The Mac has a Zurich cousin. Both trace back to the Xerox Alto: Niklaus Wirth spent 1976–77 at Xerox PARC, couldn't bring an Alto home, so he built one at ETH Zurich. Lilith was done by 1980: mouse, bitmap display, all written in Modula-2.
Der Mac hat einen Zürcher Cousin. Beide gehen auf den Xerox Alto zurück: Niklaus Wirth war 1976–77 am Xerox PARC, konnte keinen Alto mitnehmen und baute an der ETH deshalb selbst einen. 1980 war die Lilith fertig: Maus, Bitmap-Bildschirm, alles in Modula-2.
Apple's rumored MacBook lineup illustrates why chip generations and product tiers should not be confused.
The company already sells MacBook Pro models with M5, M5 Pro and M5 Max chips.
Its March 2026 announcement described M5 Pro and M5 Max as processors built for demanding professional work, with improvements to CPU, GPU, memory bandwidth and on-device AI performance.
Now reports point to a different split for the next product cycle.
The entry level 14-inch MacBook Pro could receive the standard M6 chip, while the redesigned premium models may retain M5 Pro and M5 Max.
That would not necessarily mean the premium laptops are outdated.
A standard chip and a Pro or Max chip serve different performance needs. The more relevant comparison is how each configuration performs in the applications you actually use.
For developers, that might mean compilation and local model workloads. For video editors, it might mean export times and effects rendering. For ordinary users, battery life and responsiveness may matter more.
Generation tells you when a chip belongs in the product timeline. It does not tell you everything about its performance tier.
MacBook Pros starting at 128Gb and $12.999