While Apple focuses on the launch of the iPhone 15 family, others are looking ahead to October and the launch of the next-generation Apple Silicon for the Mac platform… except the M3 launch may not include the longed-for MacBook Air and MacBook Pro laptops.
Writing on X, the social network formerly known as Twitter, noted analyst Ming-Chi Kuo writes: “it seems that Apple will not launch new MacBook models (equipped with M3 series processors) before the end of this year.”
This will come as a shock to many.
Apple’s M3 platform is widely expected to be the first Mac chipset built using 3nm technology instead of the current 5nm. This should offer improved battery life and reduced operating temperatures. The next generation of Apple Silicon is currently being tested and spotted in third-party developer logs and online benchmarking tools, alongside details on the M3 laptops working through the sloppy chain.
Those laptops, the popular 13-inch MacBook Air and the kooky consumer-focused 13-inch MacBook Pro, were expected to debut the M3 chipset at a launch event in mid- to late-October, potentially alongside a similarly upgraded iMac.
It’s worth noting that Kuo only talks about the MacBook, rather than the desk-bound iMac, which leads to an interesting possibility. In previous launches, Apple Silicon has debuted on the MacBook Air and MacBook Pro. Both of these are popular machines which will be in high demand when they go on sale.
If Apple’s manufacturing partner TSMC is struggling to ship significant numbers of M3 silicon, it could be that the M3 launch goes ahead in October, but rather than pack the new chips into the popular laptops, Tim Cook and his team decide to go for the still technically impressive but less popular iMac.
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