Here's all you need to know about Apple's 'One more thing' event

Apple's 15-year partnership with Intel seems to be beginning to end starting November 10, when new Mac laptops are likely to be revealed at the Apple online event dubbed 'One More Thing'.

That little 'thing' is likely to be Apple Mac laptops with Apple-designed processors dubbed Apple Silicon, which will be replacing Intel chips that have been a mainstay with Apple laptops/desktops since 2006.

In June, Apple said that the transition away from Intel chips will take two years. After updating its laptop line, Apple will still have until 2022 to transition the iMac, iMac Pro, Mac Pro, and Mac mini to Apple Silicon.

The first Mac processors from Apple is likely to be based on the A14 chip found in the latest iPhones and iPad Air, and initial tests within Apple. This indicates improved power efficiency over the Intel components.

When announcing the transition at WWDC in June, Apple said the move would provide a common architecture across all of its devices. That means future iPhones, Macs, iPads and Apple Watches will run a variation of the same chip. That will allow devices to work together better and let iPhone apps run natively on Macs for the first time, Bloomberg reported.

Apple developer kits for Apple Silicon came with a Mac mini, an iPad Pro processor and featured macOS Big Sur developer preview.

The new Macs will mark Apple’s third major product release this fall. The iPhone 12 and HomePod mini lines debuted in October. In September, the company announced new Apple Watches and iPads.

Earlier in May, Apple had upgraded the 13-inch MacBook Pro with the 10th generation Intel processors and brought back the scissor-switch mechanism keyboard to the 13-inch which, for the longest time was using butterfly style keyboard which was plagued by dust and usability issues.

 There have been updates to the iMac lineup in the last few months.

Also said to be available along with the Apple Silicon-based Mac's, will be MacOS Big Sur (macOS 11) -- which is said to bring more changes to the desktop/laptop macOS. It will bring both tablet and mobile app features to work in unison with the Apple Silicon chips.

One thing some Mac users fear is that they might not be able to use Bootcamp to dual-boot onto Windows for certain graphical applications, games, and software as the Apple silicon is based on ARM architecture while Windows PC's/Laptops have Intel x86 architecture processors which use a different set machine-level commands from ARM.

While Microsoft does have a Windows 10 version for ARM-based tablets and processors, it is unlikely to work with Apple Silicon-based MacBook natively.

At the WWDC preview,  it has been shown that Apple might likely other OS through Virtualisation or Virtual Machines as opposed to running it natively on an Apple silicon-based MacBook.

Productions plans

Bloomberg reports that Apple and overseas suppliers are ramping up production of three Mac laptops with Apple processors: new 13-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pros, and a new 13-inch MacBook Air.

Foxconn is assembling the two smaller laptops, while Quanta Computer Inc is building the larger MacBook Pro.

The smaller models are further ahead in production and are likely to be the two laptops showcased at the November 10 event. Beyond the processor change, the devices won't be seeing any significant design changes.

Impact on Intel sales

Apple has less than 10 per cent of the market for personal computers, so the direct impact on Intel sales may be limited, the Bloomberg report pointed out.

Intel's decision to delay a new manufacturing process had let rivals catch up. This may have partly the reason behind Apple’s decision to move to in-house chips, even as Apple has been steadily shifting towards in-house processors for many years, the report added.

The partnership between Apple and Intel started in 2005 when Apple Co-founder-the late Steve Jobs indicated a move away from PowerPC processors.

Over the years, in parallel, Apple was working on more energy-efficient chips for mobile devices based on Arm designs and continues to use those to power the iPhone and iPad.

At Apple’s recent earnings call, CEO Tim Cook hinted: “Without giving away too much, I can tell you that this year has a few more exciting things in store.”

Timing: The 'One More Thing' event is likely to take place virtually at Apple Park on Tuesday, November 10, at 11:30 PM.

COMMENT NOW