Waiting for the M1 16" MacBook Pro Thread

[oneMadRssn]

I REALLY want a basic 16" Macbook Air/Pro. Same M1 we have now, fanless or the same thermal design as in the current 13", 2 ports, but with a 16" screen. That's it.

I don't need anything super high power, but with some good screen real estate to have two docs or browser windows side by side, or a nice big Excel.

 

[ader42]

I hope Apple can see fit to use some of their cost savings to lower the price of the larger laptops.

In early 2014 I bought the 15” MBP Retina maxed put with RAM and SSD, basically the top of the line most expensive options for £2,400 including VAT. I had more budget then and would have spent more if there were further upgrades available. That device is still a really usable machine but is now mid-range specs, I did get a new battery put in 18 months ago.

So I do want a newer faster better Apple Silicon laptop, just don’t want to spend £4,000 on it.

 

[DHagan4755]

I hope Apple can see fit to use some of their cost savings to lower the price of the larger laptops.

That would be great, but I'm not so sure how that will pan out.

I see the 14" starting at $1,799 like the existing higher-end 4-port 13" MacBook Pro.

So 14" MacBook Pro - mini LED backlighting
16GB RAM
512 GB SSD

+ $200 for 1 TB SSD @ $1,999, etc...
+ $300 for dedicated GPU.

Perhaps, like the iPad Pro, the similarly spec'd 16" version will be $1,999. With options to add better (or discrete) graphics.

So conceivably we'll have a similarly configured 16" MacBook Pro with dedicated graphics for $2,299?

 

[Sumter]

Slightly regret getting my base 16" model (bought in August for self-studies and remote work convenience). Those battery gains alone are insane, my 16" lasts me like 6 hours on near-full brightness doing light to medium tasks (excel, outlook, teams meeting calls, presentation, browsing, watching videos, coding, listening to music, messaging on discord etc.) I am sure the M1 (or whatever it is for 16" pros) is going to last like 12 hours for the same usage. I don't run bootcamp.

Half tempted to save up money for first-gen M1 16" and give my intel one to my husband (who has no laptops, just an iPad Pro) or trade it in when it comes out, but I also want to wait on it until my intel becomes slow/obsolete/outdated, which won't happen for many years. Maybe M2 or M3.

 

[JeepGuy]

I would totally buy a 17” MacBook Pro. If they made them again. There’s no rumors of them so I’m being realistic that it’s staying at 16”.

would love a 17", my old 17" died last year.

 

[smoking monkey]

• 12 high performance cores, 4 efficiency cores (wouldn't be surprised if it's 16 high performance cores)
• Industry leading mobile GPU with the ability to support up to two displays with 6016‑by‑3384 resolution or up to four displays with 4096‑by‑2304 resolution at 60Hz at over a billion colors (just like the current 16" MacBook Pro)
• 4 ports, hopefully Thunderbolt 4
• 1080p webcam (because 2020)

Maybes/Nice to have options:

• Redesigned industrial enclosure
• Mini LED backlighting
• ProMotion
• 24 hour battery life (is that possible? )
• Lower priced model without as decked out a GPU

That all sounds great along with Face ID! But that is probably the biggest change cycle to a Mac laptop ever. Inside, outside and Screen change! Wow. Prepare to pay for it. I'm thinking 100-200 prices raised on the 16 and far more in Europe and Australia.

My Late-2013 15-inch has 16 gigs of ram ... I am really tempted by the Air as just a sort of for-fun latptop to play with and try out the M1... but I'm a video/TV editor so it feels silly to me to invest that kind of money unless I can use it for work too (I often use it to do minor After Effects work like rendering out title cards and things). My maxed-out 2013 15-incher has been a champ but it's time is coming...

the M1 Air will destroy your 2013 MBP for your work related tasks, it's just the screen size that you'll have to contend with.

Honestly, in most aspects I'd be fine with a MacBook Air if I could get it with a 16" panel. All I want is a larger display.

Yes. Now that the Air is so powerful, that's exactly what I'd like! I do a lot of heavy Keynote work, but I think the new Airs and Low Tier Pros are more than juicy (I'll find out in a few weeks when the lowest tier Air arrives). BUT... we know that isn't going to happen. We'll just have to get the lowest tier 16" and be happy to pay the 2,500 US dollars! Probably more when you factor in AppleCare and there might be an Apple tax on new designs.

 

[Lesser Evets]

My desires for the 16”:

• 16 core
• 4 ports
• 8 tb ssd
• NOW.

