Apple has plans to move beyond the eight-core M1 MacBook Air, 13-inch MacBook Pro and Mac mini, according to a new report from Bloomberg.
The tech giant is reportedly testing chips for higher-end desktops, including a “half-sized” Mac Pro that could feature as many as 32 high-performance cores.
These more powerful processors could also make their way to the iMac and the 16-inch MacBook Pro, though Bloomberg says this version of the chip will feature 16-inch high-performance cores and four high-efficiency cores. It’s also reportedly possible that Apple could opt for eight or 12 cores for these devices based on its chip production capabilities.
On the GPU side of things, Apple is also reportedly testing 16-core and 32-core GPUs for the iMac and higher-end MacBook Pro. On the other hand, the Mac Pro would get between a 64-core and a 128-core GPU. These higher-end GPUs won’t arrive until 2021 or 2022, according to Bloomberg.
It will be interesting to see how Apple’s GPU hardware compares to architecture featured in high-end PCs. While the tech giant currently has an advantage in the laptop space with its new M1 chip, it’s unclear if it will make the same gains in the desktop space.
Several months ago, Apple revealed plans to transition its entire lineup to its own ARM-based processors over the next two years. The first M1-powered Mac devices, including the MacBook Air, 13-inch MacBook Pro and Mac mini, launched last month.
While there are some issues related to the M1 Macs’ ability to emulate Intel-based apps, Rosetta 2, Apple’s emulation software, is generally excellent. The new chips also benchmark well above what current Intel and AMD laptop processors are capable of.
Source: Bloomberg
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