It's fair to say that Apple's M1 chip hasn't disappointed. Revealed in November, the company's first ever custom silicon has been the talk of the tech world ever since, thanks to its unparalleled speed and efficiency. But leaks about the M1's successor are already rife – and the latest appears to come courtesy of Apple itself.
One Twitter user spotted (below) that the tags for Apple's WWDC event recap video on YouTube include the phrases – wait for it – M1X, and M1X MacBook Pro. And with that, it seems we know the name of the next contender for our roundup of the best laptops for graphic design.
OK OK OKEveryone stay calm... but I just spotted these tags on Apple's YouTube livestream of the June 7 keynote!!!APPLE CONFIRMED THE M1X!!!@jon_prosser you were right after all!!!This isn't fake, you can get the @TubeBuddy extension for YT and it shows them! pic.twitter.com/C54sBydj7uJune 9, 2021
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Both M2 and M1X have been rumoured as titles for the next iteration of Apple silicon, but Apple now appears to have confirmed the latter. It's curious that the tag appears on a recap of an event where no MacBook Pro (nor any new hardware) was revealed – did Apple plan to launch the M1X MacBook Pro this week, only to pull the plug at the last minute?
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The M1 MacBook Pro is already seriously impressive (Image credit: Apple)
As many have pointed out, Apple may have included the tag simply to increase engagement. But we're sceptical – acknowledging the rumoured M1X name would be a highly uncharacteristic move for a brand that never (ever) acknowledges leaks about its upcoming products.
So what can we expect from M1X? According to Bloomberg, the new MacBook Pro could feature up to 32 graphics cores (the current M1 Macs feature 8), as well as up to 64GB RAM, a huge jump from the current maximum of 16GB. The M1 Macs are already incredible, but M1X sounds like a dream come true for creatives using the most intensive graphic design software.
But perhaps the most intriguing details are related to the design of the new MacBook Pro. iOS developer Dylankt recently claimed that not only will the M1X MacBook Pro will feature a flat-edged design akin to the iPad Pro, but it will also do away with the MacBook logo.
But don't worry – we're not talking about the iconic Apple logo on the lid of the laptop. Facing the chop is the MacBook Pro wordmark below the screen. And while a MacBook Pro minus the logo might sound surprising, there's precedent here – Apple recently unveiled a new iMac (below) sans logo, so the company is clearly going for a more minimal look in 2021.
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The new iMac, with not a logo in sight (Image credit: Brendon Thorne/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Apple has been ramping up its M1 campaign this year, with both the beautiful new iMac and updated iPad Pro joining the club with the MacBook Air, MacBook Pro and Mac mini. We just hope the 16-inch MacBook Pro, our best laptop for graphic design, gets a look-in soon.
Whatever the name of the new chip, we've no doubt it'll offer incredible performance for creatives. Photoshop for M1 Macs, for example, is already unbelievably fast. Check out today's best M1 Mac deals below, and be sure to check out our Apple deals page for more brilliant offers.
Daniel John is Design Editor at Creative Bloq. He reports on the worlds of design, branding and lifestyle tech, and has covered several industry events including Milan Design Week, OFFF Barcelona and Adobe Max in Los Angeles. He has interviewed leaders and designers at brands including Apple, Microsoft and Adobe. Daniel's debut book of short stories and poems was published in 2018, and his comedy newsletter is a Substack Bestseller.
