It's been less than a year, right? If they were updating laptops every year (at least significantly), I'd always have an excuse to wait for the "next one."
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
M2 Pro MacBooks in 2022?
- Thread starter netnative
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
MacBook Pro M2 Pro just tipped —should you wait or buy a MacBook now? | Tom's Guide
www.tomsguide.com
MacBook Pro M2 Pro just tipped — should you wait or buy a MacBook now?
Why you should and shouldn't wait for the rumored MacBook Pro M2 Pro
And there are rumors of an October update. I get your point but when something is potentially imminent it is foolish to rush and spend if you don’t need to. The downside is if they don’t release in October you are in limbo and may keep waiting which then is a waste.
Last edited:
Something is always right around the corner though.
This is true. I am not a proponent of waiting when something has just been released (e.g., if M1 Pro just came out this month and M2 Pro rumors started saying 3 nm, 4x performance etc) I wouldn’t be bothered by that. It’s more that we *might* have an upgrade to the MBP in October. If I absolutely needed one I would buy though.
The form factor need not change, except to bring back 4 TB ports. Going from 4 to 3 was a huge loss of value for Apple's top-end laptop.
I don’t see why apple would wait much longer though if they have the chips.
Early runs of chips have terrible yields, so for now Apple is probably losing money on M2s. Older chip runs have good yields so Apple makes good money selling M1 boxes. The longer Apple can still keep folks satisfied despite using last year's M1 chips the more money Apple makes.
That said, IMO now that M2s are on the street and performing really well I think Apple will move the top MBPs to M2 as soon as supply allows.
Last edited:
I would agree going from v2 to v3, v5 to v6 or whatever. But going from v1 to v2, v2 invariably tends to be significantly smoother, operationally better; worth waiting for.
Using past RAM usage to forecast future needs is flawed thinking. Since my first (128k) Mac, RAM demands have always always always increased over time. And with Apple's recent increasing of available RAM choices (24 GB in their lowest-end laptop box, 128 GB in the mid-range Studio desktop box) it certainly looks like Apple thinks added RAM will be useful in the future.
New M2 MBPs should be announced before the winter holiday selling season. Only supply constraints might cause that not to happen.
Supply constraints and perhaps TSMC process maturity.
They're on a different 5nm process tech to the M1-X machines, on a different production line.
Its a newer process, and generally the way process maturity works, they can build smaller processors reliably while it matures and gradually get acceptable yields on larger chips.
So mobile first, then M2, then M2 Pro significantly later (just like they did with A14 -> M1 -> M1 Pro -> M1 Ultra).
The M1 manufacturing plant is a different process and can run concurrently with M2. if they move the Pro machines to that new process it will limit how many they can build.
I was going to wait for an M2 MBP, but have a feeling the prices will go up like the M2 MBA, and the prices are great at the minute from Amazon on the M1 MBP, so went with a base 16”.
Funny how I was all set on an M2 MBA earlier this week, then a 14” MBP and finally a 16” MBP!
The classic “well if I spend a bit more I can get this….” and so on, and so on.
Funny how I was all set on an M2 MBA earlier this week, then a 14” MBP and finally a 16” MBP!
The classic “well if I spend a bit more I can get this….” and so on, and so on.
I have the 16" but will soon swap it for the 14". The 16" is no doubt an incredible device but it's extremely large and heavy for traveling. I've taken it off my desk literally just once since its arrival several months ago. My plan was to just keep it on my desk 95% of the time, the other 5% perhaps on my bed or kitchen island or somewhere else in my house. But due to a flurry of client requests, I will need to travel quite a lot in the coming months. No way I can take the 16" with me.
I remember carrying 11 lb. laptops for work, so the 2 lb. difference between the two and the total 4.8 lbs. for the one I'm getting is negligible for me.
I'll take the larger screen and desktop power all day!
I think the new MBPs will be released spring of next year.
But here's the thing, if you are able to wait then you didn't need a computer now. Just set a fall deadline, buy then even if the next rumors say. its only a couple of months later.
But here's the thing, if you are able to wait then you didn't need a computer now. Just set a fall deadline, buy then even if the next rumors say. its only a couple of months later.
Last edited:
I guess your workflow just does not require screen real estate. I deal with images so mine always has. I schlepped a 17" MBP everywhere and never for moment would trade away screen real estate just to save two pounds. I was pissed when the 17" was discontinued.
I am a bit confused. I think M2, M2 Pro and M2 Max have 2 more CPU cores than their counterparts. So M2 Max should be faster than M1 Max and M1 Pro?
Last edited:
Even before the M-series chips modern CPUs have become so powerful that any new box will be "fast" compared to our past experience (and, running last year's tasks using last year's software!). The fact is that overall performance is constantly improving for all kinds of reasons: modernized chip design, modernized internal architecture, modernized code, modernized memory bandwidth, modernized Wifi/USB/Thunderbolt, etc.
M1 simply is 18 months older than M2, and in 18 months of the tech world a lot of improvement happens. M1 although fast, is now older tech. Few of us running 2021 apps in 2022 will notice the impact of 2 more cores on an already rockin' fast 2021 M1 CPU, but most of us will notice the overall performance difference of M2 over M1 in 2024 when we are running 2023 apps using 2023 mass storage devices and communicating 2024-size-files over 2024 networks.
Last edited:
LOL. I'm late to this discussion but...
