The MacBook Pro 2016 release date, per analysts, is most likely happening in the last quarter of the year. For long-time Apple watchers, the refresh is definitely delayed and a new report cited two reasons - Apple held off for Intel's 7th-gen Kaby Lake processing chip and the focus given to iPad Pro.
Even as Apple saw its PC market share steadily dwindling in the past quarters, it came as a surprise that the tech giant appeared painfully slow in updating its Mac line or the MacBooks or more specifically, the MacBook Pro. Blame it on the iPad Pro, according to a Forbes report.
And that's only one key reason for the delay of the MacBook Pro 2016 release, the publication said, adding that for some time Apple CEO Tim Cook toyed with the idea of having "the ultimate replacement" for laptops. In MacBook's case, it is the recently issued iPad Pro that has given focus in the hopes that consumers looking to try out the Windows-powered 2-in-1 devices will seriously consider the productivity-centric tablet and stay with Apple's ecosystem.
But there was no plan to abandon the MacBook Pro. The line will surely be upgraded but the 2016 rollout was pushed back as Apple decided to wait out for Kaby Lake, which will not be ready for mass availability until the latter part of the year.
"There has also been speculation that they have been a bit stalled by Intel's roadmap. And Intel had major problems with the Skylake revision of their processor. Apple, rather than release a buggy product, (decided) to hold off," the same Forbes report quoted one analyst as saying.
The report indicated too that Apple's unbending preference for the MacBook Pro 2016 to run on Kaby Lake was hardly surprising as the tech giant is known to adhere to perfectionism. "They don't release something until it can be the best it can be," the analyst told Forbes.
And surely the 2016 MBP, regardless of the delay, will not disappoint as according to The Next Web the device "will undoubtedly be a very new and exciting device." The same TNW report agreed that Apple ruled out Skylake for the new MacBook Pros for a compelling reason.
When the MacBook Pro 2016 finally arrives, the following feature upgrades are safe to expect - the Butterfly Keyboard mechanism first introduced with the 12-inch MacBook, up to four USB Type-C ports for expansion options, greater CPU and GPU capabilities and 4K display, the report added.
In his recent research notes, Ming-chi Kuo of KGI Securities pegged the MacBook Pro 2016 release date in the final months of the year or between October and November with MacOS Sierra breathing life into the device.