Evidence that Apple is testing the M2 Apple Silicon chip, expected to debut first in the new MacBook Air and updated 13-inch MacBook Pro, was spotted by a developer ahead of Tuesday’s Peek performance Apple event.
As Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman reports in his latest Power On newsletter, a developer source told him that Apple has been testing the latest macOS beta on multiple Macs in recent weeks A chip with an 8-core CPU and a 10-core GPU.
Apple is testing the new chip on machines running macOS 12.3 (should be released in the next week or two and run on new Macs) and future macOS 12.4 and macOS 13, the latter of which will be shown off at WWDC 2022 in June.
A similar new model discovery process played out ahead of Apple’s October Mac-centric launch event, where the chip names for the M1 Pro and M1 Max were spotted in app logs. Apple’s M2 Apple chip will be the first major upgrade since Apple’s custom chip was introduced in Macs. Apple unveiled the M1 chip in November 2020 and has since launched more powerful iterations of the chip, including the M1 Pro and M1 Max.
The M2 chip is thought to be used first in the upgraded 13-inch MacBook Pro and the completely redesigned MacBook Air. Gurman said today that the new Mac mini, which is expected to feature the M1 Pro and M1 Max chips, is “ready to go” and could be launched next week. The new 13-inch MacBook Pro and new iMac could launch “as soon as the first half of this year,” Gurman added.
Gurman reiterated his expectations for Apple’s “Peek performance” event on Tuesday. As widely reported in previous rumors and leaks, the company is expected to unveil a new iPhone SE with the same 4.7-inch design as the previous model, but with the addition of 5G connectivity support and a new chip.
The new iPad Air is also rumored to debut at the launch event with an A15 chip, CenterStage camera focus tracking and 5G connectivity. In addition to new iPhones, iPads and at least one new Mac with Apple chips, Gurman said a fourth “wildcard” could potentially be announced, but we don’t know what it will be.
Apple’s event kicks off on Tuesday, March 8 at 10 a.m. PT. In addition to streaming on YouTube, followers will be able to watch the event via the event webpage and the Apple TV app.