New M2-Powered MacBooks Could Be Conspicuously Absent At Today's Apple Event

Last-minute rumors leading up to Apple's Peek Performance event have cast doubt on long-running expectations that Apple will reveal a new or updated MacBook model with an M2 chip on Tuesday.

Gurman reported last month that Apple was preparing to launch at least one new Mac at its March 8 event, and he speculated that it would be a high-end Mac mini and a refreshed 13-inch MacBook Pro.

That was before we heard of the rumors of a Mac studio. 9to5Mac reported on Friday that Apple is working on a device that looks like a Mac mini and a Mac Pro.

On Monday, Miani shared renders of a new Mac allegedly called the Mac Studio, which he said will be introduced on March 8. Gurman has confirmed that the Mac mini is the smaller version of the Mac Pro.

A refreshed 13-inch MacBook Pro with a new M2 chip is one of the obvious possibilities for an Apple event later this year. Gurman has poured cold water on the likelihood that an M2 powered Mac will be announced alongside an M1 series Mac at the event, and Miani has said he doesn't expect any Mac notebooks to be introduced at all.

Another note: I think it will be odd for the M2 to be announced alongside an M1-series Mac mini/Mac Studio/Small Mac Pro — so maybe we should look for that as part of the May-June cycle. On the other hand, Apple is testing M2 Macs (8 CPU/10 GPU cores) against App Store apps now. — Mark Gurman (@markgurman) March 7, 2022

The developer who spotted hints of the M2 Apple chip in the latest macOS Monterey 12.3 beta doesn't mean that an M2 powered MacBook is coming in the spring. It is wise to temper expectations that a new Mac notebook will be announced by Apple in the coming hours.

Apple is expected to announce a new color for the iPhone 13 and a refreshed iPad Air at the event. A new display is said to be unveiled by Apple.

There could be some news on Apple's services, as well as dates for the public release ofiOS and iPadOS 15.4, along with macOS Monterey 12.3, which enables Universal Control.

There are suggestions that Apple may offer a peek at a future product, but that is purely speculative.

MacRumors will have in-depth coverage of the Apple event. We have a live blog on our website, and we also have a live feed on our social media accounts. Check out our guide for a full rundown of everything we expect to see.