Macbook Pro 2020 release date, price and specs: everything we know about the new MacBook Pro

There are few things more guaranteed than getting a new MacBook Pro every year, and 2020 is no different. After the landmark year the flagship Apple laptop had last year, however, the MacBook Pro 2020 might be one of the most interesting launches yet. 

For a bit of background, we did see a MacBook Pro 2019 that followed much in the footsteps of earlier models – incremental hardware upgrades, same chassis, same awful Butterfly keyboard – but 2019 didn’t end there. In November 2019, Apple launched the MacBook Pro 16-inch with an all new keyboard, narrow bezels and probably the best speakers ever to exist in a laptop. 

These improvements were initially limited to the 16-inch model, but now most of them have come to the newly announced 13-inch MacBook Pro. That means that the amazing Magic Keyboard has found its way to the more accessible MacBook Pro, along with faster memory and new 10th-generation Intel processors. 

So, because there’s a lot of information to know about the MacBook Pro 2020, we went ahead and gathered everything together in one place. Be sure to keep this page bookmarked, as we’ll add any new information that surfaces – especially if we hear word of a new 16-inch MacBook Pro. 

Cut to the chase

• What is it? The new 2020 MacBook Pro 
• When is it out? Available to order today
• What will it cost? Starting at $1,299 (£1,299, AU$1,999)

MacBook Pro 2020 release date

The MacBook Pro 13-inch was announced on Monday, May 4, and the first shipments appear to be scheduled for Thursday, May 7, although some higher-end configurations won’t deliver until a later window: May 18 to May 20. Since the MacBook Pro 16-inch launched in December – taking place of the 15-inch laptop – this 13-inch version may be Apple’s last big Pro update for 2020.

MacBook Pro 2020 price

The price of the MacBook Pro starts at $1,299 / £1,299 / AU$1,999 for 13-inch model with a 1.4GHz quad-core 8th-gen Intel Core i5 processor and a rather limiting 256GB of storage and 8GB of RAM. You’ll need $1,799 / £1,799 / AU$2,999 to step it up to a 2.0GHz 10th-generation Intel Core i5 processor with 512GB of storage and 16GB of RAM.

Want the lone Intel Core i7 configuration running at 2.3GHz? That’s an extra $200 / £200 / AU$600, while jumping from 16GB to 32GB of RAM costs an extra $400 / £400 / AU$600, bringing the total to $2,599 / £2,599 / AU$4,199 for the maxed CPU and RAM configuration with 1TB of storage. You can go all the way up to 4TB, but that adds another $1,000 / £1000 / AU$1,500

MacBook Pro 2020 specs

The MacBook Pro is Apple’s laptop geared towards creatives and professionals, and as such it’s packed with the latest and greatest mobile hardware. Only the 13-inch model has been revealed so far, but there are some interesting details. 

For instance, the new 13-inch MacBook Pro is using 10th-generation Intel processors, and it appears as if they’re Ice Lake. Apple typically doesn’t reveal the exact silicon running in their laptops, so we’re not sure whether it’s Ice Lake or Comet Lake. However, all versions of the new MacBook Pro are  using Intel Iris Graphics, so it’s safe to assume that they’re running Ice Lake. 

But, not all of the laptops are. 

The entry level models of the device are still using 8th-generation Whiskey Lake processors. However, based on our testing of past laptops, we can pretty much say you’re not going to get a huge difference in performance whether you go with the 8th generation processor or the 10th. The big difference will probably lie in battery life, as Ice Lake is a much more efficient CPU, even if it doesn’t quite out-muscle the old chips. 

However, if you do go with one of the new processors, you’ll be able to configure the MacBook Pro 2020 with up to 32GB of RAM. This is an absolutely gargantuan amount of memory for a 13-inch laptop. We wouldn’t recommend most people go with this option, but if you need that much memory, at least the option is open to you. 

The display is high-spec as usual, hitting a QHD resolution of 2,560 x 1,600. Yes, that does mean the MacBook Pro is still shy of hitting 4K, but with a 13.3-inch display, the difference would likely not be noticeable to a vast majority of people. It also has a P3 wide color gamut and 500 nits of brightness, meaning it should remain one of the brightest and most colorful laptop displays on the market. 

Beyond the raw specs, there are some much-needed improvements. Chief among these is the inclusion of the same Magic Keyboard found in the MacBook Pro 16-inch. This keyboard isn’t just one of the most comfortable we’ve typed on, but it should see the end of Apple’s years-long faulty keyboard controversy. 

This does see the touch bar get a bit smaller, but with a dedicated TouchID button and an escape key, it should be a lot easier to use (and with less mistaken inputs). 

It’s kind of a shame that we didn’t get a refresh of the 16-inch model, however. In our brief testing of laptops rocking the new 10th-gen Intel Comet Lake-H processors, we’ve seen much better performance along with some amazing battery life. Maybe we’ll see these improved CPUs in the next version of the 16-inch laptop – they did just come out in April, after all.