My only issue with the Air series is the lack of multiple monitor support. I know not many people will have the need, but it is the sole reason I am thinking of moving from an M1 Air, that does everything I need perfectly, to a MacBook Pro that I don't really need, apart from the multiple monitor support.
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15.5-Inch MacBook Air Expected to Launch in Spring 2023
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There are other expensive components in the Pros that would result in too high a price for the 15”.
A 15" consumer-grade laptop from Apple is LOOOOOOOOOOOONG overdue. Like, 15 years overdue. Had I known this was coming I would've waited on buying my 16" MBP.
Then again, I suppose that was the point. They'll probably still arbitrarily limit it to 1 external monitor though despite the M2 being perfectly capable.
Then again, I suppose that was the point. They'll probably still arbitrarily limit it to 1 external monitor though despite the M2 being perfectly capable.
Eh.
I think back in 1998 when Steve simplified the lineup, it worked because the technology wasn't so integrated into our daily lives. The simplicity brought Apple back from the dead.
It's such a part of our daily lives at this point that I think most people can handle the broader lineup.
Besides, Steve Jobs loved having computers with different sizes.
12" and 14" iBooks
12", 15", and 17" Powerbooks
11" and 13" MacBook Airs
13" and 15" MacBook Pros
Lampshade iMacs with difference screen sizes.
I’ll be the unpopular one and say this is a weird prediction. A 15” MBA has no niche when the 14”MBP and 16”MBP exist.
MBAs are all about portability. I could understand a thinner lighter 13”MBA, but a 15” one? Nah
MBAs are all about portability. I could understand a thinner lighter 13”MBA, but a 15” one? Nah
Highly likey not really true. The deep discounts are likely driven by the fact that Apple doesn't want to post large year-over-over sales revenue losses. Q4 2021 new MBP 14-16 and lots of people buying. most of 2022 rumors of new Macs of some time in Q4 2022 ..... and nothing.
MBP 14/16 probably not selling as well as they did during the initial demand surge , but that is a relative drop against an outlier level of demand. If they sold as well as they did in June-August during Nov-December then the superficial, short sighted, wall st. meme is going to be that they are 'failing'. With the sales pricing , they are probably beating June-August sales rates , but incrementally below the opening surge. All Apple has to do is best the consensus estimates of how large the 'drop' will be to 'win' the meme competition. Apple took a relatively small margin hit and boosted sales during the holiday season (and still made gobs of money relative to most companies).
Apple is trying to recapture the 'sizzle' of having something new to sell with deeper M1 Pro/Max discounts.
Given there is no M2 iMac or Mini either there is also pretty good chance that there is some M2 production issue also that will uncork in 2023 but wasn't enough to high the holiday season.
Given the M1 Pro doesn't go into a Mini or any other Mac and probably doesn't have a place to go for any 2023 Mac ( M1 Pro completely retired after the M2 Pro show up. ). Apple can also grind out some more profit by running the M1 Pro/Max line longer.
Larger screen without the mixed usage battery drop (to the 14" times ) and lighter weight. Battery and lighter (relative to the MBP) are likely going to be the major selling points alongside the screen.
If just as thin as the MBA 13 then unlikely they are changing the thermal system. So probably get another port on other side (maybe two) and a bigger battery to go with bigger screen, but still same M2. The M2 has a lower RAM capacity 'floor' which is a better price (given how much over market Apple charges for Memory).
Probably not unless there is huge switch to high number of incentives thrown at the 14 Plus. The Pro is backlogged so the Plus isn't doing better than that. Most shops are going to throw incentives at the regular iPhone. [ 12/13 Mini similar issues where larger discounts not really thrown at it. ]
I think just like a lot of tech companies, Apple thought the pandemic might have lasted longer resulting in more demand for notebooks and people working from home. In late 2020, I remember the high demand just for the M1 MBP and how long it took to arrive. Things have changed, there is not the surging demand; the users who would even consider upgrading from an M1 Pro/Max is so miniscule. The other part is that those on Intel are likely squeezing out the last of whats left there instead of upgrading. A client at work bought off a Intel 13 inch Early 2020 4 port from a co-worker who just didn't like macOS. Helped them set it up with their work apps and they seem to be just happy with it. So, Apple Silicon is not really a driving force it seems anymore. The fact that they still have yet to transition the Mac Pro is telling too. I believe thats due to many third party Pro apps still yet to be optimized for Apple Silicon which would hurt sales.
Not being as heavy as the 16 inch. That's the selling point.
It's a laptop. Weight is a selling point for a significant number of people.
If Apple hadn't dramatically increased the weight of the 16" MBP compared to previous offering I agree, there would be little point. But the fact is they did. And they probably aren't slimming down that computer any time soon. They have a super efficient chip that makes building super thin and light laptops with great battery life WAY easier than it used to be with Intel. WHY WOULDN'T they use that technology to bring more thin and light laptop offerings to market?
Here’s what 9to5 published this morning.
