A subscribers-only report from DigiTimes says volume production of the redesigned 16-inch MacBook Pro powered by Apple Silicon and sporting a mini-LED display is on track to begin in the first quarter of 2022. Meanwhile, production of the new 14-inch MacBook Pro is on track for starting up the fourth quarter of 2021.
Supplies of both redesigned notebooks could be constrained, as Apple suppliers are feeling constrained by the launch of Apple’s new mini-LED 12.9-inch iPad Pro, which is causing issues for MacBook production.
Volume production of Apple’s miniLED-backlit MacBook Pro series may have to be postponed to fourth-quarter of 2021 or first-quarter 2022 if the sudden surge in the number of COVID infections in Taiwan continues to worsen, according to industry sources.
Having launched its miniLED-backlit 12.9-inch iPad Pro in late April, Apple plans to release two miniLED-backlit MacBook Pro products – one having a 14-inch display and the other a 16-inch display – in the second half of 2021, said the sources.
DigiTimes claims Apple may take the same approach with the new 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pros as it did with the new M1 iPad Pro and iMac, not making them widely available until a few weeks following their initial announcement.
DigiTimes notes that only a small number of 14-inch MacBook Pros will come off of the assembly line in the third quarter of this year, hinting that supply will be tight, in the face of reasonably high demand.
(Via MacRumors)