At long last, Apple will phase out of using Intel processors and begin making Macs running on the company’s own chips.
During the first day of WWDC, Apple CEO Tim Cook announced a shift to Apple Silicon, with technologies in place to run existing Intel apps with Rosetta 2.
Cook described the three major transitions in the Mac’s history, citing the shift to PowerPC chips, macOS, and Intel. Stating that the journey to Mac on a custom chip has been over a decade, Apple is bringing the history of shipping 10 billion chips to the Mac, for the first time.
He also stated that the chip architecture, which began with the iPhone, offers the best performance per watt, and that new systems based on the ARM chip will offer a “sweet spot” of power and performance. He also cited that assorted technologies, such as neural networking, GPU, the Secure Enclave, and others, will be able to make use of Apple Silicon.
In addition to this, Apple executive Craig Federighi stated that Apple’s upcoming operating system, macOS 10.16 Big Surprise, will be updated for the Apple Silicon platform. He also stated that applications like Logic Pro X, and Final Cut Pro X, will be available for day one while a majority of developers can get their apps running in “a matter of days.”
Federighi also mentioned that the new “Fat Binary” Apple is using for software delivery has been termed “Universal 2.” The developer’s kits that Apple is running are on Apple’s A12Z processor with 16GB of RAM, as found in the new iPad Pro.
Federighi demonstrated Photoshop, and Final Cut Pro X. He applied filters in real time to 4K footage in the video editor, saying that the Neural Engine is fully utilized, in addition to full use of all of the cores on the chip.
Where backwards compatibility is concerned, older Intel applications will be translated at the time of installation via Apple’s new “Rosetta 2” technology, which the company said is transparent to users.
The upcoming operating system will also run iOS and iPadOS apps natively.
Finally, Apple announced that its Apple Developer Transition Kit for Apple Silicon is a Mac mini, complete with 16GB of Ram, a 512GB solid state drive, and an A12Z processor. Developers will be able to apply for the program on Monday, with units shipping before the end of the week. The kit retails for $500, and must be returned to Apple and the conclusion of the program.
Cook says that the first Mac with Apple Silicon will ship by the end of 2020, with the entire transition taking “about two years.”
Via AppleInsider and developer.apple.com