A new set of pictures uploaded last week may be the world's first glimpse at an assembled display unit of Apple's rumored 12-inch MacBook Air.
The photos, which were first uploaded by the Chinese Apple blog iFanR, show a laptop's display unit with a "polished" logo of Apple and the pre-production identifiers of the component obscured. If the pictures are real, then they would be the first images of the rumored 12-inch ultraportable laptop of Apple, which is looking like it would be the thinnest laptop that has ever been released by the company.
Along with several closeup shots of the assembly component, several pictures reveal the display unit placed on top of what seems to be the previously released 13-inch MacBook Air, supposedly to compare the sizes of the laptops.
The display unit is, as expected, smaller than the 13-inch laptop. However, the assembly component looks to be taller than the display unit of the 13-inch MacBook Air. This would mean that while the screen is smaller, the 12-inch MacBook Air would have an expanded space to more comfortably fit in the laptop's keyboard.
A side view of the display unit shows off its very thin design, appearing to be thicker by only a few millimeters compared to the iPad Air, which is in line with the expectations for the new MacBook.
The glowing, translucent logo of Apple that is usually found in the top cover of the display unit has been conspicuously replaced by the polished Apple logo that is usually found in the company's iOS mobile devices.
According to the report, the distinguishing logo of Apple's MacBooks has been replaced because the plastic part of the logo is only protected by a very thin metal chassis that would surround it. However, the explanation is strange considering that the smaller 11-inch MacBook Air still has the translucent logo as opposed to the polished one.
Another difference seen in the display unit from the current models of MacBook Air laptops is that the assembly component features a cover glass from edge to edge, along with black bezels underneath. This would suggest that the display unit features a laminated LCD arrangement similar to the other components of Apple's Retina display.
Not much is known regarding the 12-inch MacBook Air aside from what has been speculated, with the most recent rumors claiming that the laptop will be launched by the end of the current first quarter. However, a definite timetable for the product's launch has not yet been confirmed.
