Apple working on new Mac chip to reduce reliance on Intel processors

Apple is planning to put its own ARM chip inside future Macs that will be responsible for handling low-power tasks like background app activity.

According to a report published by Bloomberg, Apple is designing an ARM-based processor that will handle some of its MacBook’s low-power mode functionality.

“The updated part, internally codenamed T310, would handle some of the computer’s low-power-mode functionality”, said Bloomberg. The company now uses Intel processors for its MacBook models, but is supposedly looking to reduce reliance on the chipmaker, starting with supplementing Intel processors with an ARM chip for low-power tasks. Intel would still supply the computer’s main processor.

According to a Cult of Mac report, the development of such a chip had begun sometime around previous year and was kept under the name T310. More recently, PC World delved into their own assessment of the matter with a conclusion that MacBook Pro 2016 battery life is highly dependent on how one will use the laptop. The MacBook Pro, for example, stagnated for years waiting fort significantly improved processors and in the end Apple released the Touch Bar MacBook Pro with the Skylake chipset even though the newer Kaby Lake chipset was in production. This is how a sleeping MacBook can discretely back up to Time Machine, sync calendars and emails and download and install updates, so it’s more ready when you wake it for use. The reason why Apple fans are upset with the company is because Apple’s latest MacBook Pros shipped with a malfunctioning battery.

Apple’s use of ARM chips in its MacBook Pro family is already widely documented. This seems to suggest that the new chip won’t be treated as a headline feature but as an underpinning hardware progression in Apple’s MacBook lineup. With that being said, it’s pretty clear why Apple is doing its best to fix this problem. It’s quite likely that Apple might not market the feature as they already have a power saving feature in place.

According to Bloomberg’s report, the upcoming ARM-based chip will “go further”, connecting to storage and wireless components to take on additional power management capabilities.