Mini LED 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro production begins

Apple's rumored mini LED-equipped 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models are getting closer to launch, with suppliers said to be starting volume production.

Rumors have put forward the idea that Apple will be bringing out a version of the MacBook Pro with a mini LED-backlit display, incorporating the technology used in the 12.9-inch iPad Pro screen. In a supply chain report, it seems the rumors are coming true.

According to supply chain sources of Digitimes, volume production for the new MacBook Pro has commenced, and in high quantities. Monthly shipments of the notebooks are anticipated to be between 600,000 and 800,000 units per month between August and November.

Mini LED is likely to be beneficial to Mac users as a backlighting system, with a number of benefits. By using thousands of mini LED backlights instead of a smaller number of LEDs, Apple can have more control over the backlight's illumination patterns, enabling contrast ratios of up to 1 million to 1, better HDR support, and improved color representation.

The start of volume production in August certainly coincides with Apple's usual fall product launches, as releases usually arrive a few months after production commences.

While Digitimes has a good track record when it comes to the supply chain and production scheduling, it's weaker on product feature reports. However, the quantity of rumors about mini LED certainly lends weight to mini LED arriving in new MacBook Pro models.

In June, it was believed that there were shortages in mini LED production that could impact MacBook Pro production, but it seems that it has been resolved.

Depending on the rumors, Apple is believed to be bringing out a 14-inch MacBook Pro and a 16-inch MacBook Pro before the end of 2021. Along with mini LED backlighting, the models could include features like an M1 or M1X chip, an improved 1080p webcam, MagSafe, and even a return of previously-removed ports.

25 Comments

entropys 4302 comments · 13 Years

About 3 years ago

I would laugh if they don’t outclass tiger lake laptops, particularly XPS15 with GTX3050s, but really they should aim at shutting down Razer and Asus with GTX3070s.

might be hard to do M2 if the next iPhone chip isn’t released yet. It is interesting that we haven’t heard any rumours about that SOC yet.

uktechie 67 comments · 9 Years

It’s impressive that Apple have achieved such a huge step with the M1 and such major updates to so many products during a pandemic and lockdowns. Their staff must be incredibly dedicated.

verne arase 479 comments · 11 Years

entropys said:

I would laugh if they don’t outclass tiger lake laptops, particularly XPS15 with GTX3050s, but really they should aim at shutting down Razer and Asus with GTX3070s.

might be hard to do M2 if the next iPhone chip isn’t released yet. It is interesting that we haven’t heard any rumours about that SOC yet.

I thought the M1s already beat them, except when beat down by core counts or big discrete GPUs.

I'm thinking the M1x units should be pretty kick ass, especially when equipped with up to 32 GPU cores.

TBH, I could live with even an M1 based unit with 16GB with mini-LED since I'm doing my heavy lifting with a loaded 2020 iMac 5K - but if rumors are true, I'd want a 16" with 32 GPU cores, 32 GB RAM, and 2 TB SSD.

A lot of the RAM of an x86 model is used for buffering between the CPU and GPU, and a unified memory model should be much more efficient in processing graphics with no need to shuttle data between the CPU and GPU where x86 models burn up a lot of their resources.

A production run of 600-800K units per month with release expected a few months later?

Just how many of these puppies will they need to have stockpiled before release - and just what do they expect pent up demand to be?

doggone 400 comments · 18 Years

entropys said:

I would laugh if they don’t outclass tiger lake laptops, particularly XPS15 with GTX3050s, but really they should aim at shutting down Razer and Asus with GTX3070s.

might be hard to do M2 if the next iPhone chip isn’t released yet. It is interesting that we haven’t heard any rumours about that SOC yet.

Maybe it won't when comparing in raw specs with a dedicated GPU. But really who cares. It's just a pissing contest that has no bearing to the typical user. The point is that the M1 processor is already way more advanced than a X86 chip with efficiencies across the board. Having the next generation of Mac that will take advantages will provide years of usage at performance way above the current Intel Macs and with the knowledge that Apple will continue to refine the OS to improve performance over time.

Apple silicon is already exceeding most of the competition with only their first generation SOC. They are going to be leaving the others way behind with subsequent generations. Intel must be panicking.

MplsP 4020 comments · 8 Years

Whether it beats Tiger Lake in benchmarks or not, by all reports, Apple Silicon is a winner when you look at speed, power usage, etc. My nephew was bragging about his ‘gaming laptop’ but he couldn’t use it more than an hour without plugging it it. It’s practically a watered down desktop at that point.

I’m really hoping these rumors are true - there’s a 16” MBP in my future this fall if they are!