One of the big surprises of the 2022 holiday season was the absence of new Macs from Apple. Until November, we expected the new 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro in stores last year, featuring a more powerful version of the M2 chip. That never happened, and reports said Apple postponed the launch to 2023. An insider now claims that Apple will unveil at least three Macs in March, including the MacBook Pro upgrades we expected last year.
The third Mac might be a Mac mini refresh featuring an M2 chip. But the leaker, LeaksApplePro, also mentioned a 15-inch MacBook Air and an M2-powered Mac Pro in the report.
Since rumors started changing tune, we speculated last year that the MacBook Pro release delay might be related to Apple’s plans for other hardware. Specifically, we wondered whether Apple wanted to time the MacBook Pro launch so that it could unveil its new mixed reality headset at the same event. After all, all these devices would all feature variants of the M2 chip.
Then, in late December, we figured out that the real reason Apple delayed the MacBook Pro refresh concerned the actual chips. The M2 Max and M2 Pro wouldn’t have been ready in time, as TSMC didn’t start mass production until late last month.
But LeaksApplePro said in a report on Howtoisolve that the real reason Apple did not launch new MacBook Pro models in late 2022 is that the company never planned to do it.
It all has to do with marketing, according to the report. Apple wants to launch the new MacBook Pros alongside other Macs that were not ready. This would warrant a proper launch event instead of just a press release.
The leaker mentions three Macs that wouldn’t have been ready in November. The new Mac mini, the 15-inch MacBook Air, and the Mac Pro refresh. All these devices appeared in previous reports, so this is no surprise. And LeaksApplePro doesn’t provide details about the two most exciting Macs in the list. That’s the 15-inch Air and the redesigned Mac Pro.
The Mac mini should not see any changes except for the chip upgrade to an M2.
Apple might hold a Mac-centric press event in March, if this information is accurate. The 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro would be unveiled at the show, alongside at least one other new Mac. It’ll be interesting to see whether Apple can have the 15-inch Air and the new Mac Pro done in time for a March reveal.
Separately, I’ll mention the mixed reality headset again. It’ll be a device as powerful as the M2 MacBook Air and Pro if reports are accurate. A Mac-centric event could be the perfect place to surprise the audience with a “one more thing” AR/VR headset teaser.
Then again, other leakers say the headset development is running behind schedule, and the device might be unveiled later than expected. Also, Apple might want to give it a dedicated event since it’s a brand new product. Or, it might wait until WWDC 2023 to unveil it so that developers are in attendance. After all, Apple will need developers to have plenty of great apps ready by the time the mixed reality headset hits store shelves.
