Apple is working on a pair of new Mac Pro desktop computers, including an all-new design powered by Apple Silicon. One model, which will likely use Intel processors, is a direct update to the current Mac Pro and will continue to use the same design as the version launched in 2019, Bloomberg News reports.
The second Mac Pro model, however, will use Apple Silicon and be less than half the size of the current Mac Pro (above).
Mark Gurman for Bloomberg News:
The [Apple Silicon Mac Pro] design will feature a mostly aluminum exterior and could invoke nostalgia for the Power Mac G4 Cube, a short-lived smaller version of the Power Mac, an earlier iteration of the Mac Pro.
As part of its revived Mac desktop efforts, Apple has started early development of a lower-priced external monitor to sell alongside the Pro Display XDR. Apple’s current monitor debuted in 2019 and costs $5,000 — before factoring in the $1,000 stand.
The cheaper monitor would feature a screen geared more for consumer than professional use and wouldn’t have the brightness and contrast ratio of the top-tier offering. Apple last launched a consumer-grade monitor called the Thunderbolt Display in 2011 for $999 but discontinued it in 2016.
MacDailyNews Take: Of course, some pro workflows will require Intel processors for awhile longer, but what’ll really be interesting is obviously the new, smaller Mac Pro with new Apple Silicon. It’ll offer a new design and its benchmarks vs. the Intel Mac Pro will be intensely scrutinized. And, finally, Apple will be giving us a monitor “for the rest of us” – belatedly rectifying a sad situation about which we’ve been kvetching about for many years!
Apple should make their own Apple displays… so that other companies’ logos on frankly ugly products that do not match Apple design sensibilities are not in users’ faces all day long. — MacDailyNews, January 6, 2017