Rumored MacBook Pro Refresh Will Be 30% Faster, Bump up to 14-inches

Apple is thought to be working on a new 13-inch MacBook Pro. And according to a new leak on Friday, that device could see significant gains in both processor and GPU speeds.

An apparently leaked benchmark, first spotted on Twitter by Wccftech, suggests that the upcoming MacBook Pro refresh could sport an Intel 10th-generation Ice Lake processor.

While it isn’t specifically stated in the leak, the machine is largely expected to be the upcoming 13-inch refresh.

The specific chip shown off in the benchmark is an i7-1068NG7 Ice Lake 2.3GHz chip with turbo boost speeds up to 4.1GHz.

Compared to the high-end 13-inch MacBook Pro from last year, the new machine could see CPU and GPU performance up to 12 and 30 percent faster, respectively.

It’s worth noting that this move would make the 13-inch MacBook Pro the first in the lineup to sport a 10th-generation chip. (This year’s 16-inch MacBook Pro refresh is also expected to adopt a 10th-gen chip, though likely one based on the Comet Lake architecture.)

Of course, gains in processor and graphics performance is pretty much a given when it comes to yearly refreshes. But this year’s 13-inch MacBook Pro may have other features that will win fans over.

For one, the device is expected to ditch the problem-prone butterfly keyboard in favor of the scissor-switch Magic Keyboard seen in the 16-inch MacBook Pro. That alone may be enough to sway MacBook fans who have been holding out for a device with a more reliable keyboard.

It’s also possible that Apple will increase the display size on the new smaller MacBook Pro. If we see a similar bump to the 16-inch refresh, that could mean that the device will actually end up being a 14-inch MacBook Pro.

Other new features and updates seen on the 16-inch model, like a significantly improved thermal architecture and audio experience, may also show up on the smaller MacBook Pro model.

In any case, past reports suggest that Apple will release the updated 13-inch MacBook Pro within the first half of the year. That could mean that we’ll see it at the rumored March 31 keynote, although WWDC ’20 is also a possibility.

[The information provided in this article has NOT been confirmed by Apple and may be speculation. Provided details may not be factual. Take all rumors, tech or otherwise, with a grain of salt.]