Summary created by Smart Answers AI
In summary:
- Apple has transformed its Mac purchasing process from pre-configured models to a customizable system where buyers select individual components like display, chip, memory, and storage.
- Macworld reports this change allows customers to build machines tailored to their specific budget and performance needs rather than choosing fixed configurations.
- The new approach may prepare for future M5 chip customization options including CPU and GPU core selection capabilities.
For as long as Apple has been selling Macs online, it has offered them in a very specific way. There’s the base model, then models with more RAM and storage, higher processor options, and larger displays. It requires a bit of study—some models have this but not that—but it made the pricing very clear.
If you go to buy a new Mac from Apple.com today, you’ll notice that things have changed. Instead of a variety of options, you’ll see a single product page with “Customizable specs” that let you build your machine from the ground up. For the MacBook Pro, for example, you’ll select from the following options:
- Display size
- Color
- Screen type
- Chip
- Processing power
- Unified memory
- SSD storage
- Power adapter
- Keyboard
- Pro apps
- Payment options
- AppleCare coverage
The individual options haven’t changed—you still get 24GB of RAM standard with the M4 Pro and Max processors, for example—but the buying process puts more of an emphasis on building a machine within your budget rather than choosing from a variety of prebuilt configurations.
It’s not clear how this will affect third-party sellers such as Amazon and Best Buy, but it’s likely Apple will continue to ship common configurations.
Apple is rumored to offer the ability to customize CPU and GPU cores with the upcoming launch of the M5 Pro and M5 Max MacBook Pro models, so this new system could pave the way for more build-to-order options. It could also be a way to “hide” smaller price increases as memory and other component costs rise throughout 2026.
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/Health-GettyImages-Repub-FatBurningFoods-174e1e51b0094953964af2a935bb5a67.jpg?w=390&resize=390,220&ssl=1 "13 Fat-Burning Foods That Can Support Weight Loss Naturally")
