A possible timetable with a 2020 goal for Apple to part ways with Intel, has been unearthed by insider sources, this week. An internal project, codenamed “Kalamata” is rumored to be at the center of the company’s efforts to develop its own Mac CPUs and possibly GPUs as well, which means that Intel could possibly lose approximately 5 percent of their business from Apple, with a chance of having to face a brand new competitor in the process.
Apple has been working on its own chips for a long time, so far with limited applications within the Mac ecosystem, as its focus has been primarily on iOS devices. With news of the mysterious Kalamata project, Apple’s own T1 and T2 chipsets, developed to control many functions within the latest Macbook Pro and iMac Pro models, suddenly send a clear message to third party chip manufacturers.
It could be argued that Kalamata is already reaching an advanced phase, as rumors of a possible replacement of the aging Macbook Air may be released soon, powered by an Apple-designed ARM processor, which would place the new laptop in direct competition with Chromebook devices, as well as the most entry-level Windows 2-in-1s.
According to sources, the radically updated entry-level Mac laptop was initially scheduled to be unveiled at the recent education-focused event in Chicago. Instead, a cheaper iPad was announced.
With that said, even amidst so many claims and theories from multiple sources, a sudden shift from third party to proprietary is still unlikely, as Apple may roll out devices with new proprietary processors in small increments, and according to strict timetables, as it already does for its current products.
2020 seems a feasible deadline for updates that may include not only MacBook laptops, but also Apple iMac Pro desktops, powered by Apple’s own graphic chips, and CPUs.
An interesting side-effect of Macs powered by Apple’s own processors, could turn out to be in terms of costs.
Apple-manufactured processors mean lower costs of manufacture for the company, which could translate in more competitive prices for Macs looking to upstage Windows 10 devices.
Currently, Microsoft’s most high-end product, the Surface Studio, is battling on near to equal grounds with the Intel-powered Apple iMac Pro, as both computers share similar pricing structures, according to specs dictated by Intel, AMD and Nvidia.
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