New MacBook Pro 14-inch and 16-inch models with upgraded M2 Pro and M2 Max chips are expected to be on the horizon, and they are now tipped to be announced at Apple's rumored October event thanks to a new report.
According to DigiTimes, Apple suppliers are "gearing up for shipments" for the new MacBook Pro models. Industry insiders speaking to the news outlet state that shipments for the existing 16-inch and 14-inch MacBook Pro are slowing down, leaving more room for the new rumored models with upgraded M2 chips to ship — just in time for the expected October event.
This is in line with a previous rumor that the MacBook Pro with M2 Pro and M2 Max was already in the works earlier this year, but contradicts Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo's claim that production will begin towards the end of 2022 with a launch window early next year.
"Shipments of new MacBooks are expected to be offset by slowing shipments of older models, which are expected to be around the same as in 2021 or see slight growth," the DigiTimes report states.
The report also talks about the shipments slowing for the AirPods Pro, making space for the launch of the AirPods Pro 2 on September 23.
Apple's last M1 Pro- and M1 Max-equipped MacBook Pro models released in October last year, and Apple generally has a consistent track record when it comes to product releases (expect for the recent AirPods Pro 2, which were expected to come in October like previous AirPods launches). Of course, it's always a good idea to take this in with a pinch of salt, as we won't know until Apple finally reveals the new MacBook Pro models.
Revamped with M2 Pro and M2 Max
The next-gen models of the 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models are expected to get a spec bump thanks to the M2 Pro and M2 Max processors — even more powerful versions of the M2 chip found in the recent MacBook Air M2 and 13-inch MacBook Pro.
Bloomberg's Mark Gurman shared some details about what these chips will entail, and the focus seems to be on graphics performance. Codenamed J414, the next pro-tier M2 chips are set to sport up to 12 CPU cores and 38 graphics cores — an impressive increase from the 10 CPU cores and 32 graphics cores in the current MacBook Pros.
As for RAM, the chips seem to be supporting up to 64GB of memory, and with no rumors or leaks around the onboard storage, it’s fair to assume that they will remain the same (from 512GB to 8TB SSDs).
In terms of design, don't expect too many changes, as Apple already revamped last year's 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro. We would be shocked to see any design changes.
