This week in Apple: New MacBooks and Mac Mini powered by M1 silicon

This week in Apple news we saw the company launch two new MacBooks as well as a new Mac Mini. The computers are powered by the new M1 chip, an Arm-based processor developed in-house. This is the biggest shift for Apple’s PC division in many years.

In other Apple news, we saw the launch of the iPhone 12 Studio service, iPhone 12 Mini reviews criticizing battery life, Apple suspending business with a company allegedly violating labor laws, and more.

See the Apple news roundup below for all the latest.

The top Apple news stories of the past week:

• New MacBooks announced: On Tuesday, Apple launched two new MacBooks: the new MacBook Air and a new 13-inch MacBook Pro. Both laptops are powered by the new M1 chipset, which is built on Arm technology (our own Gary Sims will explain what that means for you). This is a dramatic shift for Apple away from x86-based systems and represents the biggest change to its PC business in years.
• New Mac Mini lands, too: Along with the two new MacBooks, Apple also launched a new Mac Mini. At an introductory price of $699, it is now the cheapest way to jump into the macOS ecosystem. As with the new MacBooks, it is also powered by the Arm-based M1 chip.
• AirTags and AirPods Studio MIA: Lots of analysts expected Apple to also launch other products this week, specifically the GPS trackers AirTags and the over-ear headphones AirPods Studio. However, that didn’t happen. It is now unlikely that we’ll see either of those products in 2020.
• AirPods Studio sort of revealed: A new icon in the iOS 14.3 beta suggests the design elements of the rumored AirPods Studio over-ear headphones. The design lines up with leaked renders we’ve seen over the past year or so. Check it out here.
• Apple launches and pulls tons of software due to server issues: This week, Apple launched a ton of new software, including betas of iOS, tvOS, and more. It also launched macOS Big Sur. However, some serious server issues were wreaking havoc on multiple Apple services. In response, Apple temporarily stopped all updates until it could get things under control. It wasn’t a great start to the Big Sur launch.
• iPhone 12 Studio service launches: Last weekend, Apple launched a new service called iPhone 12 Studio. The service is an extension of the Apple Store that allows buyers to customize MagSafe cases and wallets to see how various color combos will look on their phones.
• Reviewers criticize poor battery life of iPhone 12 Mini: Lots of people are excited to start getting their iPhone 12 Mini, but early reviews are tempering expectations. While early reviews praise the device overall, the small form-factor apparently creates poor battery life.
• Apple suspends business with Pegatron: Long-time Apple supplier Pegatron is in hot water this week after Apple found it repeatedly violated Apple’s labor ethics rules. The Taiwanese supplier then went to great lengths to cover up the violations. Good on Apple for taking a stance, here.

Thinking about making the switch?

If you are reading this Apple news article on an iOS device and thinking about making the switch to Android, we have multiple articles and guides that can help you with that process. Despite how it might seem, moving from iOS to Android is easier than ever, and many of the services and systems on iOS have similar or even the same counterparts on Android.

The best place to start would be our guide on how to switch from iPhone to Android, which goes over all the basics. We also have more specific guides, such as how to transfer your calendar from iPhone to Android. We also have app guides that will give you the best alternatives to iOS staples, such as our list of best alternatives to FaceTime on Android.

If you’re looking for a great Android device to replace your iPhone, consult our list of the best Android smartphones available now.