Most of Intel's Ivy Bridge CPUs Not Actually Delayed Until June

intel ivy bridge chip promoLast week, a Digitimes report claimed that Intel was going to delay mass availability of its new Ivy Bridge processors until after June. Ivy Bridge represents the next generation processors from Intel and are expected to power any new Macs in the coming few months. The original target date for Ivy Bridge shipments was in April.

VR-Zone now reports that the report wasn't entirely correct and that Intel will only be delaying the release specifically of mobile Dual-Core Ivy Bridge processors.

Remember that article from the other day that made some people panic as Intel might've delayed Ivy Bridge to June? Well, there's no need to be worried if you're planning on getting a new desktop system, as none of the desktop parts that were originally meant to launch have been delayed and on the mobile side, only the dual core models have been pushed back.

According to the site, the reason for the delay of those specific processors is due to an overstock of the previous generation chips.

What that means is that it may not have an effect on Apple's release plans for updated MacBook Pros and iMacs. Apple currently offers Quad-Core processors in their iMac, so that product line should see no added delays. The iMac was last updated in May, 2011 and is getting due for a refresh. Meanwhile, in the MacBook Pro line, the 13" model is the only MacBook Pro that currently uses a Dual-Core processor.

As it turns out, we previously reported that Intel's new Quad-Core Ivy Bridge processor will be heat efficient enough to fit in Apple's 13" MacBook chassis for the first time. The limiting factor for a Quad-Core 13" MacBook Pro had previously been the heat output of the processor. If Apple chooses to go this route, they could eliminate Dual-Core processors entirely from their MacBook Pro line, side stepping any delays.

However, this line of reasoning assumes that Apple will not be making any dramatic changes to the MacBook Pro enclosure. Persistent rumors have suggested that Apple may be considering more MacBook Air-like designs for at least some of the new MacBook Pro models. Such a drastic change would change Apple's choice of processors considerably.

It's also worth noting that Apple isn't a typical Intel customer and has, in the past, been able to secure chips earlier than the rest of the industry.

Related Roundups: iMac, MacBook Pro
Buyer's Guide: iMac (Buy Now)
Related Forum: iMac

Popular Stories

iPhone 17 Pro Blue Feature Tighter Crop

iPhone 17 Pro Launching Later This Year With These 13 New Features

Wednesday April 23, 2025 8:31 am PDT by
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of April 2025: Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro models have a titanium frame, and the iPhone ...
iphone 17 dummies sonny dickson

iPhone 17 Air Almost as Thin as Its Buttons, New Images Show

Thursday April 24, 2025 2:14 am PDT by
If you missed the video showing dummy models of Apple's all-new super thin iPhone 17 Air that's expected later this year, Sonny Dickson this morning shared some further images of the device in close alignment with the other dummy models in the iPhone 17 lineup, indicating just how thin it is likely to be in comparison. The iPhone 17 Air is expected to be around 5.5mm thick – with a thicker ...
iPhone 17 Air Pastel Feature

iPhone 17 Air Launching Later This Year With These 16 New Features

Thursday April 24, 2025 8:24 am PDT by
While the so-called "iPhone 17 Air" is not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the ultra-thin device. Overall, the iPhone 17 Air sounds like a mixed bag. While the device is expected to have an impressively thin and light design, rumors indicate it will have some compromises compared to iPhone 17 Pro models, including only a single rear camera, a...
AirPods Pro 3 Mock Feature

AirPods Pro 3 Just Months Away – Here's What We Know

Friday April 18, 2025 5:16 am PDT by
Despite being more than two years old, Apple's AirPods Pro 2 still dominate the premium wireless‑earbud space, thanks to a potent mix of top‑tier audio, class‑leading noise cancellation, and Apple's habit of delivering major new features through software updates. With AirPods Pro 3 widely expected to arrive in 2025, prospective buyers now face a familiar dilemma: snap up the proven...
iphone 17 air dummy unbox therapy

iPhone 17 Air's Extreme Thinness Demoed in New Video

Tuesday April 22, 2025 10:22 am PDT by
Apple plans to release an all-new super thin iPhone this year, debuting it alongside the iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone 17 Pro Max. We've seen pictures of dummy models, cases, and renders with the design, but Lewis Hilsenteger of Unbox Therapy today showed off newer dummy models that give us a better idea of just how thin the "iPhone 17 Air" will be. The iPhone 17 Air is expected to be ...
Global Close Your Rings Day Pin

