MacBook Pro battery life is set to be boosted by more efficient backlighting on the upcoming models, according to a new supply-chain report.
It suggests that Apple will be using brighter miniLEDs for the backlight, but won’t be increasing the maximum brightness level of the displays …
MacBook Pro battery life boost expected
Current MacBook Pro models use IPS LCD screens with miniLED backlighting – that is, a large number of very small white LEDs. Digitimes suggests that as of the next update to the MacBook Pro, Apple will use brighter miniLEDs.
Apple is expected to ship new models of 14- and 16-inch MacBook Pro devices in the fourth quarter of 2023 with miniLED backlighting that can increase the display brightness by 10% compared to the first-generation specifications, the sources said.
While Apple could utilise this extra power to boost the maximum display brightness, the company is instead reported to be dialling down the power to retain the same level of brightness as today’s models. That would reduce the power consumption of the backlight, and therefore increase battery life.
The brightness enhancement is not meant to improve picture quality, but rather to save power and improve battery life, the sources said, adding that the new devices will start shipping in the fourth quarter of 2023.
When will the next MacBook Pro models launch?
The site suggests that the new models will “start shipping” in the final quarter of the year, but this may be a reference to building up stock ahead of a 2024 launch. In any case, reliable sources suggest that customers won’t be able to get their hands on the new machines until next year.
Bloomberg reported that Apple began testing an M3 Max chip believed to be destined for a new MacBook Pro model back in the summer.
The M3 Max chip powering the high-end version of the new MacBook Pro will have 12 high-performance cores to handle highly demanding tasks and four efficiency cores to save battery when the user is running less intensive apps. Compared to the M2 Max, that’s four more CPU cores and two more GPU cores.
But the same source said that the new models won’t be available until 2024. This was echoed the following month by Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo.
Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has bad news for Apple fans hoping to see a lineup of M3-powered Macs this year. According to Kuo, Apple is no longer planning to release any new MacBook models equipped with M3 series chips “before the end of this year.”
The M3 chip will be the first ever 3nm processor to make it into a Mac. Even for TSMC, making 3nm chips is challenging, and the company said back in April that it couldn’t keep up with customer demand for them. Apple is reported to be the only customer at present.
OLED MacBooks still expected in 2026 or 2027
If you’re holding out for an OLED MacBook, you may need to be patient. While there had initially been reports that the first one might be out by 2024 or 2025, the most recent reports point to 2026 or 2027 “at the earliest.”
This week’s report explains that the MacBook Pro was originally slated to move to OLED by sometime in 2026. Recently, however, Apple made the decision to push this change to 2027 at the earliest.
One of the issues said to be holding back the move is the problem of burn-in. While this affects smaller screens too, Apple is said to be concerned that Macs spend more of their time displaying static content – through things like owners opting for fixed window positions for different apps.
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