If you’ve been holding off buying an M1 Mac in anticipation of more powerful Apple music production machines coming along, then it looks like your patience might be about to pay off.
The word on the digital street is that new 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pros could be arriving in a matter of months, with tipsters pointing to a launch window somewhere between September and November.
Others have suggested that the launches could coincide with the release of macOS Monterey, the forthcoming version of Apple’s new desktop operating system, which would certainly make sense.
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The new MacBook Pros look set to be powered by the M1X chip, which will offer more processing and GPU cores than the M1. It also seems likely that this will be able to accommodate more RAM than the M1, which tops out at 16GB.
On the design side, there are rumours that the new MacBook Pros will do away with the Touch Bar, which has had a mixed reception, and have a flat-edge form factor rather than the slightly rounded one that we’re used to.
We might also be treated to Mini-LED displays, which could enable improved brightness, contrast and colour in comparison to the current LCD screens, and the MagSafe charger is expected to make a return. SD card readers and HDMI ports could be back on the agenda, too.
Assuming the new MacBook Pros do arrive on schedule, it’s expected that a higher-end Mac mini, a larger and more powerful iMac, a new Mac Pro and possibly a redesigned MacBook Air will follow.