Apple Stores Giving Away a Limited-Edition Pin For Free Today

Thursday April 24, 2025 10:15 am PDT by
Starting today, April 24, Apple Stores around the world are giving away a special pin for free to customers who request one, while supplies last. Photo Credit: Filip Chudzinski The enamel pin's design is inspired by the Global Close Your Rings Day award in the Activity app, which Apple Watch users can receive by closing all three Activity rings today. The limited-edition pin is the physical...
Apple Logo Spotlight Blue

White House Hits Back at Apple's Massive EU Fine

Thursday April 24, 2025 5:57 am PDT by
Apple's $570 million fine from the EU has triggered a sharp rebuke from the White House, which called the fine a form of economic extortion, Reuters reports. The fine was announced on Wednesday by the European Commission, following a formal investigation into Apple's compliance with the bloc's Digital Markets Act (DMA), a landmark piece of legislation aimed at curbing the market dominance of ...
ipad air magic keyboard feature

iPadOS 19 Rumored to Show Mac-Like Menu Bar When Connected to Magic Keyboard

Thursday April 24, 2025 12:09 pm PDT by
When an iPad running iPadOS 19 is connected to a Magic Keyboard, a macOS-like menu bar will appear on the screen, according to the leaker Majin Bu. This change would further blur the lines between the iPad and the Mac. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman previously claimed that iPadOS 19 will be "more like macOS," with unspecified improvements to productivity, multitasking, and app window management,...

Top Rated Comments

Star Brood Avatar
172 months ago
Professional processors out just in time for OS X Twitter.
Score: 22 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Stridder44 Avatar
172 months ago
Wait a minute, would this mean that digitimes, a notoriously inaccurate news source, was wrong? ;)
Score: 15 Votes (Like | Disagree)
justperry Avatar
172 months ago
That's good news, another reason not to trust Digitimes.
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
KnightWRX Avatar
172 months ago
Intel backwards compatibility might have been an issue 5 years ago, but today, that is becoming less and less important.

How so ? Look at how much time it took developers to move from PPC to x86 (some of which never actually did, leaving a lot of people whining when Apple removed Rosetta in Lion)... now you're telling us ARM wouldn't be an issue ?

Especially considering nothing ARM puts out right now can even rival Intel in performance per cycle, much less in actual cycles per second, you'd expect what ? Emulation ?

Please, can you tell us what you mean by "backwards compatibility" not being important ?

----------

I'm hoping that there is no merger of MBA and MBP, for the sake of the name.... since "Pro" probably attracts "Pro" consumers such as: video editor/photo editor, while the Air is more consumer friendly....... (think the hardware inside between those two)

What's in a name ? Real pros don't look at the names vendors give their models.

I have an Air, I use it for my job. Makes it a "Pro" computer to me.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
macduke Avatar
172 months ago
Wanted to go 13” last time around, but the quad-core option kept me at 15”. I’d love to get a 13” quad-core with retina display and 256GB SSD. I’ll order it with the lowest amount of ram possible and then upgrade to 16GB from NewEgg. I hope Apple doesn’t make the new line super-thin and then kill the speed. Most pros want speed over a little more portability. If anything, remove the SuperDrive and Ethernet ports. Maybe even the SD card reader. Most pros would be using CF cards anyway. I know I do, and my USB adapter cost about $10. Or they could go USB 3.0 and nix FW800. But that would be a last resort. Then release a Thunderbolt to FW adapter for those who still need it. Shave those off before speed! But don't forget adapters for legacy users.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Liquinn Avatar
172 months ago
Phewwwwww. So they're being released on April 8th as planned? :P
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)