MacBook Pro and Air will be powered by ARM-based silicon chips, says report

Apple announced at the WWDC 2020 that it would make transition to its own silicon chips for its Mac computers. Now, a report has surfaced revealing that MacBook Pro laptops with 13.3, 14 and 16-inch screens as well as MacBook Air will be the first ones to be powered by its ARM-based silicon. The information was released by Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, according to MacRumors.com. In March, Kuo had predicted that the new ‌MacBook Pro‌ will launch late in 2020 or early in 2021. At the Worldwide Developers Conference held in June, Apple CEO Tim Cook had said that the first machines based on new Silicon chips will ship by the end of this year. Cook added that the switch to its new chip is expected to take two years. The transition to Apple’s own silicon chips will mark the end of a nearly 15-year reliance on Intel to supply processors. Kuo, in his research note, had said that Apple Silicon‌ 13.3-inch ‌MacBook Pro‌ is expected to go into mass production in the fourth quarter of 2020, reported MacRumors.com. He had also predicted that an ARM-based MacBook Air will either come up in the last quarter of this year or the first quarter of 2021. He had also speculated that shipments of MacBook are expected to increase to 16–17 million units this year. The transition to its own chips will bring the Mac into line with the company’s iPhone and iPads, which are already powered by Apple-designed chips. The cost of MacBook Air could also come down after the introduction of Apple’s chip, reported iMore, citing Kuo’s research note. He said that MacBook shipments in 2020 have been better than expected because of a rise in number of people working from home due to the coronavirus pandemic.