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New 15-Inch MacBook Pro With Kaby Lake and 32GB of Desktop-Class RAM Coming Later This Year
Apple will release updated Mac notebooks with Intel's next-generation Kaby Lake processors later this year, according to the latest research note from KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo.
Kuo said new 12-inch MacBook models with Kaby Lake processors will enter mass production in the early second quarter, which starts in March, and noted a 16GB of RAM option could be added—presumably as a high-end or built-to-order configuration. The two current 12-inch MacBook configurations include 8GB of RAM.
Likewise, Kuo said new 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Pro models with Kaby Lake processors will start mass production in the early third quarter, which starts in July. The research note did not specify how much RAM these models will have, but 16GB could remain the limit due to the restrictions of current memory designs.
Interestingly, Kuo also mentions a "15-inch MacBook" that will include 32GB of RAM and enter mass production in the early fourth quarter, which starts in September. He said this model will be "the most significantly redesigned product this year," and he believes it will adopt desktop-class RAM to satisfy high-end users.
Given the high-end specifications, it is likely that this 15-inch MacBook would be part of the MacBook Pro lineup, but Kuo did not specify. Beyond faster processors and increased memory, Kuo said most other specifications and the design of all of the notebooks will be similar to equivalent models released in 2016.
Kuo believes the new Kaby Lake notebooks will be power efficient, which may positively affect shipments. He estimates that Mac notebook shipments will resume year-over-year growth at about 10% on the strength of the new models, while shipments will be quicker as production delays affecting 2016 models are resolved.
Kuo also expects Apple to discount the 13-inch MacBook Pro with a standard row of function keys this year as that model gradually replaces the 13-inch MacBook Air in Apple's notebook lineup.
While no release dates were mentioned, Kuo previously said he expects new MacBook Pro models with 32GB of RAM to launch in the second half of 2017.
Kuo said new 12-inch MacBook models with Kaby Lake processors will enter mass production in the early second quarter, which starts in March, and noted a 16GB of RAM option could be added—presumably as a high-end or built-to-order configuration. The two current 12-inch MacBook configurations include 8GB of RAM.
Likewise, Kuo said new 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Pro models with Kaby Lake processors will start mass production in the early third quarter, which starts in July. The research note did not specify how much RAM these models will have, but 16GB could remain the limit due to the restrictions of current memory designs.
Interestingly, Kuo also mentions a "15-inch MacBook" that will include 32GB of RAM and enter mass production in the early fourth quarter, which starts in September. He said this model will be "the most significantly redesigned product this year," and he believes it will adopt desktop-class RAM to satisfy high-end users.
Given the high-end specifications, it is likely that this 15-inch MacBook would be part of the MacBook Pro lineup, but Kuo did not specify. Beyond faster processors and increased memory, Kuo said most other specifications and the design of all of the notebooks will be similar to equivalent models released in 2016.
Kuo believes the new Kaby Lake notebooks will be power efficient, which may positively affect shipments. He estimates that Mac notebook shipments will resume year-over-year growth at about 10% on the strength of the new models, while shipments will be quicker as production delays affecting 2016 models are resolved.
Kuo also expects Apple to discount the 13-inch MacBook Pro with a standard row of function keys this year as that model gradually replaces the 13-inch MacBook Air in Apple's notebook lineup.
While no release dates were mentioned, Kuo previously said he expects new MacBook Pro models with 32GB of RAM to launch in the second half of 2017.
Related Roundup: MacBook Pro
Tags: KGI Securities, Ming-Chi Kuo
Buyer's Guide: MacBook Pro (Caution), MacBook (Don't Buy)
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Top Rated Comments
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35 months ago
WHERE ARE THE MAC MINIS AND MAC PROS!!!!!
The machine that was most recently updated already gets a rumor and the rest are left to rot in the dust...
The machine that was most recently updated already gets a rumor and the rest are left to rot in the dust...
35 months ago
If they truly wanted to make it a pro machine they wouldn't have eliminated legacy ports, made it absurdly thin and loaded it with mediocre & decidedly non-pro software to begin with
35 months ago
Give me the option to get rid of the stupid touch bar, and make the keyboard better by increasing key travel, and I might consider it.
35 months ago
Wait for doomsayers to spin this into a disaster scenario.
"WHY NOT 128GB OF RAM AND 2 GPU's?"
FYI, the rumor is that this is set for 4th quarter release. Not really screwing existing customers if the release is one year after the previous generation.
"WHY NOT 128GB OF RAM AND 2 GPU's?"
FYI, the rumor is that this is set for 4th quarter release. Not really screwing existing customers if the release is one year after the previous generation.
35 months ago
If they truly wanted to make it a pro machine they wouldn't have eliminated legacy ports, made it absurdly thin and loaded it with mediocre & decidedly non-pro software to begin with
Replacing a USB 3 port with a Thunderbolt 3/USB-C port, capable of 40Gb/s throughput and can be transformed or daisy chained into any other port is somehow… less 'pro'?
By its very definition it's more adaptable, faster, and standardised (which will be vastly beneficial in the future). Apple frequently make leaps like this and aggressively cut legacy stuff. It always annoys users but in hindsight, the decisions are almost always right. I believe time will prove you to be wrong on this occasion.
35 months ago
Apple's screwing of customers knows no bounds. ;)
Those customers who bought a Mac in the 80s must feel pretty screwed now, when Apple scoops in and releases a cheaper model that's a billion times faster.
/s
35 months ago
I have yet to utilize the full 16gb of RAM... Sure 32gb will be cool, more of a bragging right.
Speak for yourself, and no one else. I hit the 16GB wall almost daily. Not a bragging right, but an annoying limitation. If you don't need it, simply don't buy it. No need to force your needs onto someone else.
35 months ago
In other news, an analyst has released a report saying that the sun will rise tomorrow and then set again in the evening.
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