Apple’s current MacBook Air design.
Photographer: Stephanie Keith / Getty Images North America
Photographer: Stephanie Keith / Getty Images North America
Apple Inc. is working on a thinner, lighter version of the MacBook Air, the company’s consumer laptop, according to people who are aware of it.
The new computer is expected to launch during the second half of this year at the earliest or in 2022. It will include Apple’s MagSafe charging technology and a next-generation version of the company’s Mac processors. Apple has debated about reducing the size of the laptop by reducing the edge of the screen, which will be 13 inches. The current model weighs 2.8 pounds and is just over half an inch at the thickest point.
The company considered building a larger version of the MacBook Air with a 15-inch screen, but Apple is not moving forward with it for the next generation, people said, asking that they not identify themselves in private matters. . An Apple spokeswoman declined to comment.
MagSafe, which was removed from the MacBook Air with its 2018 redesign, is a magnetic charging system. This means that any accidental branching of the power cord would simply separate it from the laptop instead of tearing down the entire computer. The new model will have a pair of USB 4 ports to connect external devices.
The new laptop is destined to be a high-end version of the current MacBook Air, which is expected to remain in the company’s line as an entry-level offering. Apple last updated the product in November with its own Mac M1 chip, replacing an Intel Corp. processor.
The Mac is Apple’s oldest product line and has a loyal following. A few years ago, the company was criticized for not updating these equipment enough and not paying attention to customer demands. Now there is a flood of updates. In addition to the new MacBook Air, Apple is planning its own MacBook Pro’s biggest update since 2016, the first redesign of the iMac in almost a decade, a new Intel-based Mac Pro and a mid-sized Mac Pro desktop with internal chips.
The upcoming MacBook Pro is an example of Apple’s new approach to Mac fans. The company plans to recover an SD card slot for the upcoming MacBook Pros so users can insert memory cards from digital cameras. This feature was removed in 2016, to the dismay of professional photographers and video creators, key segments of the MacBook Pro user base. The criticized touch bar, the touch screen feature row of the current model, is also up and running.
Apple has also developed Mac’s underlying support for both cellular connectivity (the ability of Macs to connect to the Internet via smartphone networks) and Face ID, the Mac’s facial recognition system. company. But it looks like neither function will arrive soon. For this purpose, Face ID was originally planned to arrive at this year’s iMac redesign, but is now unlikely to be included in the first iteration of the new design.