Apple is widely rumored to be planning new 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models, each with a mini-LED display and an improved iteration of the M1 chip. The notebooks are expected to feature a new design with a flatter top and bottom and more ports, including the return of an HDMI port, SD card slot, and a magnetic power cable. Rumors also suggest the Touch Bar will be retired in favor of physical Fn keys.
Lending further credence to these plans, GeekWebGuides has potentially discovered the next-generation 16-inch MacBook Pro in a Chinese regulatory database. The listing, filed on April 14 by Apple supplier Sunwoda Electronic, is for a battery with an Apple-like model identifier A2527 rated at 8,693 mAh/11.45V. This is similar to the current 16-inch MacBook Pro's battery, which is rated at 8,790 mAh/11.36V, according to iFixit.
Sunwoda Electronic is the same supplier that filed the alleged iPhone 13 battery capacities that were spotted in the same Chinese database earlier this week.
If the filing is accurate, the next 16-inch MacBook Pro would have a slightly lower battery capacity than the existing model, potentially due to the notebook's rumored flatter design. However, any potential impact on battery life would likely be mitigated by the 16-inch MacBook Pro transitioning from Intel processors to more power-efficient Apple silicon. In fact, battery life could still end up being longer than the current generation.
Bloomberg's Mark Gurman previously reported that the redesigned MacBook Pro models will be unveiled as early as this summer, with leaker Jon Prosser expecting the MacBook Pro announcement to be part of WWDC next week. Some other sources have suggested the new MacBook Pro models will not be announced until the second half of 2021.
WWDC kicks off with Apple's Keynote on Monday, June 7 at 10 a.m. Pacific Time.
Update 9:45 a.m.: We've also found an entry for what seems likely to be the upcoming 14-inch MacBook Pro.
The listing for this battery, also from Sunwoda, was filed on March 30 and carries model identifier A2519. The battery is rated for 6,068 mAh at 11.47V. That's a bit higher than the 5,103 mAh rating of the current 13-inch MacBook Pro, but the redesigned chassis for the larger 14-inch display size will likely leave room for a larger battery. We saw a similar increase in battery capacity for the larger MacBook Pro when it moved from 15 inches to 16 inches.
