Although Apple’s latest M1 MacBook Pro is less than six months old, the company is apparently working on the next generation of the M2 chip-equipped laptop, according to a new report.
Tom’s Guide quotes a new report from DigiTimes which looks specifically at Apple’s production reserve for its new internal chips that will “most likely” power the next generation of Macs. It is speculated that this will be the M2 chip.
This new chip will be manufactured by the Taiwanese company TSMC and based on a 4 nanometer manufacturing process node. The current M1 chip is built on 5-nanometer process technology and contains 16 billion transistors, which is the maximum that Apple has ever put on a chip. Packing more transistors on a slice of silicon would mean adding more power, so moving from the 5 nanometer process to a 4 nanometer process should result in a noticeable increase in performance. According to DigiTimes, the production of the 4 nanometer process chip is advanced, since it was previously defined for a period of 2022.
Improving the performance of the M1 would be great, especially since the M1 on the current MacBook Pro and MacBook Air has absolutely burst the door to expectations and competition. Linus Tech Tips and PetaPixel’s Internal testing itself has shown that both the M1 MacBook Air and the MacBook Pro completely destroy the competition, taking into account Apple’s previous devices and current Windows laptops. Even the Mac Mini, which shouldn’t be a powerful device, performed extremely well.
Unfortunately, the M2 is unlikely to be on the next redesigned iMacs that are expected this spring. Instead, the new iMacs are expected to use a desktop-focused version of the M1 chip that is expected to outperform both the M1 MacBooks and the Mac Mini. In February, a leak suggested that the new iMacs will not only feature a new design, but will also come in five colors.
These new iMacs are due to be announced at an event in April (which at the time of publication was still just a rumor), but don’t expect to see the M2 chip or new Macbooks there. You’ll probably have to wait until Apple’s autumn event – the same period that it announced the M1 chip in 2020 – to see it.