9to5mac.com
15-inch MacBook Air slated for spring 2023 release - 9to5Mac
A handful of rumors over the last year have said that Apple is planning a new 15-inch MacBook Air to...
9to5mac.com
+1 Similar to the reason why I upgraded from the M1 Mac Mini to the Mac Studio. I did not need anymore power, the Mini was plenty powerful in base form. However, I needed to drive more than 2 monitors.
Other than the legacy leftovers like the M1 Air and MBP, the laptop lineup is relatively simple. Those legacy models are like the earlier year’s iPhones that Apple keeps in inventory to offer lower price points.
13.5” MacBook Air with M2
13” MacBook Pro with M2
14” MacBook Pro
16” MacBook Pro
That 13” MBP seems like it is ripe for replacing with a more modern model, perhaps a 15” Air/MacBook.
Can you get a 16” with 14” specs? No you can’t.
So you pay $500 more for a larger screen.
14” Apple M1 Pro with 10-core CPU, 16-core GPU, 16-core Neural Engine 1GB/512GB
$2,299.00
16” Apple M1 Pro with 10-core CPU, 16-core GPU, 16-core Neural Engine 1GB/512GB
$2,499.00
You can’t get the 16” in the lower core model, but if you play with the configurator and match up the specs, they are only $200 different.
It is more about price market segmentation than 'niche'.
If Apple raises the MPB 14" price a bit and places the MBA 15" in the middle between MBA 13" and MBP 14" there is room if that price range is wide enough.
Apple could simply just dump the lowest end 'binned' Mx Pro option from the MBP 14" line up. Just start at the full CPU core count M2 Pro and just walk a GPU core binning ladder for options. That is another $200 bump over the gap that exists now. That would lower the fratricide between the MBA 15" and MBP 14".
[Similar issue with MBP 16" . trim off 512TB SSD for customers who were really way out of their price range but just primarily trying to grab a larger screen. The binned down M1 Pro is already completely trimmed off in the 16" line up. ]
The MBP 14" won't be close at all in either CPU or GPU performance. The folks who want to buy performance get the 14" and the folks just looking for a larger screen on a basic laptop get the MBA 15".
Apple should push the M2 Pro into something like a Mini (and perhaps larger screen iMac) to keep the number of M2 Pro SoC packages sold at a higher rate. If they actually really needed a place to 'dump' binned CPU cores M2 Pro packages could just to that outside the laptop line up.
The path to lighter is with lower battery consumption. If stick with lower power consuming M2 in the MBA 15" and far less brighter (and lower refresh ) screen, then they don't need quite as much battery. No fans ... lighter and lower battery consumption. If battery is thinner, then case is thinner. If case is made of aviation aluminum and thinner .... then it is also less weight of the enclosure. No SD reader, no HDMI port ... lighter. Relatively smaller speakers .. lighter.
The slippery slope is if that the larger screen's frame is still rigid if trim more metal out of it.
MBA 2015 2.96 lbs ( 1.35kg )
MBA 2018 2.75 lbs ( 1. 25kg )
MBA 2022 2.7 lbs (1.24 kg )
Apple has pretty much 'milked' the 13" air enclosure about as far as they are going to go. ( without dumping aluminum. )
If Apple got the MBA 15" to the 3-3.1 lbs range it would be approximately just as thin and light as the MBA 2015 was. However, it would have a larger screen. That actually would be a challenge that probably deserves having an 'Air' adjective thrown at it.
If it ends up being just 0.1 lbs lighter than a MBP 14" ( 3.4 versus 3.5 lbs ) , then not so much. If they can chop 0.5 lbs, then that would be substantive lighter.
The bigger problem child Apple probably ends up with is not the MBP 14" versus MBP 15 , but with the MBP 13" M2 that is just iterating with the old style case at 3.0 lbs. Bigger case size for the MBA 15" probably means it can passively deal with some thermal issues better than the old MBP 13" enclosure can ( very likely much better than the regular MBA 13 can). It would weight about the same with a bigger screen.
Apple swapping out the MBP 13" from the line up for a MBA 15" would be a decent clean up. If user don't want a thermal throttle plain M2 ... go bigger screen. ( if pushing the M2 hard doing lots of video editing or heavy compute then the bigger screen is often helpful also ). The MBP line up starts at Mx Pro and goes up (no 'plain' Mx options).
Spread them out price wise so incrementally lower fratricide and it should work better.
[ P.S. that could be a long term 'swap out' for the MBP 13 M2. Apple could keep it 'drifting' in the line up for a couple of years for those you happen to like the touch bar option. It is old parts from Intel era so could keep a low volume manufacturing line going for a while at lower prices for a niche as that fades out. When the MBA 13"/15" move on to M3 ... Apple just sells old stuff for MBP 13" if a minimum number keep buying it. ]
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If only they made some kind of higher end model with fans and better thermals… but that would be confusing so I’m glad they don’t!
False. There are plenty of people out there who want a 15" Apple laptop but don't want to pay MBP prices and don't need MBP power. I'm one of them and I eventually sucked it up and bought a 16". If this comes to fruition I wish I would have waited.