At Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) 2020, Apple announced the major transition of Macs from Intel chips to ARM based custom Apple silicon. Many potential Mac buyers and who have recently invested in an expensive Mac machine are definitely going to ask whether the current generation machines will be supported for long.
It’s a question worth asking and Apple did not forget to answer the question at its major developers event. Apple CEO Tim Cook revealed that the company will continue to support Intel Macs for years to come and also revealed that the company is indeed planning to release a few more Intel Macs in the near future.
The move can be seen as Apple’s way to assure its customers that they have nothing to worry about. Apple has a good track record at supporting its products for long. The iPhones get major software updates for 5-6 years and it’s much better in the case of the Mac. So of course, there is nothing to worry about buying an Intel equipped Mac right now.
However, Tech columnists like Joanna Stern and some Twitteratis who are Apple leaksters have suggested that it would be better to wait out. The belief is that Apple silicon equipped Macs will be far powerful and efficient compared to the Intel based Macs. Also, the fact that Apple will focus more on the ARM based architecture in the future could mean major improvements in user experience.
Joanna Stern also believes that Apple will release touchscreen Macs in the near future. ARM chips are known to run properly without fans and also do not release heat as much as Intel processors. This could enable Apple to create new form factor devices – possibly Mac/iPad hybrids in the future.
Fudge (@choco_bit) on Twitter who has a good track record at predicting Apple’s future, tweeted “not a good time to be investing into expensive intel Macs long term”. Also added “splurge in 2-3 years”.
