Apple is planning a major overhaul of its Mac lineup with the introduction of the M4 family of chips. According to a new report from Bloomberg, Apple plans to create “a new family of proprietary processors designed to emphasize artificial intelligence.”
The first M4 Macs are coming this year
The report says Apple is “closer to production” of the first M4 chips. “The new chip will come in at least three major flavors, and Apple plans to update every Mac model with it,” writes Mark Gurman.
The M4 transition will begin later this year and will include a new iMac, lower-end 14-inch MacBook Pro, higher-end 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models, and a refreshed Mac mini.
Apple plans to release updated computers starting late this year and continuing through early next year. There will be new iMacs, a low-end 14-inch MacBook Pro, high-end 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pros, and a Mac mini, all with M4 chips. But the company's plans may change.
Apple plans to release even more M4 Mac computers during 2025. This includes updates to the 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Air in the spring, Mac Studio around mid-year, and Mac Pro later in 2025.
The M4 family will include an entry-level variant as well as at least two higher-spec versions. With the M4 chips, Apple reportedly plans to “emphasize the processing capabilities of AI components and how they will integrate with the next version of macOS.”
The entry-level M4 chip, codenamed Donan, will be used in the entry-level MacBook Pro level, as well as the entry-level MacBook Air and Mac mini. The first higher-end chip, codenamed Brava, will appear in the Mac Studio, higher-spec MacBook Pro models, and higher-end Mac mini.
The report also contains some good news for Mac Pro fans:
Apple's top-end desktop computer, the Mac Pro, will receive a new Hidra chip. The Mac Pro remains the best-selling model in the company's line of computers, but it has its fair share of fans. After some customers complained about the performance of Apple's own chips, the company plans to improve the machine next year.
For high-end desktop Mac configurations, Apple is considering supporting up to half a terabyte of RAM. This is more than the current maximum of 192GB.
M3 Mac Studio?
Currently, Apple still has not released an M3-based version of the Mac Studio or Mac Pro. Today's Gurman report at least leaves the door open to the possibility of an M3 Mac Studio with a “still unreleased M3-era chip.”
As a refresher, Mac Studio is available in M2 Max and M2 Ultra configurations. While the M3 Max is currently available on the MacBook Pro, Apple has yet to introduce an M3 equivalent to the M2 Ultra.
