Apple Confirms Release Date for New MacBook Pro in Latest Report
Picture Credits: Apple Scoop
By Pavethran Batmanathen
The highly anticipated release of the new MacBook Pro, which has long been expected in October, is now being reported to take place in the final week of the month. According to reports, the event could even coincide with Halloween, potentially tying the launch into the spooky holiday, with retail availability beginning on November 1st.
Reliable Apple insider Mark Gurman, writing for the Power On newsletter, has confirmed that Apple will be introducing three major MacBook Pro models alongside updated versions of the Mac Mini and iPad Mini. The new lineup will include a 14-inch MacBook Pro equipped with the entry-level M4 Apple Silicon chipset, as well as 14-inch and 16-inch versions powered by the more powerful M4 Pro and M4 Max chipsets.
Conspicuously absent from this list is any mention of the consumer-friendly MacBook Air. Instead, the M4-powered MacBook Pro will serve as the most affordable laptop in this round of upgrades. Historically, the M4 MacBook Pro has been somewhat of a hybrid, featuring MacBook Air internals but enhanced with a fan to draw out more performance from the M4 chipset. For those awaiting the MacBook Air, it is expected to arrive later, likely in the first quarter of 2025, around the same time the next-generation iPhone SE is expected to launch.
Apple’s M4 chip made its debut back in May 2024, but it first appeared not in a Mac, but in the seventh-generation iPad Pro. By the time the new M4-powered MacBooks reach store shelves in November, Mac fans will have endured a nearly six-month wait for the chip to make its way into the company’s laptops.
Another key focus for the upcoming MacBooks is expected to be Apple’s push into generative AI. At the iPhone 16 launch, Apple emphasized “Apple Intelligence,” a feature aimed at leveraging AI capabilities, though the software itself has yet to be released. With Microsoft’s Windows 11 already offering robust AI integration, Apple will need to move swiftly to introduce Apple Intelligence in macOS to avoid falling behind in the AI race.
Two generative AI features are currently being tested and are expected to be included in macOS Sequoia when the new MacBooks are launched. These features are “Writing Tools,” which assists with summarizing and rewriting text across select applications, and enhancements to Siri, allowing the voice assistant to process more natural language queries.
Despite these efforts, Apple’s AI push still feels like a preview rather than a game-changing innovation. Given the rapid advancements in AI tools over the past year, Apple seems to be arriving somewhat late to the scene, offering a glimpse of what’s to come rather than a fully fleshed-out solution. The delay in bringing AI features to the iPhone and now to the MacBook feels consistent with Apple’s measured approach to Apple Intelligence, even if it means lagging slightly behind the competition.
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