Apple reportedly set to complete silicon transition away from Intel, completed by WWDC instead

Apple’s debut of its in-house M1 chip during November 2020 was the first milestone in Apple’s transition away from Intel reliance. Apple had planned a two-year period to pave the road for the company to complete its transition. Now, a new report claims WWDC 2022 will see the completion of this transition period.

According to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, Apple is developing a brand new Mac Pro, a new Mac mini, and an iMac Pro with a large screen. All three new devices are said to be backed by Apple silicon. These will prove to be the defacto finish line in the company’s plan. As explained in Gurman’s latest Power On newsletter (seen by 9to5Mac), the three devices may be unveiled during the first half of 2022.

“The company has a bevy of new pro Macs in the works based on the M1 Pro and M1 Max chips that are already inside the MacBook Pro. That includes a smaller Mac Pro with up to 40 CPU cores and 128 graphics cores, a new Mac mini and a large-screened iMac Pro. I’d expect Apple to finish its transition to its own silicon from Intel chips as early as June at WWDC 2022,” Gurman wrote.

He also discusses the next-generation chip from Apple. Tentatively dubbed the ‘M2’ chip, it’s said that while expected in 2022, it won’t offer any major performance improvements but will feature “the same overall CPU core count”. Apple’s M1 offers four high-performance cores and four energy-efficient cores. Though, Gurman believes the M2 will feature a modestly improved GPU. The differences between the M1 and M2 are said to be comparable to the improvements made between Apple’s annual iPhone upgrades.

The report also backs up previous claims that Apple is working on a major refresh to its MacBook Air. It’s believed that the new device will sport the M2 chip over the M1 Pro and M1 Max silicon. It’s also expected that the new MacBook Air will feature the “biggest redesign in the product’s history.”

Apple’s breakup with Intel has long been openly discussed by the iPhone maker. Rather than rely on Intel to make meaningful innovations, Apple has taken ownership over the silicon in its own devices. So far, it’s been met with positive reception. Though, Apple silicon is still in its infancy. It remains to be seen if the M2 can impress next year.

Imag credit: Apple

Source: 9To5Mac