If you buy a Mac, it ships with an Intel processor inside, but that may not be the case for much longer.
As 9to5Mac reports, well-known analyst Ming-Chi Kuo believes Apple is preparing to ship its first-ever Mac that runs a custom ARM processor. The ARM Mac is expected to launch within 12 to 18 months, so no later than the first half of 2021.
Apple already powers its mobile devices using ARM chips, so the move to ARM for Mac would allow for easier development across all its products. Not having to rely on Intel would also give Apple more control and flexibility in the design, pricing, and profit margins on future Mac-branded products. Kuo expects the first ARM Mac to use a 5nm chip, with the 2020 iPhones also switching to 5nm processors.
A switch to ARM isn't without its hurdles. Microsoft has embraced ARM for Windows 10, but there's a lot of work still to be done to get applications optimized to run on x86 hardware working fast and reliably on ARM. Apple will face the same problems, with the first hurdle being macOS. On the plus side, however, millions of iOS and iPadOS apps should work on an ARM Mac with little to no effort of the part of developers.
As developer Steve Toughton-Smith points out on Twitter, if the ARM Mac is happening next year then we should have it confirmed by Apple long before then. When Apple made the switch to Intel chips it gave developers a "six months heads-up" and then tools to help make mac apps run on the new architecture. The heads-up and tools will therefore need to appear before the end of 2020, but we'll have to wait longer to find out exactly what form this first ARM Mac will take.
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