Apple’s M4 chip may have leaked new MacBook Pro features for this year

While the M4 chip made its debut on the latest M4 iPad Pro, it’s no surprise to anyone that it’ll likely form the basis for the next lineup of Apple’s MacBook Pros.

While currently on M3 architecture, Apple is expected to bring M4 to its MacBook Pros, as well as Mac Mini, MacBook Air, and Mac Studio in the coming months.

As for what it’ll offer Mac users, X (formerly Twitter) user Fred The Frenchy dug into a new Tech Insights image that appears to show the ways the M4 is different from its predecessor, which Max Tech’s Vadim Yuryev followed up on. 

What could M4 do for Mac?

As noted by Yuryev, Apple’s M4 chip contains “a bunch of secrets” to be revealed alongside new MacBook Pros this year.

Yuryev says these include double the Thunderbolt blocks, three Thunderbolt 4 Ports, and a new Media Engine with faster encoders and decoders.

Perhaps most interesting is the inclusion of support for “3+ displays”, including 8K resolution. Given the M3 was the first non-Pro or higher chip to support multiple displays when it came to the MacBook Air this year (albeit in clamshell mode), this feels like a solid next step for the platform.

Naturally, we’ll update you as we hear from Apple, but with no new hardware revealed at WWDC and new iPhones likely just months away, we could be waiting a while for a Mac-focused event.

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Lloyd Coombes is a freelance writer with a specialism in Apple tech. From his first, hand-me-down iMac, he’s been working with Apple products for over a decade, and while he loves his iPhone and Mac, the iPad will always have his heart for reasons he still can’t quite fathom. Since moving from blogging to writing professionally, Lloyd’s work can be found at TechRadar, Macworld, TechAdvisor and plenty more. He’s also the Editor in Chief at GGRecon.com, and on the rare occasion he’s not writing you’ll find him spending time with his son, or working hard at the gym (while wearing an Apple Watch, naturally). You can find him on Twitter @lloydcoombes.