Showing posts with label Equipment. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Equipment. Show all posts
Apple Planning Major Redesign, Upgrade of Entire Mac Line: Report

Apple Planning Major Redesign, Upgrade of Entire Mac Line: Report



Even though Apple’s new M1 computers are still quite new, the company is reportedly poised to release even newer versions of both its laptop and desktop lines that feature new processors, significantly upgraded specifications, new designs, and more connectivity starting as early as this summer.

Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman — who has a solid track record when it comes to Apple rumors — reports that Apple is set to “overhaul a broad range of Macs” as early as this summer which will include faster processors, new designs, and improved connectivity across its entire computer lineup. That includes the MacBook Pro, MacBook Air, Mac Mini, iMac, and Mac Pro devices.

The devices that are supposedly going to be ready first are the new MacBook Pros, which would theoretically form a more complete line of pro-oriented laptops by joining the MacBook Pro that was announced last fall and features the M1 processor.

The new MacBook Pros will supposedly be released in both 14-inch and 16-inch screen variants and feature a redesigned chassis as well as see the return of the MagSafe charger, HDMI port, and SD card reader. These notes mirror an earlier Bloomberg report from January that alleged these much-requested ports would be returning to the MacBook Pro line at some point this year.



Additionally, Gurman states that the laptops will also be seeing additional ports for connecting external drives and devices and reduce the number of dongles that creators would need to use in order to effectively work with the Apple laptops.

Connectivity and larger displays are not all that are expected from Apple’s forthcoming MacBook Pros, as Gurman also states that the company intends to launch the computers with two different chips, both of which include eight high-performance cores and two energy-efficient cores but will be available in either 16 or 32 graphics core variations. Additionally, photographers will be able to purchase up to 64 gigabytes of RAM on these new laptops, which significantly outpaces the current max of 16 that is available on the current-generation M1 MacBook Pro.

The new processor that Gurman is referencing is very likely the “M2” processor that recently started production. These reports back up a separate source that noted M2-powered computers would be coming in 2021.

Gurman says that after Apple has released the new MacBook Pro, a new “revamped” MacBook Air, a “low-end” MacBook Pro, and a completely new Mac Pro workstation would follow. The Mac Pro rumors have been circulating since January, but Gurman’s latest report includes a few more details. Apple’s top-of-the-line computer will apparently come in 20 or 40 computing core variations that are made up of 16 or 32 high-performance cores and four or eight high-efficiency cores. The chips would also include either 64 core or 128 core options for graphics. If true, these specifications would easily top the current Mac Pro which was announced in 2019.



As expected, the report also states that the company is still working on a higher-end Mac mini — which Gurman states could be delayed or canceled, as Apple has done previously — and a more mid- to high-tier iMac to add to its recently announced low-end iMacs that are powered by M1.

Based on Gurman’s reporting and other rumors, it is entirely possible that Apple will be able to offer computers powered by in-house silicon at all levels of its line by the end of the year, though it is more likely that these announcements will be spread out over the summer, fall, and spring of 2022.
2021 Macs To Be Powered by ‘M1X’ Chip and Not M2: Report

2021 Macs To Be Powered by ‘M1X’ Chip and Not M2: Report



A new report alleges that the MacBook Pro that is expected as early as this summer won’t use a chip with the “M2” moniker, but instead feature the same cores — just more of them — and will be called the M1X.

9to5mac spotted that iOS developer Dylandkt — a source it says has a “decent track record” as last year he correctly predicted that this year’s iPad Pro would feature the M1 chip — has suggested that the new MacBook Pro will not feature an M2 chip, but rather a super-powered version of the M1 called the M1X.


These reports line up with an earlier report from Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, who wrote that in addition to adding more ports on the upcoming laptop, the computers will launch with two different chips. Both will include eight high-performance cores and two energy-efficient cores but will be available in either 16 or 32 graphics core variations. While Gurman stopped short of stating the name of the new chip, the two reports line up with what is expected from a hardware perspective.

Dylandkt adds that, in a design move that lines up with what Apple has done with the new iMac, the MacBook Pro will ditch the logo on what will be newly reduced in size bezels and will also feature flat edges.


Apple’s new chip production kicked off last month, but if these rumors are to be believed, it won’t be for the M2 as previously expected. Still, the increase in performance that can be expected from adding more cores to the already impressive M1 will still result in professional-oriented devices that are poised to lead the computing pack.

Google Patents Unique Under-Screen Front-Facing Smartphone Camera

Google Patents Unique Under-Screen Front-Facing Smartphone Camera


Efforts to reduce bezels and notches at the top of smartphones are impeded by one major must-have feature: the front-facing camera. While many Android devices have adopted the “hole punch” over the iconic Apple notch, Google may be headed towards a unique under-display camera.

Reported and illustrated by Lets Go Digital, a new from Google details how the company wants to implement an under-screen camera differently than its competitors.

Under-display cameras as a concept are not new. In January, the ZTE Axon 20 5G became the first handheld to offer an under-display smartphone camera in an attempt to create an uninterrupted main display.

Unfortunately, the camera in the Axon 20 is not particularly good and struggles with image degradation issues that are a direct result of its under-display placement. The technology is young though, and while ZTE certainly tried the first proof of concept, Google looks to iterate and improve.

Since this is a new technology that can be difficult to implement properly, Google seems to have has come up with an interesting solution. The company filed the patent in September of last year for a “full-screen display with a sub-display camera” where the front camera is placed under the screen and an extra display panel is integrated. This would be the OLED panel with the same pixel density as the main screen.
Image via Let’s Go Digital


Samsung has filed a similar patent, however, Google seems to want to integrate the auxiliary display in a different way, where the camera sensor and lens are placed under the screen, with the second screen placed directly opposite the camera, located under the main screen. The system uses a prism or mirror placed between the camera and the auxiliary display as shown in the image above.

When the camera is not being used, the content displayed on the second OLED screen is reflected through the prism on the main display. Once the camera is activated, the prism rotates so that incoming light can reach the camera, allowing the user to take high-quality photos or videos. According to the documentation, the optical module is shielded by a window that is between two and three millimeters in size. The small auxiliary display contains three sensors that could be an ambient sensor, proximity sensor, and/or an IR sensor which could be used for 3D face detection since the company has indicated this feature would return in future models of the Pixel smartphones.

It is believed that the Pixel 7 may be the first model smartphone from the company to feature this new “under the screen” technology, as the Google Pixel 6 is more likely to maintain the status quo on its front-facing cameras while mixing things up a bit with its rear-facing array. That design, which leaked in mid-May, looks to continue the hole-punch solution for its front-facing camera.

That said, the Pixel 6 may be the last smartphone from Google to feature this design choice in lieu of its under-display technology.


Image credits: Renders by Let’s Go Digital and used per the publication’s guidelines.
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