Specifications . At the
Worldwide Developers Conference, on June 22, 2020, Apple announced another Developer Transition Kit intended to assist software developers during the
transition of the
Mac platform to the
ARM architecture. Described informally as "an
iPad in a
Mac mini's body," the DTK carries a model number of A2330 and identifies itself as "Apple Development Platform." It consisted of an
A12Z processor, 16 GB
RAM, 512 GB
SSD, and a variety of common I/O ports (
USB-C, USB-A,
HDMI 2.0, and
Gigabit Ethernet) in a Mac mini case. Support for wireless communication based upon
Wi-Fi 5 (802.11ac) and
Bluetooth 5.0 was included, while
Thunderbolt 3 support, built-in to every Mac commercially available as of June 2020, was not included. It eventually appeared in the first three models of Apple silicon Macs, operating in Thunderbolt 3/
USB4 mode. The DTK came preloaded with
beta versions of
macOS 11 Big Sur. The A12Z DTK would be directly succeeded by the
2020 Mac mini with the
M1 chip.
Performance In an interview shortly after the introduction of the DTK, Apple's SVP of Software Engineering
Craig Federighi praised the DTK's performance and contributed to expectations of superlative performance of forthcoming commercial products based upon Apple silicon custom-engineered for the Macintosh platform: "Even that DTK hardware, which is running on an existing iPad chip that we don't intend to put in a Mac in the future – it's just there for the transition – the Mac runs awfully nice on that system. It's not a basis on which to judge future Macs ... but it gives you a sense of what our silicon team can do when they're not even trying – and they're going to be trying." An A-series chip would not be used in a Mac again until the release of the
MacBook Neo in 2026.
Conditions of use To receive a DTK, developers were required to sign up for a one year membership to Apple's Universal App Quick Start Program at a cost of 500. The device had to be returned to Apple one year after joining the
Universal App Quick Start Program, "or as otherwise earlier requested by Apple." Several conditions of use were attached, including restrictions against disassembling the computer, running unauthorized benchmark tests, or using it for work other than transition-related software development.
Controversy The terms of the Universal App Quick Start Program indicated that the program would run for the duration of one year counted from the moment the developer signed up for it, with an option to terminate it early without reason. Additionally, it had a specific provision regarding one of the benefits associated with the program, namely the DTK. The DTK was to be returned within 30 days after the end of the program itself or "as otherwise earlier requested by Apple". Apple had earlier communicated that the DTK was meant to prepare for the launch of Macs based on
Apple silicon, thereby suggesting that the Program would be available until the new Apple silicon Macs would be available. In February 2021 Apple emailed the developers regarding the early return of the DTK while keeping the rest of the program and its benefits active until the original expiration of one year. Additionally, Apple indicated in their email that they would provide a discount code for a 200 discount towards the purchase of a Mac with
M1 after the DTK was returned. This discount code was not promised beforehand or part of the original agreement but was considered as a compensation in exchange of an early return. Others were under the impression that they could use the DTK for a full year, being caught in surprise by Apple's email indicating that they soon had to return the DTK. Many were also indicating that they were unhappy about the 200 discount code offered by Apple, comparing it to when Apple unexpectedly offered developers the option to return their
Intel DTK earlier than the originally planned date for an iMac during
the transition from PowerPC to Intel processors. During the last transition, a developer could also choose to keep the DTK for the whole length of the program except that they would not get the iMac. On February 5, 2021, following developer backlash, Apple sent out another email that increased the discount code to US$500 and expanded the discount to be used on any other Apple devices. In addition, the code expired at the end of 2021, instead of May. == Specifications ==