macbook pro Apple Reportedly 'Just Started Formal Development' of M4 MacBook Pro

[MacRumors]

Bloomberg's Mark Gurman today held a Q&A session focused on the Apple Car, in which he revealed that the vehicle's chip would have been equivalent to four M2 Ultra chips combined. He also said the vehicle had an underlying "safetyOS" system that was one part of the overall operating system, but he did not elaborate.


Gurman also briefly touched on a few other topics, including that Apple apparently "just started formal development" of a new MacBook Pro with an M4 chip. He did not provide any additional details about the chip, which has yet to be announced by Apple.

Apple announced the M1 chip for Macs in November 2020, followed by the M2 chip in June 2022 and the M3 chip towards the end of October 2023, so there has been around a year-and-a-half gap between each of the chips being introduced. If that pattern continues, the M4 chip would be released in the first half of 2025. However, a late 2024 release is also possible if the interval shrinks to one year.

Apple last updated the MacBook Pro lineup in October with M3, M3 Pro, and M3 Max chips. As part of that refresh, Apple discontinued the 13-inch MacBook Pro and replaced it with a new base model 14-inch MacBook Pro with the M3 chip. Apple has also updated the iMac and MacBook Air with the M3 chip, leaving the Mac mini, Mac Studio, and Mac Pro as the only current-generation Macs still equipped with the M2 family of chips.

	Current Chip	Last Updated	Next Chip	ETA
13" MacBook Air	M3	March 2024	M4	2025
15" MacBook Air	M3	March 2024	M4	2025
14" MacBook Pro	M3/M3 Pro/M3 Max	October 2023	M4/M4 Pro/M4 Max	Late 2024/2025
16" MacBook Pro	M3 Pro/M3 Max	October 2023	M4 Pro/M4 Max	Late 2024/2025
iMac	M3	October 2023	M4	2025
Mac Studio	M2 Max/M2 Ultra	June 2023	M3 Max/M3 Ultra	2024
Mac Pro	M2 Ultra	June 2023	M3 Ultra	2024
Mac mini	M2/M2 Pro	January 2023	M3/M3 Pro	2024

Apple's chipmaking partner TSMC is expected to begin volume production of chips based on its 2nm process in the second half of 2025, so the M4 chip will likely remain 3nm like the M3 chip. However, the M4 chip will likely be manufactured with an enhanced version of TSMC's 3nm process for improved performance and power efficiency.

Last month, the Taiwanese publication Economic Daily News reported that the M4 chip will feature an upgraded Neural Engine with "significantly" more cores for artificial intelligence tasks, but no other specific details are known about the chip at this time.

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Tags: Mark Gurman, M4 Macs

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[smits]

For consumers eagerly anticipating Apple's next iteration of the MacBook Pro, this news likely sparks excitement and speculation. Thoughts might revolve around anticipated features, potential improvements in performance, and design enhancements. Some might ponder the timing of release, considering when to upgrade or invest in Apple's latest offering. Others may scrutinize rumors, seeking clues about the M4 chip's capabilities and how it might elevate their computing experience. Overall, this announcement triggers a flurry of anticipation and curiosity among Apple enthusiasts, fueling discussions and debates as they eagerly await further updates and unveilings.
 

Edited April 2 by smits