Why I’m Delighted There’s No More Macs This Year

We may earn compensation from reviewed products. Learn about our editorial policies.

According to Mark Gurman, we’re not going to see any more Mac releases this year.

That’s right – following what is easily the weirdest and most frustrating iPad launch in recent memory, Apple has apparently decided to leave it at that. This also makes the M2 MacBook Air the last Mac launch of 2022 (which has endured something of a troubled upbringing itself).

Regardless, this is the best news I’ve had in the last few weeks.

Let me explain why.

News from Gurman

In the latest edition of his Power On newsletter, self-appointed Apple Leak Extraordinaire, Mark Gurman, suggests that Apple’s current Mac strategy is to introduce “the upgraded models—including M2-based versions of the 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pros—in the first quarter of calendar 2023”.

As Gurman points out, Apple rarely launches new products in January or February, which means we probably won’t see a new Mac of any kind until at least March 2023.

These rumours have some grounding, too. Apple’s chief financial officer, Luca Maestri recently noted that Apple’s holiday quarter will probably see revenue growth decelerate because there’ll be no big MacBook Pro launch like there was in 2021.

Arguably, ‘sticking an M2 chip in there’ probably isn’t what most would describe as a “big” MacBook Pro launch, but that’s completely subjective and, regardless, I think Gurman is on point with this one.

We ain’t getting any more Macs this year, are we, Tim?

My Mac mini plan

There’s one new Mac I can’t wait to get my hands on if and when it emerges – the next Mac mini.

There have been numerous rumours about what Apple might be doing with the next version of its barnstorming little desktop powerhouse. A new design, new colours, finally-fixed Bluetooth issues, M2 chips – everything is up for grabs.

I pretty much built my business on a 16GB M1 Mac mini – it means a lot to me for that reason. However, I don’t just want a new Mac mini for the sake of it. Whether the new one comes with the M2 configuration we have in the M2 MacBook Air or something more exotic remains to be seen, but if this new machine arrives early next year, I need to do something interesting with it.

Some of you may have heard me waffling on about music production in previous blog posts and videos. It’s a hobby I’ve invested a serious amount of time in since my early teens, but one I simply haven’t had enough time for in recent years (despite some much-needed dabbling during lockdown).

Whenever I mention the fact I like to tinker in Logic Pro, people ask for more detail. They want to know how I use it, what music I make, and the stuff I use to make my own noise. I’d like to start answering those questions, but in order to do so, I need a dedicated area within my studio to make that happen… and some time to actually get back into producing music.

This is where the Mac mini comes in. My plan was to buy the new version and make that the centrepiece of a music production setup. Now that we’re looking at several months before such a machine might arrive, I’ve had to tweak the plan a bit, which means resurrecting the M1 Mac mini!

The fact that Apple probably won’t be unleashing any more products for a few months should, in turn, mean I can divert some meaningful time to this new project.

This will form a new ‘series’ on my YouTube channel and I cannot wait to share it with you.

My MacBook Pro plan

A few weeks back, I regaled you with the tale of a day spent wandering through the streets of London, weighed down by eighteen tonnes of computer and camera equipment.

The biggest back-breaker, I explained, was the 16-inch MacBook Pro, which played an important role that day, but which also spent most of it welded to my hot, sweaty back, doing its level best not to be frisbeed into the River Thames.

On that day, I hatched a plan. Assuming that new MacBooks would probably hit the shelves before Christmas, I’d invest in a new 14-inch version not only to review but to also pitch directly against my current Jupiter-sized production machine.

The reason for this elaborate and highly questionable experiment is quite simple: I’m travelling more. This is a wonderful thing and something I’ve been yearning for while building my brand, but I’m damned if I’m going to cart that bloody 16-inch MacBook Pro everywhere with me. The thought of a smaller, more back- and table-friendly laptop that can switch effortlessly between a production powerhouse and a convenient writing machine is very tempting indeed.

It now sounds like I’m going to have to wait to conduct this experiment. This has been compounded by the continued lack of any progress with the iPad Pro, despite a new version having recently been launched (and immediately returned by yours truly). If that device had arrived with a fully-function version of Final Cut Pro, all of my prayers would have been answered. Alas, it looks like I’m going to need to up my gym visits and continue with the 16-inch beast until we see new MacBook Pros!

Wrapping up: what about the Mac Pro?!

As happy as I am about the prospect of not having to spend a fortune on new computers and lose many hours of sleep reviewing them before Christmas, there is one question I can’t get out of my head.

What has happened to the new Mac Pro?

I was expecting a huge Mac event to top off 2022. The reason was simple – Apple told us in 2020 that it would be completing the full transition to its own silicon for the Mac “in about two years”. They even wrote a press release about it.

Maybe the inclusion of the word “about” is telling. Perhaps they weren’t fully confident it would be possible. Perhaps the new Mac Pro was the final piece of this jigsaw that they always knew would probably take longer than expected to be slotted into place.

Answers on a postcard for that one, please!