Apple is not expected to make any dramatic changes to the laptops’ outer design or features
(Picture: Apple)Apple may be about to launch new MacBook Pro laptops. The earliest estimates suggest they could appear later today, according to serial leaker Jon Prosser.
Apple’s biggest releases tend to be announced two weeks before they take place. However, more minor line-up changes like this one can be marked simply by a change in the Apple Store’s inventory.
What should you expect? MacBook Pro 14-inch and 16-inch versions with Apple M2 series processors.
These sizes of MacBook Pro currently use M1 Pro and M1 Max chipsets, which sound — and are — older than the M2 processors you’ll find in Apple’s more affordable laptops.
MacBook Pro specs and features
M2 Max and M2 Pro MacBook Pro models will likely make these new laptops at least twice as powerful as Apple’s latest MacBook Air. And you can expect around a 20 per cent boost over the last Pro models, based on generational improvements we’ve already seen in other MacBooks.
Apple is not expected to make any dramatic changes to the laptops’ outer design or features. However, this news should certainly put a stop to your planned visits to the Apple Store.
But could Apple also have something more dramatic up its sleeve? In June 2022, Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman suggested the company planned to release a 15-inch version of the MacBook Air as early as “spring” 2023.
As it’s still winter, it might be a bit soon for the next Air. And you’d think a brand-new line would get more attention than the MacBooks set to arrive imminently are likely to receive.
Apple is also reportedly considering touchscreen MacBooks, and ones with dazzling organic light-emitting diode (OLED) screens. However, again, these are not ready for release just yet — with such larger changes not expected until 2024 or 2025.
There is one new MacBook feature we do know about, though.
A listing for the MacBook Pro with M2 chipset showed up in a Canadian regulatory filing recently, suggesting the new laptops will have Wi-Fi 6e. This means they will be able to use 6GHz Wi-Fi, as well as the 5GHz and 2.4GHz Wi-Fi that are probably coursing through your home right now.
This isn’t too exciting for most of us, as there’s a good chance your home Wi-Fi router does not even support 6GHz. Still, it’s handy future-proofing that will offer super-high speeds when you are close to your router.
Apple may also use these new MacBook Pro 14 and 16 laptops as an excuse to raise prices, at least a little. The current line-up already starts at £1,899, but the 13-inch MacBook Pro is already available for those who can’t stomach the cost of the company’s priciest computers. We’ll keep an eye out on the Apple Store for these new models.
