Apple will initially not launch a new version of the MacBook with a 12-inch screen. A market observer assumes that. Apple discontinued the most compact Mac of all time, which had an energy-saving Intel processor, in 2019 and had never equipped it with Apple silicon technology. It was initially speculated that this form factor – which weighed even less than a combination of iPad and Magic Keyboard – would be particularly suitable for the manufacturer’s own ARM SoCs. But so far nothing has happened here.
No plans for 2023
That will probably remain the case, writes Bloomberg journalist Mark Gurman in his last newsletter. “A new 12-inch MacBook is no longer on Apple’s short-term roadmap,” it says short and sweet. The Mac year 2023 will not be particularly exciting anyway: Apple apparently only plans speed bump updates for the MacBook Pro (M2 Max and M2 Pro instead of M1 Max and M1 Pro), a Mac Pro with Apple Silicon in the old look and a MacBook Air with 15 inches. New iMacs will probably come later; what will happen with Mac mini and Mac Studio is not yet clear.
The 12-inch MacBook was a special device for Apple. It was on the market from April 2015 to July 2019 and appeared in a total of three generations. A Retina display met Core M to Core i5 chips, the design was fanless and the hardware each weighed under a kilogram. The 12-inch MacBook was never really fast, but it could be used for office and web applications without any problems. Mobile workers and frequent travelers loved the machine.
Apple Silicon actually ideal
Because Apple’s ARM-based silicon chips run very efficiently and cool, they were considered ideal for the form factor. But Apple then built the first M1 machines on the basis of MacBook Air and MacBook Pro (and Mac mini in the old design). Finally, the MacBook Pro M1 Max and M1 Pro followed as the first Apple silicon machine with a new design – which is even thicker and slightly heavier than its predecessor.
The most interesting new mobile Mac of 2023 could be the MacBook Air with 15 inches – more precisely: 15.5. In addition to the 13-inch device, the MacBook Air used to have a smaller version with an 11-inch screen. There hasn’t been a 15-inch option until now. Analyst Ross Young had learned from the display supply chain that production of a panel for a larger MacBook Air is to start in the first quarter of 2023, which could still be available in the spring.
(bsc)
