WWDC 2023 may have been a bit disappointing in terms of product launches, with Apple only introducing the useless 15-inch MacBook Air to the consumer sector. However, the year isn’t over yet, and if we believe the speculations, the Cupertino-based company could turn the tables with not just one, but two MacBooks with the upcoming M3 chip inside.
Apple’s M3 chip, manufactured using a 3nm process, is expected to offer better performance and greater energy efficiency due to the smaller gap between its transistors, which would be an improvement over the current 5nm M2 SoC. While it didn’t appear at WWDC 2023, it has been hinted that the chip will be released in late 2023.
According to journalist and technology analyst Mark Gurman in his latest Bloomberg report, the chip is likely to launch in the 13-inch MacBook Air and next-generation 13-inch MacBook Pro, alongside the much-anticipated new iMac. This makes a lot of sense since Apple updated the rest of its Macs and MacBooks earlier this year.
To find out whether or not these speculations are true, we’ll have to wait until Apple makes its official announcement since the company usually keeps its releases under lock and key. But we’ll be sure to keep you posted on everything related to the M3 MacBook hitting our desks.
That’s all you need to know so far.
Apple MacBook M3: at a glance
- MacBooks with M3 processors are said to launch in October 2023
- They may have the same price
- In theory, they should be more powerful and more energy efficient.
Apple MacBook M3: release date
According to Gurman, Apple is preparing to release its Apple M3 silicon just in time for a post-2023 release, likely in the third quarter of the year. So it is very likely that in October we will see some Macs and MacBooks with M3s on the shelves.
This calendar also offers clues about which computers Apple will launch with this chip inside. Apple released the 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pros, along with the surprising Mac Mini update, in January of this year. Apple updated the Mac Studio and Mac Pro, as well as the new 15-inch MacBook Air, in June at WWDC 2023, leaving us with just the 13-inch MacBook Air, 13-inch MacBook Pro, and iMac.
All three could be the first Macs and MacBooks to showcase the prowess of the M3 chips, with the 14-inch and 16-inch Pros to follow in early 2024.
Apple MacBook M3: price and availability
With October still, a few months away, it rumors early for price rumours. What we do know is that the 13-inch MacBook Pro M2, which went on sale June 2023, was priced at $1,618.85, while the 13-inch MacBook Air M2, which went on sale June 8, 2022, received a slight increase. of the price, starting from € 1,298.85.
And Apple is unlikely to raise prices for any of them. At least if they know what’s good for the company, since people, in general, haven’t been happy with their recent antics.
However, the iMac may be different. Apple erred by not showing an updated iMac at WWDC 2023 since its current version is from 2021, but if the 2023 iMac remains a possibility and comes with an M3 chip, skipping the M2 entirely, we could see a slight increase in the price compared to its original ticket price.
Apple MacBook M3: Specs and Performance
While not much is known about the alleged M3 MacBooks, we do know that the M3 chip will be manufactured using a 3nm process, reduce using the build size of the current 5nm chips. In theory, it will offer faster performance and greater energy efficiency.
More specifically, it should allow for higher core density. Gurman says in his report that the M3 Pro chip could have 12 CPU cores, 18 GPU cores, and up to 36GB of memory, which means 2 more CPU and GPU cores than the M2 Pro, although some have speculated that the Higher-end M3 chips will have up to 40 CPU cores.
Right now, not much is known about the base M3 chip, which will likely be what’s built into the 13-inch MacBook Air and 13-inch MacBook Pro, and even the next iMac. We will update this article as soon as we get more information about MacBooks with M3 and their specifications.
