Assuming Apple follows the identical schedule it has for so long as we will bear in mind, macOS Ventura 13.3 will arrive on all supported Macs on Monday or Tuesday. It’s not an enormous launch—probably the most notable new function is a handful of emoji—but it surely might imply one thing else that is big is on the horizon.
Again in January, Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman reported that the Apple silicon Mac Professional was working macOS Ventura 13.3 whereas the remainder of the world was nonetheless on 13.1. It’s not stunning that the Mac Professional could be working a more recent model of Ventura in testing, since there are probably a number of {hardware} options which might be unique to the machine and require optimization and compatibility tweaks to macOS.
Neither is it stunning that Apple used macOS 13.3. The purpose-3 model of macOS has usually been the largest mid-cycle launch, so it is smart for Apple to check it on the Mac Professional because it’s probably that future Ventura updates might be targeted on bug fixes, efficiency enhancements, and safety updates. So now, with that model set to launch in just some days, does that imply the brand new Mac Professional might arrive at any second? Probably.
Even when it arrives working macOS 13.3, nonetheless, the following Mac Professional will nearly actually have its personal preliminary model of macOS. For instance, when the M2 MacBook Air and 13-inch MacBook Professional arrived final June, they had been working their very own construct of macOS Monterey 12.4, which had arrived for current Macs on Might 16. Then, when macOS 12.5 landed on July 20, the M2 Macs had been up to date with the remainder of the Ventura-compatible gadgets as regular.
So if the Mac Execs in testing are certainly working macOS 13.3, Apple might launch a brand new mannequin someday between when macOS 13.3 launches subsequent week and the arrival of macOS 13.4. Following Apple’s typical timeline, that may give Apple till mid-Might to unveil the brand new mannequin.
So it’s not a stretch to say a brand new Mac Professional will arrive before later, most likely earlier than WWDC. Even with out the Apple silicon transition, the Intel mannequin could be historic by now, and if Apple hopes to persuade its highest-end customers of some great benefits of Apple silicon, it wants to start out yesterday.
Apple
Occasion horizon
As March rolls alongside, we’re nonetheless looking out for any signal of a spring occasion. Whereas final 12 months’s occasion was held in March, the 2021 occasion wasn’t till April 20, so Apple might nonetheless ship out invites over the approaching weeks.
However is there sufficient to fill a full keynote? What was as soon as anticipated to be a significant unveiling of Apple’s subsequent large factor now seems to have been pushed again to WWDC or the autumn. We already received the brand new spring iPhone shade, MacBook Professional, Mac mini, and a 2nd-gen HomePod. And it’s unlikely that the Mac Studio and iMac, 2022 and 2021’s large spring bulletins respectively, might be up to date earlier than 2024.
However the Mac Professional might nonetheless make a splash this spring together with the opposite rumored merchandise that aren’t an AR headset. On the Mac aspect, there’s the 15-inch MacBook Air. Simply this week, a stunning reference to an unreleased AirPods mannequin quantity and case was noticed in iOS 16.4. And a brand new Mac Professional will nearly actually be accompanied by an upgraded Professional Show XDR.
In fact, it’s attainable that the Mac Professional isn’t truly worthy of an occasion, and Apple points one other spherical of press releases asserting the brand new pc and its M2 Extremely chip. However both manner, you can begin the countdown as soon as macOS 13.3 arrives.