MacBook Pro with Apple's new processor expected later this year, top Apple analyst says

The 2020 MacBook Air on the left versus the 2020 13-inch MacBook Pro on the right.

Todd Haselton | CNBC

Top Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said predicted on Friday that the company will launch a new MacBook Pro with its in-house chips in the fourth quarter.

Apple announced during its annual developer conference in June that it will move its computers from Intel chips to Apple-made processors. It currently uses its own chips for iPhones and iPads but has been using Intel processors for its computers for 15 years.

CEO Tim Cook said at the conference that Apple will ship the first Macs with its own chips by the end of this year and that it will complete its transition in about two years. The company has not yet said which computers will be among the first to get the new chips.

An Apple spokesperson wasn't immediately available to comment.

"We predict that Apple will launch new MacBook models including the new 13.3-inch MacBook Pro equipped with the Apple Silicon in 4Q20, the new MacBook Air equipped with the Apple Silicon in 4Q20 or 1Q21, and new 14- and 16-inch MacBook Pro models equipped with the Apple Silicon and all-new form factor design in late 2Q21 or 3Q21," TF International Securities' Kuo said in a note.

"In our bull-case scenario, the MacBook shipments in 2021 will markedly increase to 18–20 mn units if Apple lowers the price of MacBook Air equipped with the lower-cost Apple Silicon and the demand for the all-new form factor design 14- and 16-inch MacBook Pro models is better than that of legacy models."

Macs with Apple processors will allow the company to more closely control the Mac release schedule and deliver improvements, such as improved battery life, since it won't need to wait for Intel to build and launch new chips. But it may face challenges to ensure that outside apps run on its computers.

Apple hopes to avoid that challenge by providing a feature called "Rosetta 2" that will allow apps that haven't been updated for its new processors to run on new computers. And it's providing new tools to help developers port their apps over.

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