Apple recently outfitted some of the Mac notebooks with its own M1 laptop chip, with more substantial changes to the lineup expected later in 2021 and beyond. In a new report filed with Bloomberg this morning, reporter Mark Gurman casts a spotlight on the next MacBook Air.
Gurman claims that Apple’s most popular computer will be redesigned to be thinner and lighter than its predecessor. He doesn’t provide any numbers to back that up aside from reminding us that the current model weighs 2.8 pounds and is just over half an inch at its thickest point.
There’s something in the air
Other claimed features coming to the MacBook Air include a second-generation version of Apple’s M1 chip, which should bring additional power savings and speed increases.
The new notebook will continue to feature a 13-inch display, with Apple reportedly discussing internally whether they should make the computer smaller by shrinking the border around the screen (like the company has done with the 16-inch MacBook Pro, for example).
The next MacBook Air will also bring back MagSafe.
MagSafe charging and USB 4
Apple has stopped using the MagSafe power connector on its notebooks in 2018 following a decade of MagSafe-equipped notebooks. Reviving MagSafe could free people from having to use one of the Air’s scarce USB-C ports for charging. Gurman mentioned that the upcoming MacBook Air will feature a pair of USB 4 ports for connecting external devices.
Sources told Gurman that Apple will position the notebook as a more powerful version of the current MacBook Air, which will remain in the lineup to help widen Apple’s price gamut. “The new laptop is destined to be a higher-end version of the current MacBook Air, which is expected to remain in the company’s lineup as an entry-level offering,” he explains.
The machine should drop during the second half of this year (at the earliest) or in 2022.
Additional updates featuring in-house chips and other perks are coming to the Mac platform, including the first redesign of the all-in-one iMac desktop in nearly a decade along with more affordable monitors, a new Intel-based Mac Pro and a half-sized Mac Pro model.
Image credit: Apple