Transition Casualties

iMac Pro the First Apple Computer to Wave Intel Goodbye

Cupertino on its way to CPU independence, the least successful model unceremoniously left behind

The iMac Pro is the first Apple computer forced to retire due to the company’s transition to its own processors — and a comeback at some point is far from guaranteed. (Image credit: Apple)

The Great Transition of Apple (from Intel’s silicon to its own), one of the most important ones in the company’s history, started with the launch of the two Macbook M1 models and the Mac Mini M1 last year. But a transition is not really felt until things get left behind — and that is exactly what is happening now, Apple confirms. The iMac Pro, one of the most prestigious and expensive computers the Cupertino giant has built in the last few years, is being phased out, at least in its current form: the first one to be left behind, sold while supplies last (in its basic configuration only), not to be updated with Intel’s next processors because, well, there’s no Apple future there.

This is all happening in March 2021, while very few people have a crystal-clear picture of Apple’s exact plans for the M1 transition. It makes sense for the company to release new Macs based on its more nimble, less power-hungry architecture starting with mainstream laptops and desktops targeted at less demanding home users, leaving the more powerful M1 laptops and M1 desktops for a bit later (when the software side of things is in…