WWDC 2020: ARM MacBook and iPad Pro-inspired iMac set to join AirPods Studio and Air Tags from June 22

When Apple announced in March that it would be hosting a virtual Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) this year, it informed us that the conference would be the company's "biggest yet". The prospect of Apple releasing a MacBook Pro 14, the AirPods Studio and Air Tags at WWDC 2020 seemed exciting enough, but now new rumours have added a further two devices to the pile. We should point that the recent refresh of the MacBook Pro 13 has ended all thoughts of a MacBook Pro 14 arriving at WWDC 2020.

Nonetheless, Mark Gurman has now reported that Apple will unveil the first steps towards an ARM-powered MacBook at WWDC 2020, instead. According to Gurman, Apple may only present its ARM processor, codenamed Kalamata, rather than a fully-fledged ARM MacBook. The switch to ARM processors will commence in 2021, giving developers time to adapt to the new architecture. For some perspective, Apple announced that it would be moving from PowerPC to Intel at WWDC 2005 and then released its first Intel-powered MacBook in January 2006.

We doubt that Apple plans to transition its full MacBook product stack to ARM processors by the end of 2021, either. It may well take a few years before Apple can mass-produce an ARM chip that delivers the performance of a 45 W Intel processor, for example.

Additionally, renowned leaker Sonny Dickson has stated that Apple plans to unveil a new iMac at WWDC 2020 too. Tweeting to this followers yesterday, Dickson stated that the iMac would be based on the design language of the iPad Pro, with "Pro Display like bezels". A T2 security chip and an AMD Navi GPU will also be on board.

WWDC 2020 will begin on June 22. The conference will then run for a week.