 

[HVDynamo]

I totally agree, I had 3 Macbook pro all 15 inches and I find 14 too small and 16 a little too big. I am still going strong with my 2014 Macbook pro and am looking to update this year.

Yeah, I just ordered a new 16” macbook Pro to replace my mid 2012 15”, but I spent a LOT of time waffling between the 14” and 16”. I even went to the Apple Store and played with both and still found it difficult to decide. I wish they had just kept the 15” screen size and shrunk the chassis while thinning out the bezels instead of making a 16” too. That would have been a no brainer pick. I ended up going with the 16” as it’s basically the same size as what I’ve had all these years so I’m used to it.

 

[SW3029]

Show me that 15.5-inch MacBook Air, Apple. My wallet is ready...

 

[HobeSoundDarryl]

Honestly, I think the Studio line or the Mac Pro will die. Why would they co-exist, if the M2 Extreme is not going to exist ?

Mac Pro pricing with equivalent Mac guts will likely be 2X or 3X more than Studio. That's why they can easily co-exist.

Conceptually, Mac Pro will still have flexibility, where Mac Studio is thoroughly locked down. If so, that's why they can easily co-exist. Flexibility to add hardware in slots is a BIG deal to some. It's not just more storage, more RAM and graphics card. There are lots of specialized cards used in Mac Pros that motivate the choice of Mac Pro over other Mac options.

Apple being Apple will probably jack the power usage for Silicon in the Pro to jack up the specs. Thus, it may look less PPW than all other Macs but will again bring tangible power to Mac vs. PC debates. It IS and has always been billed as "our most powerful Mac." Maybe Apple themselves will make that literal? As a no-battery, big hulk desktop, it has almost no need for PPW concerns. So maybe Apple can take a step towards Intel/AMD with a design that uses more power than the rest of the lineup that can't be matched in the Fat Mini design?

Mac Pro might be able to use multiple Ultras together, like the old PPCs ability to spread tasks across several networked Macs (I forgot what that was called). Thus, instead of a single Extreme, perhaps there's TWO ultras able to collaborate inside with configuration options for more. They are not directly connected but tasks can be spread over them to get done faster than doing all such tasks on only one ultra. And that might be Apples very profitable way to offer higher RAM configurations and higher SSD options too.

All TBD. But if there's nothing to differentiate it from Studio, Apple could have already buried it and proclaimed Studio the new Mac Pro. So they must have SOMETHING up their sleeves.

 

[TheYayAreaLiving 🎗️]

I can’t wait for the 15” MacBook Air.