 

[Yebubbleman]

My Mac needs are REALLY minimal these days. Windows 10 has replaced the vast majority of what I did on a Mac (better compatibility, better upgradability, less buggy releases overall). The biggest things I do are x86 virtualization and maybe gaming, both of which sort of pigeonhole me into being an Intel Mac user for the foreseeable future. Even when I inevitably cross over into Apple Silicon Mac land, I will probably be targeting whatever the then-equivalent 2-port 13" MacBook Pro computer is at the time.

That said, as someone that follows Apple and does both Apple themed IT work from time to time as well as Apple themed tech consulting on the side, I do hope that the Apple Silicon 16" MacBook Pro and replacement to the current 4-port Intel 13" MacBook Pro are really good. It'll make them easier to recommend to people!

 

[baummer]

So when do we think we will see 16” models?

 

[pshufd]

So when do we think we will see 16” models?

November 2021.

BTW, Apple could see huge sales on both 14 and 16 inch models. There is a severe shortage of PC parts and Apple could sell a ton of machines because people can't build them or acquire them due to parts shortages. Apple has TSM priority and could make systems competent at gaming for less than what scalpers are getting for video cards.

We bought a GTX 1660 Ti OC last year for $289. They are selling for $599 on Amazon right now. I bought a GTX 1060 Ti OC last fall for about $179. I don't think that you can even get these right now. A lot of AMD CPU SKUs are just not for sale right now.

 

[baummer]

November 2021.

BTW, Apple could see huge sales on both 14 and 16 inch models. There is a severe shortage of PC parts and Apple could sell a ton of machines because people can't build them or acquire them due to parts shortages. Apple has TSM priority and could make systems competent at gaming for less than what scalpers are getting for video cards.

We bought a GTX 1660 Ti OC last year for $289. They are selling for $599 on Amazon right now. I bought a GTX 1060 Ti OC last fall for about $179. I don't think that you can even get these right now. A lot of AMD CPU SKUs are just not for sale right now.

Interesting analysis. Wonder if we’ll see it earlier than November, guess depends on what they’re going to use for a dedicated GPU.

 

[pshufd]

Interesting analysis. Wonder if we’ll see it earlier than November, guess depends on what they’re going to use for a dedicated GPU.

They could hit the midrange gaming market with 3xM1 GPU cores. 4xM1 would be a bonus. Will they have the die space? I think November as it's kind of a free time in the calendar year for them and that's when they did the M1.

 

[Fomalhaut]

Interesting analysis. Wonder if we’ll see it earlier than November, guess depends on what they’re going to use for a dedicated GPU.

The GPU is highly likely to continue with Apple's unified memory design, and I would be astonished if they went back to a 3rd party GPU from AMD.

The GPU may be discrete in that it is on a separate silicon die to the CPU cores, but I expect it to be on the same SoC package. This is similar in concept to the AMD APUs used in the XBox X and Playstation 5.

We would hope to see some improvement in the Apple Silicon GPU core performance, and faste, r memory speeds. On a new 16MBP, Apple would need to significantly exceed the current top-end Radeon Pro 5600M - my guess is that would require at least 16 GPU cores, would make the new SoC a lot bigger than the current one.

 

[Fomalhaut]

They could hit the midrange gaming market with 3xM1 GPU cores. 4xM1 would be a bonus. Will they have the die space? I think November as it's kind of a free time in the calendar year for them and that's when they did the M1.

Only 3 GPU cores? The current M1 Macs have 7 or 8 GPU cores. Or did you mean 3 times the number of cores, i.e. 24 cores?

My guess is that the new 14" would have 12-16 GPU cores and the 16" could have 16-24 cores.

 

[Serban55]

Only 3 GPU cores? The current M1 Macs have 7 or 8 GPU cores. Or did you mean 3 times the number of cores, i.e. 24 cores?

My guess is that the new 14" would have 12-16 GPU cores and the 16" could have 16-24 cores.

yes, i think that what he meant....3 times the current m1 gpu cores...so around 21-24 cores
The 16" it doesnt even had to be on par or surpass the 5600M in raw specs....it has to be on par with 5500 and because of the power/w it will go beyond that 5600m because of that....my 5600m loose a lot of power after 2-3 min because of the heat and throttling
The thing for 16" is , if apple with unified memory will get 32 gb ram or they will go from first gen with a SoC that supports up to 64 ?! Im pretty sure the 14" will be maxed out at 32gb

 

[thenewperson]

Only 3 GPU cores? The current M1 Macs have 7 or 8 GPU cores. Or did you mean 3 times the number of cores, i.e. 24 cores?

My guess is that the new 14" would have 12-16 GPU cores and the 16" could have 16-24 cores.

