It seems like Apple is making its way to the affordable laptop market as soon as next month. If we go by the latest Power On newsletter from Mark Gurman, the Cupertino giant is preparing for a March event where this new MacBook could be announced. Though I am expecting the event will also reveal a few other devices as well.
The upcoming MacBook is expected to be priced below $1,000 (around Rs 90,700) mark, which would make it cheaper than the current MacBook Air lineup. This indicates that Apple is trying to target students and first-time Mac buyers who may find the current models expensive. However, it’s interesting to see such a shift, as until now the MacBook has always been a premium offering from the company.
According to the report, in order to keep costs under control, the upcoming laptop can draw power from the A18 Pro chip, which is the same chip that powers the latest Pro series iPhones. If this is true, then it will be the first time when Apple will use an iPhone chip in the MacBook instead of opting for its M-series processors. While the A18 Pro is a powerful chip, using a mobile processor on a laptop could come with some limitations compared to the more powerful MacBook Air and Pro models, especially under heavy workloads.
Furthermore, the upcoming laptop is tipped to feature a slightly smaller display, measuring under 13 inches. This would make it more compact than the existing MacBook Air models. Despite the lower price, Apple is expected to offer its signature aluminium build. The company is reportedly using a new manufacturing process that helps reduce production costs while maintaining build quality.
One of the biggest changes could be the colors. Apple is said to be testing brighter and more playful options like light yellow, light green, blue, and pink, along with the usual silver and dark gray.
In terms of specifications, the affordable MacBook is expected to feature 8GB of RAM and offer long battery life. It may miss out on Thunderbolt support, but it is expected to include USB Type-C ports for charging and connectivity. The lack of Thunderbolt could limit some advanced features, like connecting multiple high-resolution external displays. Apart from that, I don’t think there will be any big on-device AI support, which will leave the users with only cloud-based systems.
Separately, Apple is also expected to launch a new affordable iPhone soon. While the exact launch date is still under wraps. The device is expected to bring hardware upgrades and continue Apple’s push in the more affordable iPhone segment.
