Apple testing nine Macs with M2, M2 Pro, and M2 Max chips, may launch redesigned MacBook Air and a MacBook Pro 13 first

Apple has four different versions of its upcoming M2 processor generation in testing, powering nine different Mac computers, tips Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Previously, he was expecting a new MacBook Air with the M2 processor to be announced as soon as Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) 2022 that starts on June 6th, and the rumors are that we may also see a MacBook Pro 13 unveiled there as well.

According to Mark's sources who have their information from the logs of third-party apps that Apple is testing on the new M2 Macs, the MacBook Air is codenamed J413 and will have an octa-core CPU and ten cores for the GPU, up from eight cores in the graphics processor of the current M1 chip. Here's Mark's list of all the major models with an M2 chip that Apple has in testing at the moment, indicating release plans for at least some of those by year's end:

• MacBook Air with an M2 chip, codenamed J413. This Mac will have eight CPU cores, the components that handle the main processing, and 10 cores for graphics.
• Mac mini with an M2 chip, codenamed J473. This machine will have the same specifications as the MacBook Air. There’s also an M2 Pro variation, codenamed J474, in testing.
• Entry-level MacBook Pro with an M2 chip, codenamed J493. This too will have the same specifications as the MacBook Air.
• 14-inch MacBook Pro with M2 Pro and M2 Max chips, codenamed J414. The M2 Max chip has 12 CPU cores and 38 graphics cores, up from 10 CPU cores and 32 graphics cores in the current model, according to the logs. It will also have 64 gigabytes of memory.
• 16-inch MacBook Pro with M2 Pro and M2 Max chips, codenamed J416. The 16-inch MacBook Pro’s M2 Max will have the same specifications as the 14-inch MacBook Pro version.
• Mac Pro with an M2 Ultra chip, codenamed J180. This machine will include a successor to the M1 Ultra chip used in the Mac Studio computer.

The M2 Mac mini, MacBook Air, and MacBook Pro 13 share the same processor specifications and are to be released in 2022, with the latter two reportedly scheduled to be announced at WWDC22. Of those, the 2022 MacBook Air will have the most distinctive redesign revolving around a much more elegant frame and the addition of MagSafe charging. The M2 Mac mini, on the other hand, may be released in the fall, two years after the one with the M1 processor appeared in November 2020.

It's anyone's guess when are the larger and more powerful 14-in and 16-in M2 MacBook Pro models to be released, as Apple just upgraded them back in October. The same app testing logs that are now predicting the upcoming bonanza of M2 Macs managed to guess the marketing names of their M1 Pro and M1 Max processors at the time as well.

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