New rumors point to Apple eying Macs based on ARM chips
Apple is undoubtedly testing ARM-based Macs internally and has been for some time. The question is, when -- or even if -- it will make the switch? A new rumor says it may be getting closer.
Apple continues to work on ARM-based versions of its Mac line, according to spate of reports from blogs that follow Apple.
So, is Apple considering OS X-based Macs using its own A series processors or other ARM processors? Yes (it would be dumb if it didn't). Will Apple actually make the move to ARM, from Intel, in a real product? That's what we don't know (yet).
But reports from MacRumors and other blogs on Monday claim that Apple is actively developing ARM-based Macs, including an iMac, Mac Mini, and 13-inch MacBook.
The machines, as rumored, come with a new keyboard that integrates "a large-format Magic Trackpad," MacRumors said.
Of course, this also presumes that an OS X equivalent operating system is running on Apple's ARM processors.
It's important to note that this rumor isn't from a traditional source like KGI analyst Ming-Chi Kuo but rather a French-language Apple site, MacBidouille (which MacRumors cites). And the fact that MacBidouille claims multiple 64-bit quad-core processors inside the rumored devices (the iPad Air and ARM-based Chromebooks, for example, use just one) is peculiar.
Put aside all the rumors for a minute, though, and consider what Apple has been saying ever since it announced the 64-bit A7 processor last September: its A series processors are now 64-bit and offer "desktop-class" performance.
Fast forward to the A8 processor (rumored successor to the A7), which will likely be considerably faster than the A7 and be offered in quad-core variants, making it at least theoretically suitable for a low-end Mac.
One of the first widely cited rumors claiming Apple was switching to ARM was in May 2011, appropriately headlined: "Apple dumps Intel from laptop lines."
And this wouldn't be the first time that Apple made a platform change. In 2005 Apple announced that it was switching to Intel processors and dumping the PowerPC architecture.