Specs for Apple’s first “Apple Silicon” MacBook have leaked

Apple plans to transition away from Intel processors, unifying their iPhone, iPad and Mac lineups with “Apple Silicon”, custom ARM processors which have been created with the company’s software and products in mind. 

The first of these new “Apple Silicon” Macs are due to release later this year, starting with what’s rumoured to be a 12-inch MacBook. This system will reportedly weight less than a kilo and utilise an Apple A14X processor, delivering users a 15-20 hour battery life. 

These alleged specifications come from Apple Lab, who also claims that this device will cost $799 and use USB-C ports for charging and connectivity. This Mac will reportedly ship with 8GB and 16GB RAM options and 256GB or 512GB of system storage and feature a 720p camera for “FaceTime HD” support.  

One of the key draws of Apple silicon is the power efficiency of Apple’s existing mobile processors. Apple is currently one of the best ARM processor designers out there, and thanks to that the company can deliver industry-leading performance within the mobile CPU market, and if Apple can scale this performance appropriately, Apple can deliver the same efficiency and performance to the Mac.

Though strong processor design and the utilisation of leading-edge lithography nodes, Apple believes that they can deliver better products than Intel, especially as Intel struggles to transition to smaller lithography nodes. 

Starting with smaller MacBook designs will allow Apple to compete with Intel’s processors a lot more easily, allowing the company to start its Apple Silicon transition with what could be an easy performance win for the company. At a minimum, Apple Silicon this device will be cheaper than today’s 13-inch Intel-powered MacBook Pro and MacBook Air models.