Monday, 6 March 2023

Apple to Launch New iMac With M3 SoC This Year

(Credit: PCMag)
Apple’s elves are reportedly working on a slew of new Macs for 2023. The company is churning out computers with its “stopgap” M2 silicon. That word is used because the M1 and M2 are manufactured on TSMC’s 5nm process. The M3, however, will likely be fittingly named as it will be a 3nm product. One of the first Macs to feature the M3 will reportedly be an all-new iMac. It’ll still be 24 inches and come in a bevy of colors like the current model, but it will be redesigned internally. Apple’s entry-level Mac hasn’t been updated since it was announced in 2021.

It was reported that Apple had purchased all of TSMC’s first run on 3nm wafers. It sounds like it is doing so to update almost all of its Macs in 2023. In addition to a new iMac, it’s reportedly working on new MacBook Air systems. According to Bloomberg, it’s building an all-new 15-inch model to launch this year. It’s also planning on updating its existing 13-inch MacBook Air as well. That model was bumped up to an M2 SoC in June of 2022. For now, it all depends on timing, as any machine it launches with an M2 will be a dinosaur when M3 arrives. However, Apple might put an M2 in the 15-inch Air, which it could launch at WWDC in June.

The Mac Pro is overdue for an upgrade, supposedly coming soon. (Credit: Apple)

Apple’s move from the 5nm M2 to the 3nm M3 is expected to wield significant improvements in performance and efficiency. As such, it’s expected to transition the 13-inch Air to the M3, as it’s been almost a year since it was updated. Apple is reportedly trying to get its M-class silicon updated in an annual cadence as it does with its A-class chips in the iPhone. Previously they’ve been updated at random intervals, with other products like the iMac going years without an update.

The Mac Pro is also expected to receive Apple silicon this year finally. It is now the last PC standing, as it’s still offered with an Intel CPU. Recently Apple VP Bob Borchers confirmed to Indian media that model would be updated soon. “We’ve been very clear from the beginning that our goal is to take our entire product line to Apple Silicon. And that’s something we intend to do,” he said. He didn’t mention the Mac Pro, but it’s there if you read between the lines.

Bloomberg’s sources report the M2 Ultra in the Mac Pro will be a modest upgrade over the current M1 Ultra. It will reportedly offer 24 CPU cores (four more than present) and up to 76 GPU cores, up from 60 in the current maxed-out chip. It’ll also support up to 192GB of memory, a boost from 128GB on the M1 version.

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