2020 Apple MacBook Pro: What We Know So Far

Apple is expected to release updates to its existing MacBook Pro models this year, and a new filing attests to that.

According to a one of several new filings submitted to the Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC), Apple is releasing a “portable personal computer” in the near future. The device has the model number A2289 and it will be running macOS 10.15. Although these are the only details included in the filing, these are enough to indicate that this device will be a MacBook or MacBook Pro.

The filing, made a day before Christmas last year (Dec. 24, 2019), might be for an upcoming 13-inch MacBook Pro, 9To5Mac noted. This is likely for some reasons:

First, Apple has just recently released the 16-inch MacBook with Magic Keyboard. It's very unlikely for the company to release an updated version of the same model in such a short period of time. Fans shouldn't expert to see an updated 16-incher as early as now.

Second, a previous report from Digitimes, which has sources in the supply chain, claimed that Apple was already working on a new 13-inch MacBook Pro with the new Magic Keyboard. It's unknown as to whether this MacBook Pro model will feature a dedicated escape and Touch ID keys similar to the 16-inch model, but is rumored to arrived within the first half of 2020.

Third, previous reports quoting noted analyst Ming-Chi Kuo revealed that the Cupertino tech giant is looking to replace the problematic butterfly keyboard with the new Magic Keyboard, which uses a scissor mechanism, and will do so when 2020 arrives. Kuo believes that Apple will include the new keyboard in all MacBook models, Pro or not, that will be released this year.

While Digitimes has a reputation for making inaccurate predictions from time to time, Ming-Chi Kuo is known for making accurate predictions most of the time. That said, it's very likely that Apple will release a new MacBook models with the new keyboard.

Speaking of keyboard, a new patent, spotted by Forbes, reveals that Apple is working on a keyboard that features multiple LEDs that can alter the color and brightness of the light behind each individual keys on the MacBook Pro's keyboard. This means the keys on future MacBook Pro keyboards can have colors different from each other.

Forbes noted that the new technology, described in a patent published Jan. 7th, can be used in a variety of applications, including DJ apps and typing software.