My guess as well, though there was the rumour of 32 cores on the MBP. I'd love configs of

- 14" 8P+4E, 16 GPU
- 14" 12P + 4E, 24 GPU

- 16" 12P + 4E, 24 GPU
- 16: 16P + 4E, 32 GPU

 

[iPadified]

My guess as well, though there was the rumour of 32 cores on the MBP. I'd love configs of

- 14" 8P+4E, 16 GPU
- 14" 12P + 4E, 24 GPU

- 16" 12P + 4E, 24 GPU
- 16: 16P + 4E, 32 GPU

"X" usually means multiplied so 24. How "large" chips can Apple make before the yield goes down? There is 16 billion transistors now...The AMD 6900XT has 26.8 so there's some room to grow but not endlessly. However, these "M" chips will cost much more than M1 due to yield issues and larger footprint. Already now we see binning of the M1 into 7 core and 8 core GPU suggesting significant yield issues.

 

[thenewperson]

"X" usually means multiplied so 24. How "large" chips can Apple make before the yield goes down? There is 16 billion transistors now...The AMD 6900XT has 26.8 so there's some room to grow but not endlessly. However, these "M" chips will cost much more than M1 due to yield issues and larger footprint. Already now we see binning of the M1 into 7 core and 8 core GPU suggesting significant yield issues.

Sure, but they're going into more expensive Macs so I can see them going for it without issue.

 

[ascender]

I REALLY want a basic 16" Macbook Air/Pro. Same M1 we have now, fanless or the same thermal design as in the current 13", 2 ports, but with a 16" screen. That's it.

I don't need anything super high power, but with some good screen real estate to have two docs or browser windows side by side, or a nice big Excel.

Same here. The M1 MacBook Air is more than powerful enough for my workflow and the battery life is amazing, but I do find it frustrating when trying to work with a few different programs on a piece of work. As much as I use Spaces, there's times where I just want to have a few windows open on one desktop.

 

[macnmac]

My desires for the 16”:

• 16 core
• 4 ports
• 8 tb ssd
• NOW.

but how much RAM tho...?

 

[DHagan4755]

November 2021.

WWDC. There's NO way Apple's waiting 2 years to update the 16".

 

[Fomalhaut]

WWDC. There's NO way Apple's waiting 2 years to update the 16".

Hopefully at WWDC, but an M1X MBP16 with 12-16 cores and a GPU equivalent or better to the current AMD discrete GPUs is quite a tall order for only 7-8 months extra development after the M1. We're asking for a 100% improvement in less than a year. Possible....sure...but not easy I expect.

 

[thenewperson]

WWDC. There's NO way Apple's waiting 2 years to update the 16".

It's possible. @leman has theorised they'd wait till they can have an ARM v9 chip, and based on the recent rumours I'm seeing it more and more.

 

[leman]

WWDC. There's NO way Apple's waiting 2 years to update the 16".

Hopefully at WWDC, but an M1X MBP16 with 12-16 cores and a GPU equivalent or better to the current AMD discrete GPUs is quite a tall order for only 7-8 months extra development after the M1. We're asking for a 100% improvement in less than a year. Possible....sure...but not easy I expect.

I think we need to look at it in the context of the current machines. An Apple Silicon 16" will have to outclass the current 5600M, otherwise it's a "failure" (from the PR perspective). Apple will need at least a 32-core GPU cluster for this. This is why I am very skeptical that the hypothesized "M1X" (8+4 CPU cores, 16 GPU cores) is a 16" chip. I see it more as a 30W chip for the higher-end 13"/14" MBP model. For the 16" model, I envision a 60-70 Watt SoC with a 32 core GPU, as previously mentioned. That SoC will also need considerable memory bandwidth, my guess here is 4 or even 6 DDR5 memory channels (for bandwidth between 200-300GB/s). Timeframe-wise, I don't see these chips arriving in summer, there are a lot of challenges to solve and one also needs to think about the 5nm production capability. But they might be a possibility for late 2021, with next generation of Apple Silicon (A15/M2).

Basically here is my guess:

- "M1X"-based 13" or 14" MBP (+MacMini + iMac) before or at WWDC
- "M2?"-based 16" (60-70 watts, 12+4 CPU, 32 GPU) with DDR5 RAM

I also expect Apple to deliver first DDR5 consumer products. DDR5 is a match made in heaven for Apple computers: high bandwidth, stackable, low power consumption.

 

[iPadified]

Why are you only thinking that the GPU/CPU is getting boost in cores? M1 and A chip has taught us that also the neural engine plays an important part in signal processing/image enhancements etc. Bottom line for Apple and customers is if the machine is faster for some work process such as image manipulations, video editing/filters/exports. How this is balanced in the M chip with the different compute parts does not really matter. So will the neural engine stay the same as the M1?

I agree with leman about the M1X and M2 configs. The iMac 24 inch "Air" will likely get the M1X and be passively cooled (dreaming here) while the high end chip will go into the larger iMacs.