According to the calendar, Apple’s Mac announcements can be unpredictable. Mac Studio came out in March. The 24-inch iMac arrived in April last year. In the last few years, MacBook updates have come in June, October and November. This is far from the iPhone and its (almost) unchanging September slot. There is something to be said for simplicity.
But if there Is A regular checkpoint for Mac News, it must be WWDC, June entry in the top list. Some of Apple’s biggest Mac announcements were made during the company’s summer WWDC keynote presentation, as my colleague Roman listed in his list of the top 10 Mac moments in WWDC history. Software is the first priority at WWDC, but Mac hardware comes close.
Join us at WWDC 2022 on Monday, June 6 for full coverage of Apple’s announcement.
Of course, it goes without saying that every WWDC is a Mac Extravaganza, and it is increasingly seen that this year’s Make-Together will be summarized in Mac news. Which, of course, made the video an overnight sensation. But beyond that, the WWDC is the right audience for Mac announcements, whether they are Air or Professional, and often Apple allows a WWDC Keynote to refer to the Mac (outside of MacOS, of course).
One thing the developers have in common is that they all use Mac and they all go to WWDC to see the appearance of the new Mac. The WWDC is set for the annual Mac announcement, yet Apple’s most loyal customers don’t really know if they’re coming. If Apple gives them all a good idea of which month a new version of each product will be launched, they can happily spend the other 11 months of the year buying the old ones. As things stand, not everyone is sure if it’s safe to sink because a new Mac could come at any time.
IDG
Waiting game
Let us recall the state of the Mac nation:
I’m happy today
The latest MacBook Air came back in November 2020 when Apple unveiled its first M1 chip. Analysts predict that the next model will have an M2 feature, but it now appears that the next-gen processor will not be part of the deal at all. Apple will have to sell the new Air behind the new exterior design.
Mac Pro
Apple’s flagship Mac looks oddly old at the moment, but it does come with the region: hardware as premium as it is updated at longer intervals than the consumer model, which means it rarely contains the latest Silicon. The current model was released in 2019; Some new component options have been added since then, but have not yet been upgraded to Apple Silicon.
Mac Mini
Like the MacBook Air, the M1 Mac Mini has been on the shelves since November 2020 And Apple still sells the high-end Intel version, the version we’re expecting to get updated A new model with an M1 Pro chip is coming soon, with a lower-end M2 version also in the works.
13-inch MacBook Pro
We don’t know what Apple plans to do with the 13-inch MacBook Pro, which has very few reasons to exist, but we’ll probably find out later this year.
27-inch iMac
The launch of Mac Studio and Studio Display this spring means that the expected launch of a new iMac Pro probably won’t happen until 2023.
In other words, WWDC 2022 should be a favor for Mac. But that doesn’t seem to be the case. We can get a new Mac Mini at WWDC, but it will be a placeholder rather than a blockbuster. Rumors suggest that the next Mac Pro may appear at WWDC, but it is more likely that Apple will simply give us a sneak peek as with their previous Mac Pro redesign.
So of the five Macs we’ve been waiting for, two must not appear (13-inch MacBook Pro and 27-inch iMac), the other can be previewed but will not arrive until next year (Mac Pro) and the last two Maybe Launch but everyone wants without the M2 chip (MacBook Air and Mac Mini). It doesn’t sound like a Mac celebration that WWDC should have.
This is not to say that there is no precedent for big Mac announcements at WWDC. After all, the Apple Silicon Transition was announced in 2020 But two years later, when we look at the next generation M2 chip, Apple has a holding pattern with its high-end Macs. The Mac Mini has yet to get an M1 Pro or M1 Max chip, the 27-inch iMac has disappeared, and the Mac Pro is ridiculously expensive and less powerful than the Mac Studio.
The M1 and its variants are undoubtedly successful, but Apple, like most influential companies, has a tendency to gain popularity. Mac users are ready for the M2, and WWDC will be the right time to unveil it.
So here’s hoping Apple will put a few surprises and even one more thing on Monday. Because it looks like it could be another “soft” year for Mac.