MacBook Pro 2020 to get BIG performance boost

MacBook Pro 2020
(Image credit: Future)

If you're like me, you've been waiting for Apple's 2020 MacBook Pro — and held onto an aging older model for its reliable keyboard even though its battery life and performance don't stack up. The good news today is that the 2020 13-inch MacBook Pro will likely provide the speed boost we need, and keep its spot on our best laptops list.

This news comes to us from Twitter leaker @_rogame, who posted a screenshot from a 3DMark test results for a laptop (labelled "Apple Computer") rocking a 10th Gen Ice Lake Intel CPU Rogame captioned this as "2020 13" Macbook Pro" and noted it has 32GB of RAM and a 2TB SSD. 

Why Ice Lake processors matter

If you don't know an Ice Lake CPU from the Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock movie The Lake House, know that this chip offers strong performance gains. Our sister site Laptop Mag notes that Ice Lake chips (as opposed to Comet Lake chips) give stronger graphics performance books for integrated graphics. 

Hot Hardware dove into _rogame's leaks, and found that this leaked model has a 12% jump in CPU test scores and GPU tests "show a near 30 percent uplift in performance," when compared against the previous 13-inch MacBook Pro.

More memory for 13-inch 2020 MacBook Pro

While Apple lets you customize the current 13-inch MacBook Pro allows up to 2TB of SSD storage, this memory allotment would be a new high, doubling the current 16GB limit. 

The 16-inch MacBook Pro already tops out at 64GB of RAM, so we might continue to see Apple make you buy a bigger laptop to get the most performance.

The one 13-inch MacBook Pro change we truly need

Of course, this leak doesn't mention the one update we want most for the 13-inch MacBook Pro: a new keyboard. The Magic Keyboard that Apple dropped into 2019's 16-inch MacBook Pro — replacing the controversial butterfly-switch keyboard — is the most important upgrade the laptop can have. 

Speed is valuable, but how good will your work be if you can't type as efficiently? Here's hoping the new 13-inch MacBook Pro will adopt the better keyboard from its bigger brother.

Henry T. Casey
Managing Editor (Entertainment, Streaming)

Henry is a managing editor at Tom’s Guide covering streaming media, laptops and all things Apple, reviewing devices and services for the past seven years. Prior to joining Tom's Guide, he reviewed software and hardware for TechRadar Pro, and interviewed artists for Patek Philippe International Magazine. He's also covered the wild world of professional wrestling for Cageside Seats, interviewing athletes and other industry veterans.