The HomePod may be delayed, but we’ve still had the launch of the iMac pro to look forward to before the end of the year. this evening, a couple of tidbits regarding the iMac pro have emerged thanks to some digging by developers Johnathan Levin and Steve Troughton-Smith…
According to info the BridgeOS 2.0 software from Apple, it looks that if the iMac pro can feature an ARM co-processor in the form of an A10 Fusion chip. this might mark the 1st time that a mac has used an A-series chip designed by Apple.
Looks like the iMac Pro’s ARM coprocessor is arm64 Seems to handle the macOS boot & security process, as expected; iMac Pro lets Apple experiment with tighter control without the rest of the userbase freaking out. More info & download here: https://t.co/wmbNeVSEZX
— Steve Troughton-Smith (@stroughtonsmith) November 18, 2017
Notes on Troughton-Smith Twitter that A10 Fusion chip would let “Apple experiment with tighter control” of macOS, without frustrating developers and users.
Furthermore, he explains that the A10 Fusion chip in the iMac pro could be used for always-on “Hey, Siri,” a feature that’s currently missing from the macOS version of Siri. In fact, Troughton-Smith says in seems that the chip even runs when the iMac pro is totally shut off.
Confirmed: “Hey, Siri” is coming to the Mac pic.twitter.com/Dw9bRAzbxD
— Guilherme Rambo (@_inside) November 18, 2017
A report over the summer explained that the iMac pro would feature an ARM coprocessor, and today’s info seems to more ensure that with a bit more info.
Separately, Bloomberg reported at the start of the year that Apple was developing a new ARM-based chip destined for the MacBook pro. The chip would be responsible for handling low-power tasks that currently rely on Intel’s processor.
Currently, Apple ships a custom ARM chip called the T1 in its latest MacBook pro models that feature touch ID and also the touch Bar.
It’s unclear how the A10 Fusion chip seemingly destined for the iMac pro fits into all of this, but it’s actually notable that Apple is testing the waters with bringing its A-series chips to the mac. how the supposed A10 Fusion chip in the iMac pro will differ from other co-processor tech Apple has used remains to be seen.
We still don’t have an official release date for the iMac pro, but Apple has promised that it’ll be here before the end of the year.
