Apple clears the decks ahead of its biggest announcement

It’s like the old one, but with a new chip. Apple’s thunder keeps rolling this week. First it was the iPad mini, and now it’s a set of relatively minor announcements that would have just gotten lost in the anticipated introduction of OLED touchscreen MacBook Pro models on Wednesday. Apple updated the base-model MacBook Pro from an M5 chip to an M6. This is the low-end model that basically exists to snag buyers who don’t want to use a MacBook Air. (To be fair, it’s got a much better display and active cooling, too.) But don’t be confused: This is not Apple’s big MacBook Pro announcement of the week. What’s been abundantly clear is that whatever Apple announces Wednesday—whether it’s a set of replacements for the higher-end M5 Pro and M5 Max MacBook Pros, or an even higher-priced tier of OLED models above the existing high-end—will not impact the design or price of the $1,999 base M5 (now M6) model. Apple also bumped the iMac to M6, retaining the existing design and colors introduced in the M1 model. There are some minor technical enhancements here, most notably Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6, with 2.5Gb Ethernet standard. But Apple does not seem interested in altering the Apple silicon iteration of the iMac in any substantial way. Finally, Apple announced a slew of Creator Studio updates, showing that the company is not going to stand still when it comes to advancing its new creative software suite. There’s new content in Final Cut, improvements to music creation and an AI helper in Logic, generative fill in Pixelmator, and a bunch of AI features (leveraging both Apple’s own models and ones from OpenAI) sprinkled throughout the bundle. Busy week already! I’ll be in L.A. Wednesday for whatever Apple’s announcing, and will be sure to report back here. If you appreciate articles like this one, support us by becoming a Six Colors subscriber. Subscribers get access to an exclusive podcast, members-only stories, and a special community.