The M2 generation of Macs hasn’t finished rolling yet: the 15-inch MacBook Air M2 and possibly the M2 Ultra Mac Pro are expected to debut at Apple’s upcoming WWDC event. But the company is already hard at work preparing the next generation of devices, and according to new rumors, testing of M3 processors is already in full swing.
In the latest edition of his Power On newsletter, Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman claims that Apple is working on the next update to its Mac chip, citing data understandably shared by an anonymous App Store developer. The version of the M3 found in testing, which is considered close to the base version of the M3 Pro, has 12 CPU cores divided into six high-performance cores and six low-power cores. This compares to 10 CPU cores (six powerful and four efficient) in the M2 Pro and eight (four/four) in the M1 Pro. Thus, the report receives an increase in confidence, as it is a logical continuation of previous releases.
The alleged M3 Pro also has 18 graphics cores (another logical development from the 16 in the M2 Pro and 14 in the M1 Pro) and 36GB of RAM (up from 32GB in both previous chips). Based on various changes, Gurman suggests that the M3 Max could have 14 CPU cores and 40 graphics cores, while the M3 Ultra, thanks to the optimization made possible by the 3nm manufacturing process, could “exceed 28 CPU cores and have more cores.” “. over 80 graphics cores, compared to 64 on the M1 Ultra.” These will be very fast processors.
Gurman argues that the M3 could be a key element in Apple’s strategy to bring customers back to the Mac family, which saw revenue fall 31% in its latest financial results. The M3 could help the company offer “fresh ways to encourage customers to return to the lineup,” he said.
In other words, this is going to be a big year for the Mac. All eyes will be on WWDC next month for the remaining M2 machines, but Gurman believes the first M3 Macs could arrive by late 2023 or early 2024. Apple, he was told, is already working on M3-based versions of the iMac, MacBook Pro, and MacBook Air.