Apple is working on prototypes of several ARM-based Mac variants and also a new version of the Mac OS X, claims a new report.
MacBidouille, a French website that occasionally reports about Mac, has now dispatched its next batch of rumours that Apple is actively testing ARM powered variants of Mac devices along with a built in Magic trackpad, to feature an all-new version of the OS X.
MacBidouille’s sources claim that Apple is testing three machines – iMac, Mac mini and a MacBook supposedly MacBook Air with ARM processors.
iMac and MacBook Air are said to feature 4 to 8 quad core ARM 64-bit processors whereas Mac Mini will have only 4 quad core 64-bit processors.
According to the report, experiments are in advanced levels and Apple may make the announcement very soon. The report notes that the Cupertino is a bit hesitant because it feels the sudden shift to ARM might not go well with the users.
However, such a change is not completely new in the history of Apple as it has previously changed from PowerPC architecture to Intel x86 chips for Macs in 2005.
In addition, iPads have always had ARM based processors from the very first generation. The company has been developing the ARM-based processors (the A4-A7 line) for use in iOS devices.
A few years ago, Apple has expressed plans to rule out the use of Intel chips completely in its devices. There were rumours that Apple was testing an ARM (A5) powered MacBook Air as early as 2011.