There used to be a weekly tabloid magazine called MacWEEK that covered all the rumors.
These M series machines are so great I can imagine Apple keeping 3 or 4 in the official lineup until they decide to discontinue.
Yes, wait for M2 MBP but realise it’s going to be more expensive, potentially a lot more, than M1 MBP base models.
Do yourself a favour and pull the trigger and get to work. If anyone is worried about these tiny margins you probably don’t love your job/hobby that much anyway…you just want a sexy machine.
Yes, wait for M2 MBP but realise it’s going to be more expensive, potentially a lot more, than M1 MBP base models.
Do yourself a favour and pull the trigger and get to work. If anyone is worried about these tiny margins you probably don’t love your job/hobby that much anyway…you just want a sexy machine.
Sorry but I consider that advice so trite and so misleading as to be flat wrong. As long as one's current box is still working, it makes total sense to see what an imminently expected generational upgrade (such as M1 Max MBP to M2 Max MBP) turns out be prior to buying a new box.
Although current supply issues may change things, we normally would expect to see an MBP upgrade of some kind ~October. It would be wrong-headed thinking to unnecessarily upgrade in August instead of waiting to see what happens in two months.
There are many reasons to wait:
-a key new architecture may present; WiFi/USB/TB/DDR/whatever
-added ports (like back to 4 or more TB ports) may present
-exceptional M1 deals may present after M2 is out
-we can expect that M2 will be at least ~20% more powerful, and that is not insignificant
-M2 will be at least 18 months more future-proof than M1
Note that one can still choose to buy M1 after the M2 boxes are announced, and likely at improved pricing. There are zero reasons not to wait.
Edit: Obviously if one's current box fails, buying what is immediately available may be one's only choice, and appropriate. E.g. my 2016 MBP struggles a bit but is still adequate. If it failed I would buy an off-the-shelf M1 MBP in a heartbeat and it would work well. But as long as it does not fail I will wait and order a new M1 or M2 MBP (and wait two months for the 64 GB RAM option) after we see what is available circa October.
Last edited:
I‘ll reiterate what I said. Any upgrade is going to be incremental. What’s going to change apart from the M2 chips?
The High probability is no design changes this time around. It’s already a great looking machine with a mini led screen.
Plus, you have zero evidence new MacBook Pro’s are coming in October anyway. It‘s a low probability bet with minimal returns. You could be sitting on your hands until October - then March, then next June, all the way into late 2023 - if you start playing these pointless guessing games.
If the MBP 14’ and 16’ are upgraded, the base model is going to be, what, 20-25% more expensive than the base models now. In which case, why not just get an M1 max today?
And no, there won’t be any significant reductions from the current sale prices of the 14’ and 16’. There never is.
Things might be different from the jump to M2 to M3 because of the 3mn process. But M1 to M2 isn‘t worth fussing about on the 14 and 16 inches.
Last edited:
It is interesting how completely we disagree. ;~)
You say
Any upgrade is going to be incremental.
I say
Even incremental change can comprise substantial improvement. Apple's engineers have not been on holiday since last year; they have upgraded thousands of lines of code.
You say
What’s going to change apart from the M2 chips?
I say
-Architecturally electronics may be upgraded to meet more modern standards, such as WiFi/USB/TB/DDR or whatever.
-Added ports (like back to 4 or more TB ports) may present.
You say
M1 to M2 isn‘t worth fussing about.
I say
M1 to M2 is a generational change, a whole new physically larger chip. Again, Apple's engineers have not been on holiday for the last 18 months. We can unequivocally expect substantial improvements over the first generation. The lowest end laptop (MBA) already showed us ~20% performance gains.
You say
And no, there won’t be any significant reductions from the current sale prices of the 14’ and 16’. There never is.
I say
I saved ~$1k by buying a (heavily loaded top end) 2016 MBP after the 2017 upgrades came out. So yes, there may be significant savings available. [Note that I only look at the high end MBPs, so my observations may not apply to base models.]
You say
You could be sitting on your hands until October - then March, then next June, all the way into late 2023 - if you start playing these pointless guessing games.
I say
What does sitting on your hands mean? The buyers in question (me being one of them) are not sitting on their hands. We are working away on our existing aging setups. There is nothing pointless about waiting to see the M2 generation specifics before making a 5-year $4k purchase decision to upgrade.
You say
Plus, you have zero evidence new MacBook Pro’s are coming in October anyway. It‘s a low probability bet with minimal returns.
I say
Agreed I have zero 2022 evidence new MacBook Pro’s are coming in October; just my observations of past Apple performance. IMO however it is not low probability, it is ~50% probability - - with zero cost to waiting to find out.
Why not wait and see what M2 may bring?
While the performance improvements will most likely amount to pretty small vs current M1 Pro/Max, there is a possibility for more "silent" upgrades that may require the M2 chip:
- Fixing potential issues that exist on the M1 hardware (haven't followed if there are any worth mentioning).
- Updating HDMI 2.0 port to 2.1 would be a big improvement and would make the machines more future-proof as more HDMI 2.1 displays are coming out now.
- Any WiFi/BT/USB/TB improvements.
Funny you said you’d trust Gurman and that MaxTech is a hack and MaxTech had Gurman on their channel for an interview. Apparently Gurman who you trust didn’t feel MaxTech is a hack or else he wouldn’t have interviewed with them.