Last 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.
Wednesday March 12, 2025 6:05 am PDT by Joe Rossignol
The upcoming iOS 18.4 update for the iPhone includes a smaller but meaningful improvement for Apple's in-car iPhone mirroring system CarPlay.
Specifically, CarPlay now shows a third row of icons, up from two rows previously. However, this change is only visible in vehicles with a larger center display. For example, a MacRumors Forums member noticed the change in a Toyota Tundra with a...
Wednesday March 12, 2025 7:39 pm PDT by Joe Rossignol
Daring Fireball's John Gruber today shared some strongly-worded comments about Apple's delayed personalized Siri features. Gruber is a well-known Apple pundit who has been writing about the company for more than two decades.
In a blog post titled "Something Is Rotten in the State of Cupertino," Gruber said Apple's credibility has been "damaged" by the delay:Keynote by keynote, product by...
Tuesday March 11, 2025 3:26 am PDT by Tim Hardwick
Despite being released over two years ago, Apple's AirPods Pro 2 continue to dominate the wireless earbud market. However, with the AirPods Pro 3 expected to launch in 2025, anyone thinking of buying Apple's premium earbuds may be wondering if the next generation is worth holding out for.
Apart from their audio and noise-canceling performance, which are generally regarded as excellent for...
Wednesday March 12, 2025 1:05 pm PDT by Joe Rossignol
iPhones are finally getting a much-requested setting, but availability is limited.
The upcoming iOS 18.4 update introduces an option to set a default navigation app, other than Apple Maps, but unfortunately this new setting is limited to users in the EU. There, you can now set an app like Google Maps or Waze as your default navigation app on the iPhone by opening the Settings app and tapping ...
Apple is planning for a major design overhaul of the iPhone, iPad, and Mac interfaces with the introduction of iOS 19, iPadOS 19, and macOS 16 later this year, reports Bloomberg. The update will "fundamentally change" the look of Apple's operating system, introducing a more consistent cross-platform experience.
Apple plans to update the style of icons, menus, apps, windows, and system...
Thursday March 13, 2025 3:07 am PDT by Tim Hardwick
Apple's upcoming iPhone 17 Pro models are expected to feature a significant design overhaul, and a new image apparently taken on an assembly line for the unreleased devices appears to confirm the biggest rumored change.
Render of an iPhone 17 Pro model shared by Jon Prosser
The iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are rumored to adopt a horizontal camera bar reminiscent of Google's Pixel...
Thursday March 13, 2025 9:32 am PDT by Juli Clover
The Apple Intelligence features that Apple introduced with iOS 18 are not pushing people to upgrade their iPhones, Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo reiterated today. Apple's recent Siri failures are also going to have an impact on 2025 iPhone shipments, which the market is beginning to realize.
As early as last July, Kuo said expectations that Apple Intelligence could drive iPhone upgrades were...
Apple is set to release iOS 18.4 in early April, bringing further refinements to Apple Intelligence features, a neat new capability to iPhone 15 Pro devices, new emoji, and more.
While not quite as packed with new features as Apple's preceding iOS 18 point releases, iOS 18.4 still introduces enhancements that aim to make your iPhone smarter and more intuitive. Below, we've listed 12 new...
If you've been following iPhone rumors over the last few years, you may remember reading reports that Apple flirted with the idea of introducing a super high-end "Ultra" model that would either replace its Pro Max device or sit above it in Apple's smartphone hirearchy. These reports appeared in the pre-launch iPhone 15 and iPhone 16 rumor cycles, but ultimately came to nothing. Now though, the...
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 ?
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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.
Wanted to go 13 last time around, but the quad-core option kept me at 15. Id love to get a 13 quad-core with retina display and 256GB SSD. Ill order it with the lowest amount of ram possible and then upgrade to 16GB from NewEgg. I hope Apple doesnt 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.