Apple’s upcoming budget-oriented MacBook has long been rumored, as far back as last July, when Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo reported that Apple was developing an all-new model that would serve as the new addition to the MacBook family. Today, Mark Gurman from Bloomberg indicates that Apple is gearing up to introduce this upcoming laptop at an ‘event’ next month. Even more interesting, this laptop is expected to come in several unique color options, as we’ve seen on the base iPad and the 24-inch iMac.
Recent rumors indicated that the higher-end MacBook Pros with M5 Pro and M5 Max chips would be introduced in the week of March 2, after older rumors suggested they would launch at the end of January. Since that upcoming update will be just a chip swap, this upcoming low-cost MacBook will certainly be the star of the show. For one, this MacBook is expected to be powered not by any M-series chip, but rather, the A18 Pro chip, which is the same chip that powered the iPhone 16 Pro models. Don’t be fooled by this expectation, as the A18 Pro chip should be no slouch, and the multi-core performance of the A18 Pro chip should be comparable to that of the M1 chip that saw its debut on the first Apple Silicon products. Of course, we should see improved single-core performance and graphics capabilities on the A18 Pro chip since it’s based on a more modern architecture. But most importantly, since the A18 Pro chip is more energy-efficient, we could possibly see the longest battery life ever in this upcoming MacBook. This MacBook may as well be the most affordable entry into Apple’s newest Apple Creator Studio bundle (next to the Mac mini), as if you think about it, the A17 Pro iPad mini supports Final Cut Pro, so it’d make more sense for this MacBook to run Final Cut Pro too, as we’ve seen the optimizations made through Apple Silicon.
Gurman expects this MacBook to feature a screen slightly below 13 inches, which corroborates previous reports that it would have a 12.9-inch display. Unless the moniker-less MacBook models from the late 2000s, Apple will not skimp out on making a plastic enclosure for this MacBook. Instead, the report indicates that this MacBook will utilize a new manufacturing process for its aluminum enclosure. Back in 2008, Apple introduced a precision aluminum unibody process that is still currently used on today’s MacBooks, so we just have to wait and see how Apple will manufacture this upcoming MacBook’s enclosure. For the M4 Mac mini, Apple says that “its smaller enclosure is made with an impact extrusion process that reduces the amount of aluminum used by 85 percent.” So this MacBook could reduce the amount of aluminum in a similar fashion, making this laptop more low-carbon impact than before.
Last, but not least, this MacBook is expected to come in vibrant colors, although the color options haven’t been finalized yet. According to Gurman, Apple has been testing various color options, including light yellow, light green, blue, pink, classic silver, and dark gray.
The current M4 MacBook Air starts at $999, and we’ve seen deals on it for as low as $849. This upcoming low-cost MacBook is expected to start at around $699, making this laptop an incredible value, and it will certainly cannibalize the market of budget PC and Chromebooks. With that said, this MacBook should be the most exciting product from Apple this year. Are you excited about this MacBook? Let us know in the comments below, and bookmark this site so you will stay updated on everything about Apple.
