Apple is planning to launch a more affordable version of the 13-inch MacBook Air, according to an investor note written by reliable Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo of KGI Securities.
The MacBook Air was unveiled by late Apple CEO and co-founder Steve Jobs 10 years ago, but it has retained its popularity, especially among students. Apart from minor upgrades, the MacBook Air line has been stagnant over recent years, however, it appears that Apple is finally revisiting it.
Cheaper MacBook Air Coming Soon?
In an investor note, Kuo said that he expects Apple to roll out a new MacBook Air that will feature a lower price tag in the second quarter of this year. The analyst believes that the more affordable MacBook Air will lead to higher MacBook shipments this year by 10 percent to 15 percent.
Kuo did not reveal any other details about the upcoming MacBook Air, so it is unclear if the lower price tag comes with less powerful specifications, or if the cheaper cost will be offered despite upgraded internals. However, the KGI investor note slightly confirms with a report from earlier this year that Apple is planning to release three new Mac models within 2018.
The new computers will come with custom co-processors, and with Kuo's note, it seems that one of them will be the lower priced MacBook Air.
With the rumored second-quarter launch of the cheaper MacBook Air, the possible announcement date of the new laptop is at this year's WWDC, which is usually held in June.
The Last MacBook Air Update
The last minor update to the MacBook Air was announced at last year's Worldwide Developer's Conference. The laptop was given a slightly faster processor, with a default RAM of 8GB. Currently, the $999 base price of the MacBook Air includes a 1.8GHz dual-core i5 processor, 128GB of storage, and the aforementioned 8GB of RAM.
When Apple released the new MacBook Pro models in 2016, enthusiasts thought that it would have been better if the laptops were instead given the MacBook Air name. This is because it may have been more appropriate to describe the 2016 MacBook Pro models as faster MacBook Air laptops rather than thinner MacBook Pro laptops.
If there will be a new MacBook Air, one possible update is the display as the current model only offers a 1440 x 900 non-Retina display. There will likely also be USB-C and Thunderbird 3 upgrades in the new model.
Will Apple finally give the MacBook Air its due attention? Until the company makes an official announcement, MacBook Air fans will just have to hope and wait.
