Apple's upcoming MacBook Pro models could have a notch on their display

Accurate Apple leaks are incredibly hard to get by design and this one is definitely one of the more "out-there" we have heard in a while. You should take it with a grain of salt, but multiple unrelated industry sources have actually been independently hinting at the possibility of a display notch on Cupertino's upcoming MacBook Pro models. So, we are at least entertaining the idea and using the opportunity to recap some other rumors.

As far as we currently know, Apple is likely to release a redesigned MacBook Pro line shortly, consisting of a new 14-inch and a new 16-inch model. If history is any indication, we can probably expect this to happen at their October 18 Unleashed event. As per quite a few earlier rumor, the new laptops will be rocking mini-LED displays, with much finer backlight zones and allegedly capable of hitting 1000 nits of brightness. Adding to those rumors, sources claiming to be familiar with the actual panel production are now saying that at least one of the two Pro models will also have a 120Hz refresh rate. And, then there is the matter of a display notch. Allegedly in place to accommodate a new, nearly borderless display design, with squared-off corners, reminiscent of the current iPad and iPhone aesthetic. The notch will, reportedly, house a 1080p camera, a TrueTone sensor and a microphone. Face ID, which was also rumored for said notch, is apparently not happening.

The rabbit hole regarding the display goes deeper still quoting some resolution figures, found inside macOS beta files - 3456x2234 and 3024x1964. If you subtract 74 pixels from both height components, you get a 16:10 aspect. The theory here being that Apple will pull and iOS-style move and sort of designate those 74-pixels (allegedly the exact height of the notch) as a "special area", with the ability to treat the rest of the display as a standard 16:10 panel, effectively "hiding" the notch. There are even reports of some strategically crafted laptop wallpapers floating around.

As far as other random and alleged bits and pieces of info on the MacBook Pro 14 and 16 go, we do believe they will be running on an M1X chip. A beefier variant of the current Apple M1, with a 10-core CPU with 8 big and 2 efficient cores and a doubled or ever quadrupled GPU core count. All of it, fabbed by TSMC on a 5NP node. Apparently, we can expect a slightly bigger and heavier chassis on the new MacBook Pro models, to accommodate two big fans for cooling.

To top it all off, we have more than a few rumors, courtesy of Kuo, which, again, could or could not become reality. Apparently the two laptops will be ditching the Touch Bar and going back to a more traditional keyboard, though still redesigned. Apparently it will now have an entirely black color scheme - including the buttons and the backplate. Plus, Touch ID is said to be present, now with a backlight. The new MacBook Pro's are also rumored to be very rich in ports, with an HDMI, Thunderbolt and SD card reader on the right side and another two Thunderbolt ports, plus a 3.5mm audio jack and a new MagSafe connector of the left side.

Design concept renders by Apple Tomorrow

We have to say, the further we go down the list, the less likely and "Apple-like" these rumors start to sound. But, non the less, all of them stem from fairly reputable industry sources. So, we'll leave it up to you to discuss and decide which bits you think will become reality.

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