Apple has a fully redesigned MacBook Pro launching next week that promises to be a major upgrade, except in one key area.
New MacBook Pro will reportedly have no performance boost, use current M5 Pro and Max chips
Next week on October 28 at its ‘Pro and tell’ event, Apple is expected to unveil a redesigned MacBook Pro with major improvements.
The new model is rumored to feature:
- brand new industrial design
- significantly lighter and a bit thinner
- OLED display
- touchscreen
- Dynamic Island
- no notch
- wildcard: possibly a C2 cellular modem
If most or all of these rumors prove true, it’s going to be a big upgrade for the MacBook Pro.
But there’s one crucial area that’s not expected to improve: performance.
Per Mark Gurman, the new MacBook Pro will include the same M5 Pro and M5 Max chips that first debuted nearly eight months ago. That means a product that specializes in performance is going to offer zero performance boosts.
It’s an odd move, and reportedly the result of Apple skipping M6 Pro and Max chips altogether in favor of fast-tracking the M7 Pro and Max for 2027.
Considering how expensive the MacBook Pro is already, and the premium this new model is likely to bring, we may be looking at a ~$2,999 starting price for a model that’s no faster than before.
Perhaps Apple will replace the current M5 Pro and M5 Max models entirely at the same price point. I would love that, but it’s probably wishful thinking in our memory-crisis moment.
Overall, I’m fascinated to see how Apple pitches the new MacBook Pro to prospective upgraders. Will Pro users who passed on M5 Pro and M5 Max chips earlier this year all of a sudden be convinced now? We’ll have to wait and see.
How likely are you to upgrade to the new MacBook Pro? Let us know in the comments.
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