While Apple is rapidly transitioning its Mac lineup from Intel processors to its own Apple Silicon, it's worth noting that the relationship between Apple and Intel hasn't been completely severed as reports indicate that Apple still has one more Intel-based Mac in the works.
We're expecting at least one new Mac Pro to feature an Intel chip, as Apple is not expected to completely transition its most powerful Mac to Apple Silicon yet. One of the new Mac Pro machines will feature an entire redesign and the other will have the current design with updated internals.
Apple has proven to be a worthy competitor to some of Intel's best portable processors, but it seems that Apple is not yet confident enough to switch the Mac Pro, a desktop-class professional workstation used by animators, photographers, Hollywood insiders, and more.
We're expecting the Mac Pro to feature Intel's Xeon Scalable processor, which the company says has "advanced performance, security, efficiency, and built-in artificial intelligence" to handle the internet of things.
It may seem odd that Apple would release another Mac with an Intel chip, but there are other reasons that are likely influencing Apple's decision. The architecture of Apple's chips is different than that of Intel's. Apple uses a program called "Rosetta 2" to translate apps built for Intel computers to run on Apple Silicon Macs.
Apple may be wanting to hold out a little longer to make sure the translation technology is mature before allowing its most high-end professional and demanding customers to use it. Apple can buy more time before it completes its transition to its own chips by offering an Intel Mac Pro alongside an Apple Silicon powered option.
The renders of the new Mac Pro have a smaller and more compact design.
The new Mac Pro may feature up to 32 high- performance cores and up to 128 graphics cores. The new Mac Pro could have two or four dies of the M1 Max chip, according to some reports.
