According to an overnight report from Digitimes, Apple suppliers are planning for third-quarter shipments of components for the new 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models. The new laptops will feature mini-LED displays for the first time, after Apple debuted the technology in the iPad Pro last month.
The third-quarter release date is roughly inline with expectations. Apple leaker Jon Prosser has said that the new MacBook Pro will be announced at WWDC next week.
The new MacBook Pro lineup is highly anticipated. Not only will these machines be the first high-end Mac models with Apple silicon ARM chips inside, they will also feature a new external chassis design.
The upcoming laptops are believed to sport a boxier look with flat sides similar to the design aesthetics of the M1 iMac and 2018 iPad Pro.
mini-LED displays enable higher contrast and brightness than standard LED-backlit LCD panels, approaching OLED-quality when watching HDR content like TV shows and movies. However, the display technology inherently exhibits a backlight bloom effect in certain conditions, which some users find distracting.
These machines are believed to feature higher performance Apple silicon than the current generation M1 chip. Colloquially referred to as ‘M1X’, Bloomberg reported the MacBook Pro chip would feature 8 high-performance CPU cores, up to 32 GPU cores, and support up to 64 GB RAM.
Users will also see the return of I/O with the 2021 MacBook Pro, including dedicated ports for HDMI and an SD card reader. The MagSafe power connector is also expected to make a comeback.
