What’s Next for Apple’s 14-Inch and 16-Inch MacBook Pro Models

We do know the machines will get M2 Pro and ‌M2‌ Max chips that will bring notable performance improvements. This guide highlights everything that we know about the upcoming 14- and 16-inch MacBook Pro models, and it will be updated over time as we hear new information.

Design

We aren’t expecting design changes for the updated 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models. Apple just updated the look with the 2021 launch of the M1 Pro and M1 Max machines, and the company typically uses the same design for several years.

Apple is still using an aluminum unibody design, but the shape was tweaked to be flatter and less curved at the bottom. The machines include an all-black keyboard, a large Force Touch Trackpad, and two speaker grilles at the side of the keyboard.

The current MacBook Pro models feature mini-LED displays with ProMotion technology, slim 3.5mm bezels at the top and bottom of the display, and a notch that houses the 1080p webcam.

M2 Pro and M2 Max Chips

Though we’re not counting on design changes, there will be internal updates with Apple rumored to be planning to use M2 Pro and M2 Max chips in the upgraded MacBook Pro models. According to Bloomberg‘s Mark Gurman, the ‌M2‌ Max chip will offer up to a 12-core CPU, up from the 10-core CPU in the ‌M1 Max‌, along with up to a 38-core GPU, up from the current 32-core maximum.

The ‌M2‌ Max will support up to 64GB Unified Memory. Gurman did not share details on the ‌M2‌ Pro, but it is expected to be less powerful than the ‌M2‌ Max.

Leaked Geekbench results said to be collected from a M2 Max chip have suggested it will offer moderate performance improvements over the ‌M1 Max‌ chip. The chip, found in an unreleased Mac labeled “Mac14,6,” earned a single-core score of 1853 and a multi-core score of 13855. A second benchmark came in at 1889 for single-core performance and 14586 for multi-core performance.

Comparatively, the ‌M1 Max‌ earned a single core score of 1755 and a multi-core score of 12333.

3nm vs. 5nm

Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo believes that production will begin on refreshed versions of the 14 and 16-inch MacBook Pro models in the fourth quarter of 2022, and that the updated models may not have the improved 3-nanometer chips that are in the works. Instead, Kuo says that the new machines could feature 5-nanometer chips built on Apple supplier TSMC’s current process.

Taiwan’s Commercial Times has said that Apple plans to use a 3-nanometer chip for the upgraded 14 and 16-inch MacBook Pro models, and has suggested that these machines will be the first with the 3nm chip. As rumors conflict on this point right now, we’ll need to wait until we hear more to determine what’s accurate.

Possible Features

Apple is working on OLED displays for future devices, including MacBook Pro models. Some rumors have suggested that Apple could introduce OLED displays as soon as 2022, but more recent information has indicated OLED technology won’t be coming until 2024, so it seems like a long shot for the 2023 refresh.

There have also been rumors suggesting Apple is working on Face ID for the Mac, and the higher-end MacBook Pro models would be prime candidates for the technology, but so far, there are no specific rumors indicating Face ID is coming to the Mac with the MacBook Pro refresh.

Launch Date

Apple introduced the ‌M1 Pro‌ and ‌M1 Max‌ 14- and 16-inch MacBook Pro models in October 2021, and while Macs sometimes get yearly refreshes, Apple is waiting until 2023 to introduce new MacBook Pro models.

New 14- and 16-inch MacBook Pro models with ‌M2‌ Pro and ‌M2‌ Max chips are “well into development and testing” according to Bloomberg‘s ‌Mark Gurman‌. Gurman initially said the notebooks could see a launch in late 2022, but he later said that Apple had decided not to introduce the new machines until 2023. At this point, we are expecting a 14 and 16-inch MacBook Pro refresh in early 2023.