Many Apple launches over the last year or so have warranted the same reaction: finally! Well, one of Apple’s most anticipated products is finally set to debut at tonight’s “Unleashed” showcase. Apple’s upcoming launch is expected to feature beefed-up versions of its MacBook Pro laptops – finally replacing the more graphically capable Intel processor and AMD GPU-sporting that haven’t been boosted for some time. The M1 MacBook Air and MacBook Pro were impressive in their own right but it’s time for Apple to once again serve the mobile creator market. New 14 and 16in MacBook Pro models would certainly be the star of the show but, the almost equally anticipated, AirPods 3 might just rear their stem-supported heads too.

You’ll be able to watch the impending arrival of the new MacBook Pro at 6 pm BST / 1 pm EDT / 10 am PDT later today (Monday 18 October). The stream is available to watch on Apple, YouTube or via Apple TV+ on your smart TV.

As reported by Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, we’ve expecting to see a completely redesigned MacBook Pro – both 14 and 16in – with the last shake-up coming around five years ago. The MacBook Pro has been refreshed in various ways in the meantime, including the last update coming with the 16in Intel-powered MacBook Pro in 2019. But, this will be the first new look in a long while and, perhaps far more importantly, the first product with Apple Silicon that should be capable of tackling intensive tasks that its graphics card-touting predecessors could.

The new models are expected to feature miniLED displays, like the latest high-end iPad Pro, as well as a new layout in the ports department. Apple’s MacBook port strategy of recent years has hinged on the mantra ‘less is more’ and woe betide the creators who would just love a full-size SD card reader or HDMI port. Well, things have changed – with both those ports expected to return to the MacBook Pro with this refresh as well as the return of MagSafe charging (expected to be more like the MacBook’s magnetic charging of yore, not the iPhone topping-up puck it was recently reintroduced as.)

While the above changes aren’t to be sniffed at, and as the “Unleashed” event title suggests, these new MacBook Pro models are about power – the company from Cupertino’s first swing at high-end machines using Apple Silicon. According to Gurman, the machines will feature 10 CPU cores featuring eight high-performance cores and two energy-efficient cores. On the graphics side, you’ll have a choice between 16 and 32 graphics cores. Given this is the first high-end Apple Silicon chip, it’s hard to quantify just what this chip will be capable of but, based just on core count, it significantly tops what’s currently on offer from the M1 chip. We’ll have to await Apple’s claims and our own testing to see just what these, currently unnamed, chips can manage.

On a far less important note than the performance capabilities, we don’t yet know just what these boosted versions of the M1 will be called – with everything from M1X, M1Z and, even, M2 touted as possible names. However, at the eleventh hour, Mark Gurman has stated the new chips have appeared as M1 Pro and M1 Max in Apple’s logs. We haven’t got long to find out which one of these many options turns out to be the actual name.

Outside of the new MacBook Pros, refreshed AirPods could make an appearance. The new AirPods 3 are expected to include removable ear tips and reduce the unsightly long stem. The AirPods 3 will be entering the market at a far tougher time and the original model, with competitively priced rivals like the Nothing Ear 1 having debuted to critical acclaim recently. Apple is unlikely to waver much on price so AirPods 3 is going to have to appeal to users with convenient features and strong sound this time around.

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This article was originally published by WIRED UK