Following the iPad Pro’s demonstration of M4’s capabilities, Apple is preparing to release a new generation of M4 MacBooks. These include the MacBook M4 Air in early 2025, as well as the M4, M4 Pro, and M4 Max MacBook Pros in less than a month.
The MacBook M4 Pro and other Macs with this new processor are expected to ship on November 1st, according to a recent article by Mark Gurman. Furthermore, a purported unpacking video of the M4 MacBook Pro has been uploaded by a YouTuber, and it appears to be quite authentic.
And with all the hoopla around “AI laptops” that has been building since the release of Copilot+ PCs, you can bet that Apple Intelligence would be a major selling feature for this new generation of MacBook M4. Additionally, Apple is undoubtedly eager to remind consumers that with the 2020 MacBook Air M1, MacBooks have been equipped with their own AI-optimized Neural Engines.
Here are all the details we currently know about the MacBook M4 and our expectations for its release.
MacBook M4: Rumored specs
It’s logical to assume that the specifications will include an improvement to the MacBook M4 since Apple’s replacement for the M3 processor will define the next generation of MacBooks. As demonstrated by the M4 iPad Pro, the CPU core count has increased, the GPU’s speed has improved, and the Neural Engine has been greatly enhanced for AI workloads.
We anticipate that the CPU core count of the base model MacBooks will increase from 8 to 10 (as it has for the M4 iPad Pro). Furthermore, a recent leak indicates that the M4 MacBook Pro may include 16GB of RAM instead of the standard 8GB.
From there, the numbers increase, reaching their peak with the potent 16-inch MacBook Pro M3 Max, which, at full price (~$7,199), has a 16-core CPU, 40-core GPU, 128GB of RAM, and 8TB of storage. Although the M4 MacBooks’ core count may receive some minor improvements, it is too soon to tell if Apple intends to make any more significant changes to the specifications.
MacBook M4: Price and release date speculation
Gurman said Apple plans to ship the first MacBook M4 on November 1. According to him, we could anticipate “a low-end 14-inch MacBook Pro” in addition to maybe “high-end 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pros…all with M4 chips.”
As seen in 2023 when it debuted the M3 MacBook Pro at its “Scary Fast” Apple event, it aligns very nicely with the company’s practice of holding release events in October.
Gurman anticipates the release of 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Air M4s by spring, with the remainder of the M4 MacBook range probably following in 2025.
A few M4-powered desktops will also probably be released by Apple in 2024, including the anticipated new iMac M4 and Mac mini M4, which may be followed by an M4-powered Mac Studio.
Even if these updated M4 models cost more than their existing equivalents, it doesn’t seem possible that Apple would boost the price of the MacBook M4s much unless they were also greatly improved.
Let’s take a look at the current price of M3 Macs to give you an idea of where the M4 MacBook pricing will start. The starting prices of the M3 MacBook Air 13 and MacBook Air 15-inch computers are $1,099 and $1,299, respectively, and I don’t think Apple intends to charge much more for the M4 model of its least expensive laptop.
Starting at $1,599 is the standard M3 14-inch MacBook Pro; the more powerful 14-inch MacBook Pro with M3 Pro starts at $1,999, and the large, powerful 16-inch MacBook Pro starts at $2,499 as well. It appears doubtful that Apple would be ready to increase the M4 variants’ costs by more than it has in the past, usually by $100 to $200.
MacBook M4: Design
What adjustments, if any, Apple will make to the MacBook M4 lineup’s design are still too soon to tell. Gurman stated in March that Apple has “just started formal development” of the MacBook Pro M4, and considering how well-liked the design is, it doesn’t seem probable that there would be any significant alterations.
It’s definitely too early to predict the M4 Airs’ appearance if they’re even farther off, but I anticipate that they’ll be just as sleek as their predecessors because the line’s main selling point is its light and thin design. Apple is unlikely to compromise on thinness, even if I would love to see the Air gain a more functional port array.
MacBook M4: Performance
One thing is absolutely certain: Apple will tout significant performance and power efficiency improvements for the M4 CPUs that will power new MacBooks.
Since Apple hasn’t done much more than improve MacBook design over the previous several years, the under-the-hood enhancements are always the main attraction. As of right now, we haven’t heard much about what to expect in terms of raw figures, such as core counts or performance boosts.
Although the performance of the M4 chip lineup is still mostly speculation, the Taiwanese Economic Daily News did report that these chips will have an upgraded Neural Engine (possibly more cores than the 16 on the Apple M3 chips) that is more obviously tuned for AI and machine learning tasks that impact your everyday workflow.
It’s easy to picture Apple touting how the M4 and its Neural Engine are tuned to run the top Mac AI apps available, especially with the current trend of marketing laptops based on their AI capabilities. It’s easy to see a demonstration of a well-known chatbot, such as ChatGPT (because Apple isn’t putting Google Gemini on stage), operating locally on an M4 MacBook, with a focus on how it can provide you with more protection and privacy.
Expanded capabilities beyond speed could also be shown. For example, it is predicted that the 14-inch M4 MacBook Pro would receive a significant update by supporting a minimum of two external monitors, as opposed to the M3 Pro’s single display. It may revolutionize the way you set up your desktop!
MacBook M4: Battery life
It’s simple to forecast that M4 MacBooks will have excellent battery life.
Since Apple silicon was introduced, MacBooks have consistently lasted 12 hours or more in our battery testing. The M3 series was no exception, easily producing 14–17 hours.
MacBook M4: Outlook
Although there isn’t much information available at this time, what we do know so far indicates that the MacBook M4 series will be a performance-focused update that may provide us with our first clear glimpse at Apple’s plans to market AI on its laptops.
This might be interesting because many of the strategies used to market AI-optimized computers nowadays—such as automatically centering you during video conversations or automatically altering a picture with a single button click—are directly lifted from Apple’s playbook. We could see some exciting things if the corporation feels compelled to show off how well it can incorporate AI to improve your daily life on Mac.
However, it’s hard to picture the M4 MacBook series not being well-liked, even if it’s only a little enhancement, like so many of the new AI capabilities in Windows laptops have been. Since the introduction of Apple silicon, MacBooks have been quite easy to suggest, and if the firm makes little changes other than the processor, they should still be able to compete with the best laptops available.
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