2022 could mark the final leg in the break up between Apple and Intel
Apple’s debut of its in-house M1 chip in November 2020 was the first milestone in the company’s transition away from its reliance on Intel chips. The tech giant had planned a two-year period to pave the road for the company to complete its transition. Now, a new report claims WWDC 2022 will see the completion of this transition period.
According to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, Apple is developing a brand new Mac Pro, a new Mac mini, and an iMac Pro with a large screen. All three new devices are said to be backed by Apple silicon. These will prove to be the defacto finish line in the company’s plan. As explained in Gurman’s latest ‘Power On’ newsletter, the three devices could be unveiled during the first half of 2022.
“The company has a bevy of new pro Macs in the works based on the M1 Pro and M1 Max chips that are already inside the MacBook Pro. That includes a smaller Mac Pro with up to 40 CPU cores and 128 graphics cores, a new Mac mini and a large-screened iMac Pro. I’d expect Apple to finish its transition to its own silicon from Intel chips as early as June at WWDC 2022,” Gurman wrote.
He also discusses the next-generation chip from Apple. Tentatively dubbed the ‘M2’ chip, it’s said that while expected in 2022, the chip won’t offer any major performance improvements but will feature “the same overall CPU core count.” Apple’s M1 offers four high-performance cores and four energy-efficient cores. That said, Gurman believes the M2 will feature a modestly improved GPU. The differences between the M1 and M2 are said to be comparable to the jump between Apple’s annual iPhone upgrades.
The report also backs up previous claims that Apple is working on a significant refresh to its MacBook Air. It’s believed that the new device will sport the M2 chip over the M1 Pro and M1 Max silicon. It’s also expected that the new MacBook Air will offer the “biggest redesign in the product’s history.”
Apple’s breakup with Intel has long been openly discussed by the iPhone maker. Rather than rely on Intel to make meaningful innovations, the company has taken ownership of its devices’ processors.
Image credit: Apple
Via: 9To5Mac