MacOS Ventura and new MacBooks Pros are both coming soon

By Alex Blake October 17, 2022

The latest version of Apple’s Mac operating system, dubbed macOS Ventura, could be just a week away from launch. That’s according to reporter Mark Gurman’s Power On newsletter, where it’s claimed that the OS could see the light of day as soon as the last week of October.

However, there’s bad news if you’ve been holding out for the next version of the 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro, as Gurman believes these laptops won’t be released until some point in November.

Stage manager in macOS Ventura.

That’s not unprecedented news, as Apple often introduces its new MacBook Pro laptops in November, having done so with the 16-inch MacBook Pro in 2019 and the first Apple silicon laptops a year later.

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Still, it might be a little disappointing for anyone who has been itching to get their hands on the latest Apple silicon chips. While the M2 can already be found in the MacBook Air and 13-inch MacBook Pro, the more powerful M2 Pro and M2 Max chips are still nowhere to be found.

According to the rumor mill, the M2 Max chip could come with up to a 12-core CPU, up to a 38-core GPU, and up to 64GB of unified memory. Expected specs for the M2 Pro are unknown at this time, but there’s a chance both the Pro and Max chips could be made with a 3-nanometer process (although a 5-nanometer process seems more likely).

Gurman’s Power On newsletter also alluded to the Mac Mini, which Gurman says is due for an M2 upgrade. According to the report, Apple also has a new Apple TV in the works with an A14 Bionic chip and 4GB of memory. New iPad Pro models with the M2 chip could be announced “in a matter of days,” while iPadOS 16 could launch alongside macOS Ventura in late October, Gurman claims.

What’s coming in macOS Ventura?

Apple's macOS Ventura title card used at WWDC 2022.

Apple’s macOS Ventura operating system has been available to the public since the summer in the form of a public beta, but this has come with the usual warnings about unstable performance and unfinished features. Now, though, it appears macOS Ventura is almost ready for its close-up.

It features Continuity Camera, my personal favorite macOS feature in years. This lets you use your iPhone as a video-calling camera, saving the need for a separate webcam. It comes with some nifty features baked in, including Portrait mode and Center Stage from iOS, plus Desk View, which shows both your face and your desk at the same time. I use Continuity Camera all the time in Digital Trends meetings and love how easy it is to set up and use (and as a bonus, it stops me from fidgeting with my iPhone during calls).

Elsewhere, macOS Ventura comes with Stage Manager, which is a new way to organize your desktop windows. This lets you group apps together and save workspaces for work and play. It’s attracted some criticism during the beta period, but I’ve enjoyed my time with it. While it needs some work, it feels like it has the potential to change how people work on their Macs.

There are also (a bunch of other interesting features coming in macOS Ventura). With the news that the operating system could be just a week away, it won’t be long until everyone will be able to try it out. It’s just a shame we’ll have to wait a bit longer for the latest MacBook Pro models.

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