For what seems like the first time in ages, Apple is set to upgrade every Mac in its lineup with the M4 chip, assuming the rumors turn out to be accurate. While there have been near misses in the past, it hasn’t happened in at least the last ten years.
This fall, Apple unveiled the initial Macs featuring the M4 chip: MacBook Pro, iMac, and Mac mini. These updates brought several significant enhancements, including additional and faster Thunderbolt ports, a nano-texture display option, and improved Center Stage camera capabilities.
These updates included a substantial portion of the Mac lineup, leaving only the MacBook Air, Mac Studio, and Mac Pro outstanding. As per Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, the MacBook Air is expected to incorporate the M4 by spring, while both the Mac Studio and Mac Pro are slated to adopt it by mid-2025. If these timelines hold, every Mac in the lineup will be current.
Historical Mac Refreshes
There have been few instances of every Mac in the lineup being up-to-date simultaneously. The closest was with the M1 chip, where nearly every Mac saw an upgrade over 18 months – with the exception of the Mac Pro. The irregular refreshes of the Mac Pro serve as a key indicator for tracking updates.
The last refresh of the Mac Pro occurred in 2023, where it received the M2 Ultra chip. Most Macs benefited from the M2 family of chips that began with the MacBook Air and 13″ MacBook Pro at WWDC22, followed by the Mac mini and MacBook Pro in January 2023, concluding with the Mac Studio and Mac Pro at WWDC23. However, there was no refresh for the iMac with the M2, which disrupted the intended cycle.
Reflecting further back to 2019 – the year we first saw the current Mac Pro design – Apple also refreshed a majority of Macs, starting with the iMac (both sizes) early in the year, followed by the MacBook Air and MacBook Pro mid-year, and ending with the new 16″ MacBook Pro and the Mac Pro later that year.
Yet again, an iMac Pro or Mac mini refresh was absent, making 2019 yet another imperfect cycle. Even if one counts the Mac mini from that year—due to its late 2018 release—the lack of an iMac Pro refresh would still detract from that assessment.
While I could elaborate further, I’ll keep it concise. The last time every Mac received an update within a year was in 2013 when Apple launched the trashcan Mac Pro alongside updates to the MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, iMac, and Mac mini.
Conclusion
If the rumors hold true, the M4 will mark the first time in over a decade that Apple has updated every Mac model. The MacBook Air looks to be a sure bet, and the same applies to the Mac Studio and Mac Pro. Let’s hope Apple maintains this trajectory, and we should be in a good position.
What are your thoughts on Apple’s M4 Mac lineup? Share your opinions in the comments.
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