Monday marked a significant developments for tech giant Apple, as the company unveiled a range of new offerings including new MacBook Pro and iMac computers, powered by a trio of pioneering chipsets. Each species of the M3 series – M3, M3 Pro and M3 Max – was unveiled at an online event mainly tailored to satiate the needs of professional users.
The price point for the anticipated 14-inch MacBook Pro in the United States kicks off at $1,599, while the larger, 16-inch variant is tagged at $2,499. The new iMac desktop, which hosts the power of the M3 chip family, will be available to purchase from $1,299. Certain models are expected to debut in the market next week whereas some may take until late November to ship.
The shift from Intel to in-house designed chips in 2020 marked the beginning of a fresh era for Apple’s Mac market share which doubled to nearly 11%, according to IDC’s preliminary data. This move was accompanied by beneficial features like better battery life and superior performance in several tasks, consequently outshining competitors using Microsoft’s Windows.
Apple’s evolution appears to be making waves, leading Qualcomm to increase its efforts to produce Arm-based chips for Windows. Nvidia too has plans underway to potentially dive into the PC market by 2025.
Furthermore, Apple has redesigned its strategic approach to cater directly to professionals. Designers, musicians and software developers are anticipated to be the primary beneficiaries of the new lineup with features like enhanced memory capacity for data-intensive tasks like AI research. The customization of Mac’s pricing structure is likely to invite corporate attraction, potentially influencing their digital operations.
Apple’s revamped price model for the 14-inch MacBook Pro, reduced from $1,999 to $1,599, seems to have led to the elimination of the budget-friendly $1,299 13-inch model. This strategic play appears to be delineating between Apple’s productivity-oriented MacBook Air and the new Pro models, facilitating clear choices for consumers.
The fiscal year 2022 witnessed $40.18 billion in revenue from Mac at Apple, reflecting 11% of overall revenue and a 14% leap from the previous fiscal year. However, the general slowdown in the PC industry impacted sales this year.
The company also announced that the new line of chips would be the first for laptops and desktops that use 3-nanometer manufacturing technology. The adoption of this advanced technology is expected to yield greater performance for each watt of electricity consumed. Experts speculate the crafting of these chips is likely the work of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co, the wizard behind the chips found in high-end iPhone 15 models.
Enhancement over the preceding technologies was a recurrent theme at the event, with Apple management showcasing the superiority of the new MacBooks and iMac machines over older models that housed Intel chips. The company emphasized the dramatic speed improvements consumers can anticipate by upgrading to devices equipped with Apple’s in-house chips.
