Wait for high-end MacBook Pro stretches into June amidst China lockdown

Wait for high-end MacBook Pro stretches into June amidst China lockdown

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It could be summertime before your MacBook Pro with an M1 Max is delivered. Blame COVID.
Photo: Apple

Order a MacBook Pro with an M1 Max processor and you’ll wait until June for a delivery. Wait times have grown to 7+ weeks because the company that assembled the notebook for Apple is caught in a COVID lockdown.

The same lockdown caught one of the major iPhone assemblers, and also two iPad assemblers. But it’s not affecting handset or tablet deliveries. Not to the same extent, anyway.

COVID lockdown delays MacBook Pro deliveries

Many of Apple’s products are assembled in China, though not all. And a COVID-19 lockdown near Shanghai has forced the temporary closure of some Apple suppliers.

The shutdown of the Quanta plant has already added 3 to 5 weeks to delivery times for the 16-inch MacBook Pro with an M1 Max processor, according to Ming-Chi Kuo, an analyst with TF International Securities. Order a 14-inch MacBook Pro with an M1 Pro chip from the online Apple store and it won‘t arrive before May 19.

Quanta is the only company that assembles Apple notebooks, so any problems it has can easily affect supply.

No iPhone delays

Pegatron has also been forced to shut down assembly plants as part of the lockdown. It makes 20% to 30% of all iPhones, according to NikkeiAsia, with Foxconn and Wistron handling the rest. Pegatron the exclusive maker of the new iPhone SE 3.

But Apple either has a sufficient stockpile, or the other assembly companies have been able to step up their supplies of various iPhone units. Wistron’s and Foxconn’s plants are not affected by the latest COVID lockdown.

A check of the standard iPhone 13 on the Apple Store finds this handset ready to ship immediately. The same is true for the new iPhone SE 3.

iPad wait times stretch out weeks

Quanta also assembles iPads in China, and so does Compal. The lockdown might be affecting supply of these tablets, but not necessarily. Apple has had problems for months getting the components it needs to make iPads, and this was already keeping customers waiting.

Whatever the cause, at least one model is back ordered. Order the new iPad Air from the online Apple Store and the earliest delivery date is April 28. Alternatively, many Apple retail locations have the basic iPad in stock, but those who want one shipped to them will have to wait until May 5.