It appears Apple might finally be getting ready to produce Mac processors in-house instead of relying on Intel or AMD to power its computers.
Beginning as early as 2020, Apple reportedly will take the plunge and put its custom chips inside Mac products instead of Intel's processors. The project, codenamed Kalamata, remains in its early stages but comes as a piece of a larger parcel in which Apple aims to make Macs, iPads, and iPhones work more similarly and seamlessly together.
Apple Goes Ahead With Project Kalamata
Bloomberg reports executives have approved the Kalamata project and that it will likely progress as a multi-step transition. The move, needless to say, should make Intel worry about its business, given that its partnership with Apple is a big reason why it's one of the leading brands when it comes to electronics. In fact, Apple is responsible for 5 percent of the chipmaker's annual revenue, per Bloomberg's supply chain analysis.
For Apple, the move indicates a massive change in how it produces hardware. Intel's chips remain as one of the few major components inside a Mac not designed or manufactured by Apple itself. By contrast, other products in its portfolio — iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, AirPods, and Apple TV included — use custom processors.
What This Means For Apple
Transitioning to proprietary chips would free Apple from the constraints of Intel's production roadmap and allow it to be more flexible with time frames. Apple will also benefit from total control of hardware and software, a synergy Apple has always excelled in. Plus this would help the company in terms of making its software more secure.
It's a major move that would make Apple the only major manufacturer of computers that use proprietary chips. Companies such as Dell, HP, Lenovo, and a handful of others rely on Intel for their computers' chips.
The decision also comes after years of the quick evolution of ARM-based processors that Apple has built into other products in its portfolio. In fact, Apple's newest iPad and iPhone models have become far more powerful than its previous Macs.
It's worth noting, however, that this seems like such a drastic change that'll happen so soon. It's entirely possible for Apple to either abandon such plans or delay them. There's also the question of whether Apple's custom chips can be on par, if not be better, than Intel's chips.
Do you think it would be wise for Apple to drop Intel chips entirely? As always, feel free to sound off in the comments section below!
