DigiTimes: Apple To Launch ARM-Based MacBook Pro/Air By The End Of 2020

As per a new report from DigiTimes today, Apple will release its first ARM-based (Apple Silicon) 13-inch MacBook Pro and MacBook Air by the...

As per a new report from DigiTimes today, Apple will release its first ARM-based (Apple Silicon) 13-inch MacBook Pro and MacBook Air by the end of 2020.

Like always, Taiwan's supply chain will ship the backlight unit (BLU) and other components for the next-generation MacBook from the third quarter of this year.

While Apple plans to release 13-inch MacBook Pro and MacBook Air powered by Apple Silicon by the end of this year, sources predict that cumulative shipments of MacBooks will exceed that of 160-1,700 million units by 2020.

At WWDC in June, Apple officially announced that its Mac would be transitioning from Intel x86 to its own Apple Silicon chip. Apple stated it plans to launch the first Apple Silicon-based Mac by the end of this year and complete the Intel transition in around two years.

The report said that Apple will rely heavily on the ARM chip supplied by TSMC for Mac. According to sources, TSMC will use 5nm process technology to manufacture Apple's custom chips for Mac. It will still be produced in small batches in the first half of 2021, but the output will increase significantly in the second half of next year.

Integrated circuit design company ASMedia is another supplier of Apple's ARM-based Mac, and they will also provide a USB controller for the new Mac.