Apple plans to refresh the MacBook Pro with M4 chips starting in late 2024, and this guide rounds up everything we know about Apple’s M4 MacBook Pro plans.
M4 Update
Apple built the M3 chip on a new 3-nanometer process, and we don’t expect a node change for the M4. It will also be a 3-nanometer chip, but Apple supplier TSMC could introduce updates that make it more efficient and faster.
New artificial intelligence capabilities are rumored for upcoming Apple products, and so the M4 will focus on AI. Apple wants to improve the performance of the AI feature, and rumors suggest that the M4 (and the A18 chips for iPhone) will have an improved Neural Engine with “significantly” more cores.
The M3 chips all have a 16-core Neural Engine, and Apple hasn’t increased the number of Neural Engine cores in several years.
Entry-level 14-inch MacBook Pro
With the launch of the M3 chip last year, Apple discontinued the 13-inch MacBook Pro. It was replaced by the 14-inch MacBook Pro, which Apple now offers with three different chip options.
The entry-level 14-inch MacBook Pro features an M3 chip and a starting price of $1,599, and this is the model that will receive the standard M4 chip. The current M3 chip has an 8-core CPU and up to 10-core GPU, and the M4 could be similar.
Premium 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models
For customers who want a more “pro” machine, the high-end 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models are expected to be refreshed with the M4 Pro and M4 Max chips, which are more powerful versions of the faster M4 chip.
The current M3 Pro has up to 12-core CPU and up to 18-core GPU, while the M3 Max has up to 16-core CPU and up to 40-core GPU . CPU and GPU improvements for the M4 Pro and M4 Max are not yet known.
Design change?
There are no rumors of a design change for the MacBook Pro at the moment, and we’re not exactly expecting one. Apple last updated the MacBook Pro design in 2021 with the transition to Apple silicon. In recent history, Apple redesigned the MacBook in 2012, 2016 and 2021, so following this pattern we will see the next design change in 2025 or 2026.
This year’s M series update will likely be limited to the MacBook Pro’s internals.
Release date
According to BloombergAccording to Mark Gurman, the entry-level 14-inch MacBook Pro could receive an M4 chip in late 2024, while the update schedule for the 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro is estimated between late 2024 and early 2025.
We could see the M4, M4 Pro, and M4 Max variants released at the same time, like the M3 line of chips, or Apple could space them out over several months.
The MacBook Pro M3 models were released in October 2023, so a refresh around October 2024 would occur after a year.
News Source : www.macrumors.com
Gn tech
