Originally slated to arrive this fall, Apple has wrapped up its product announcements for 2022, which means no new MacBook Pros until next year.
Despite announcing new Macs earlier this year, Apple was expected to launch more models this fall, but that will no longer happen. Apple has launched new models for almost all of its product lineup in 2022, save for a few devices. Among those that didn’t get new iterations is the HomePod line. However, it has been reported that a new HomePod speaker is in development.
The upcoming smart speaker will be a full-sized model like the now-discontinued first-generation HomePod with similar audio performance. It will be powered by the Apple S8, the same chipset inside the Apple Watch Series 8 and Watch SE 2. It is also reported to likely have an ultra-wideband chip like the HomePod Mini. Besides the HomePod, Apple is also expected to launch its first augmented reality/virtual reality headset in 2023.
The new MacBooks were reportedly supposed to launch this fall, but new information says they have now been postponed to early 2023. According to the latest edition of Mark Gurman’s newsletter, Apple’s CEO said at the company’s quarterly earnings that the product line is “set” for this holiday season which means no new products are planned for release. In addition, the company’s chief financial officer, Luca Maestri, also disclosed that the company would see a drop in revenue growth for the holiday quarter compared to the same period in 2021. This is said to be partly because no new MacBooks will be available this quarter.
A New Mac Mini Is Coming Too
The expected Macs include new 14-inch and 16-inch MacBooks that new Apple M2 chips will power. The 2021 models launched with Apple M1 Pro and M1 Max chipsets, so these new models will come with the yet-to-be-announced M2 Pro and M2 Max chipsets. Testing and development of the new laptops are reportedly in full swing. However, save for the latest chipsets, the new MacBook Pro models will not have a different design from the current models.
In addition to the new MacBooks, Apple is also developing a new Mac Mini that will feature the new M2 chip. Apple is reportedly testing the device with the same M2 chip as the 13-inch MacBook Air, as well as another version with the M2 Pro chipset. In addition, the first Mac Pro with an Apple Silicon chip is also in development, becoming the last of the Macs to switch to an Apple chipset.
When it launches, Mark Gurman says it is expected to be available in 24 and 48 CPU core options, 76 and 152 GPU core options and up to 256GB of memory. The source also mentions that Apple intends to release the new Macs to correspond with the release of macOS Ventura 13.3. The launch event for the new Macs is expected to happen in the first quarter of 2023, with the date likely to be in March, which is when Apple usually holds its first launch event of the year.
Source: Mark Gurman/Bloomberg
