Two of Apple's desktop Macs could skip the M3 generation of chips and wait for the new M4

Apple has already refreshed some of its Mac lineup with new M3 versions including the iMac, MacBook Air, and MacBook Pro. But those who are waiting for Apple to refresh the Mac mini and Mac Pro are likely to be left disappointed, according to a new report.

That report, a paywalled version of the Bloomberg Power On newsletter written by Mark Gurman, claims that Apple may choose to skip the M3 lineup entirely and instead focus on what comes next. This was a response to a question from a reader about what might happen with the Mac mini and Mac Pro, and Gurman believes that the M3 chips will be skipped with the company instead aiming for the M4 launch.

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Expanding on expectations, Gurman said that he believed that Apple would be launching new M4 and M4 Pro chips as soon as the end of 2024 and 2025 with the Mac mini likely to be the beneficiary of that. If that is indeed the case it's unlikely that we should expect any time for Apple to ship a new M3 version of that computer before the M4 versions arrive.

As for the Mac Pro, there's little really known about that and it's likely that we can expect an M4 Ultra chip to be used there. Timeframes are less clear, with Gurman of the belief that the M4 Mac Pro will arrive later in 2025, in the second half.

Apple has generally skipped some devices when refreshing the Macs with new chips including the iMac that never saw an M2 version and the Mac Pro never saw an M1 launch either. However, it's been expected for some time that we will likely see something change with the M4. It's now thought that Apple will choose to refresh the entire Mac lineup with new M4 chips whether that's the base chip, an updated M4 Pro, or an M4 Max. The M4 Ultra will surely follow while there is still a possibility that we might see the first Extreme chip, too.

Long before all of that, Apple has some new hardware expected to be announced soon. The OLED iPad Pro is expected to be announced with an M3 chip inside within the next few weeks, with a new M2-powered iPad Air update also thought to be on the horizon. That lineup is expected to gain an all-new 12.9-inch iPad Air for the first time, and that's set to be a big option for people who want a bit tablet but not an iPad Pro.