Apple MacBook Pro with M2 Pro and Max chips now official

Apple has officially brought its M2 Pro and M2 Max chips to its new 14- and 16-inch MacBook Pro. You can expect 40 percent faster performance and better battery life. Apple will start shipping these new laptops next week. 

The M2 Pro is the new entry-level processor, with either 10- or 12-core CPUs. You can expect up to a 20 percent performance boost over the 10-core M1 Pro. Its GPU goes up from 16 to 19 cores, promising improved processing for content creation apps like Photoshop.

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Don't expect new Mac releases for the remainder of 2022

Apple might be done releasing new Macs this year. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reported in his weekly newsletter that Apple is done releasing new Macs for the year. So rumoured updates for the MacBook Pro, Mac mini, and Mac Pro are expected in the first quarter of 2023. 

"I'm told that Apple is aiming to introduce the upgraded models—including M2-based versions of the 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pros—in the first quarter of calendar 2023," Gurman wrote. In Apple's latest earnings call, Apple CEO Tim Cook said its "product lineup is set" ahead of the holidays, suggesting there will no longer be new product launches for the rest of the year.

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Apple tipped to release M2-powered MacBook Pros as soon as the fall

Source: Apple

We might soon see the M2 Pro and Max processors on MacBook Pros. At least, that's what Bloomberg's Mark Gurman claims to be happening. In his weekly Power On newsletter, he said that we might see refreshed 14- and 16-inch MacBook Pro laptops as soon as this fall. The overall design might not get revamped. Instead, the focus is on bringing the second iteration of its in-house processors to the more pro-centric line of MacBooks. These chips are expected to be faster and more oriented toward heavy-duty workflows.

If the report is accurate, it suggests Apple adopts an iPhone-like release cadence. But if the company sticks to the rollout of the M1 to the M1 Pro and M1 Max chips, we might have to wait until spring 2023. We'll keep our eyes peeled for any updates with this lineup.

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Apple will reportedly add last MacBook Pro with CD Drive to vintage products list

Source: MacRumors

The last MacBook Pro model with a CD drive will be added to Apple's vintage product list by the end of the month (January 31). According to an internal memo obtained by MacRumors, Apple wants to label the mid-2021 13-inch MacBook Pro laptop as a vintage device. These kinds of products used to be ineligible for repairs in most regions. But now, Apple Stores and Apple Authorized Service Providers can offer repairs for vintage products up to seven years. That's subject to parts availability, of course.

This 13-inch MacBook Pro model was the last Mac to launch with a built-in CD/DVD drive, and it remained on sale until October 2016. Apple also dropped support for this model with macOS Big Sur in 2020.