The MacBook disruption is about to begin

Source Domain: www.macworld.com

Everything we know about the MacBook is about to change. There have been widespread rumors that Apple is about to shake up its laptop range in the most significant way since it introduced the failed 12-inch MacBook in 2015. And after many months of speculation, it now feels like a near-certainty that a budget MacBook powered by an iPhone chip will appear as part of Apple’s March 4 “experience” event.

So far, almost all of the focus has been on this laptop itself, and understandably so—Apple has never released a sub-$1,000 MacBook, after all. But the impact of such a device won’t just be limited to the budget market. It will likely spur changes elsewhere in the MacBook lineup as well.

Indeed, the new budget MacBook gives Apple the opportunity to rethink the MacBook Air and bring some much-needed upgrades to its mid-range MacBook options, creating space between it and the new budget model while also further distinguishing the Air and Pro lines.

Gasping for Air

For years, the MacBook Air has occupied the low-end slot among Apple’s portable Macs. It’s got the cheapest price, the lowest-end chips, and the least advanced display. For the majority of consumers, it’s more than enough, and it’s absolutely the best MacBook for most people. But the arrival of a cheaper MacBook will change that perception.

Based on rumors, this new MacBook will have a significantly slower chip than the Air, but many of the same characteristics people want in a laptop: price, portability, and battery life. The Air has long checked all of those boxes, but now that something significantly cheaper will be available, Apple needs to reposition the Air as a mid-range device by addressing some of its shortcomings.

The MacBook Air is a solid machine for $999, but it’s starting to feel stale.

Foundry

Primary among those quibbles is the display. Compare the Air’s 13-inch LED display to what you get with the MacBook Pro and the…

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