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Leaker Says Apple's Lower-Cost MacBook Will Have These 8 Limitations
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JPack
macrumors P6
Gamers and creative professionals know better than to buy an A18 Pro MacBook. It's the same reason why they don't buy iPhone 16e and demand 2TB storage. It's the wrong tool for the job.
What you still don't get is Apple charges $400 for 1TB of extra storage. Low-cost MacBook customers aren't willing to pay Apple storage prices. You make it sound like Apple is charging $100 and SanDisk is charging $100, so why not pay Apple? That's not what's happening in the real world.
I believe Apple could charge whatever price they want. End users then have an option of buying a product with the storage they want or need for their laptop.
As for a different product category, the iPhone 16e is not offered as a 1TB or 2TB variant. So there is no data to support the idea that end users wouldn’t choose it if offered.
Ultimately, give the option but remove the SKUs that are not selling after x amount of time or data points.
tomtad
macrumors 68040
macfacts
macrumors 603
Vincent Hanna
macrumors 6502
Of course they are. Regular people use entry-level laptops for web, email, light business use and maybe some photo management.
No, they do not. Normal people don’t buy external HDDs at all. They use their phones and laptops until the drives get full, and then they buy new ones that only have more space because the industry now provides more at the entry-level price.
This really shows how hopelessly out of touch you are. Normal people don’t do any of the things you say they do.
You’re defining “normal users” far too narrowly. Buying a lower-cost laptop does not mean someone has only basic needs — often it just means that is the price bracket they can afford. Plenty of ordinary users still manage photos, do creative projects, run heavier applications, game, or want more storage than the base model offers. That does not mean everyone needs 1TB or 2TB, only that offering those options is perfectly reasonable.
Vincent Hanna
macrumors 6502
Apple DOES offer those options in their (soon-to-be) two other laptop lines.
If Apple offered (let’s say) 1TB drives in their budget line, you would INSTANTLY create a new list of feature demands to be included too: more ports, higher RAM upgrades, more CPU options, bigger batteries, etc. And it would never end until Apple magically replicated the entire Windows hardware ecosystem, which is the true fantasy of everyone who complains about Apple’s pricing.
If Apple offered (let’s say) 1TB drives in their budget line, you would INSTANTLY create a new list of feature demands to be included too: more ports, higher RAM upgrades, more CPU options, bigger batteries, etc. And it would never end until Apple magically replicated the entire Windows hardware ecosystem, which is the true fantasy of everyone who complains about Apple’s pricing.
I think we’re talking past each other.
I’m not arguing that Apple should collapse its lineup or replicate the Windows ecosystem — I’m pointing out that there’s a difference between expanding models and allowing configuration of core components within one.
In 2026, when CPU, RAM, and storage are non-upgradeable post-sale, giving users agency at purchase doesn’t erase segmentation; screen size, thermals, chassis, ports, and battery capacity etc still define the tier. Choosing 1TB or more RAM doesn’t automatically trigger demands for every premium feature — it simply allows customers to allocate their budget across foundational computing capacity rather than being forced into a different physical form factor to access it.
That’s not feature creep; it’s controlled flexibility within a clean product structure.
I’m not arguing that Apple should collapse its lineup or replicate the Windows ecosystem — I’m pointing out that there’s a difference between expanding models and allowing configuration of core components within one.
In 2026, when CPU, RAM, and storage are non-upgradeable post-sale, giving users agency at purchase doesn’t erase segmentation; screen size, thermals, chassis, ports, and battery capacity etc still define the tier. Choosing 1TB or more RAM doesn’t automatically trigger demands for every premium feature — it simply allows customers to allocate their budget across foundational computing capacity rather than being forced into a different physical form factor to access it.
That’s not feature creep; it’s controlled flexibility within a clean product structure.
Vincent Hanna
macrumors 6502
Apple doesn't want or need "controlled flexibility". 90% of entry-level laptop buyers buy the cheapest model with no thought given to the day one storage capacity, let alone their projected needs two or three years from now. They don't think in terms of projected needs. I can't tell you how many times I've had to explain to normal people the very concept of local storage when their three-year-old base model runs out of drive space. "I thought it was all in the cloud now" is what they say every time.
The regular people I keep talking about aren't bad or wrong, it's just that they don't know or care about these things that you and I would consider basic. You keep trying to map your experience and priorities onto them.
But here's the rub: offering them a 1TB drive option at time of initial sale doesn't do anything. They wouldn't buy it anyway. All that storage tier does is let a TINY number of people like you buy the base MacBook instead of the MacBook Air. So yes, Apple strategically denies you that option.
Don't like it? Buy a cheap windows laptop. Except those are going to be just as expensive as Macs at the same RAM/storage tiers for the next two years.
The regular people I keep talking about aren't bad or wrong, it's just that they don't know or care about these things that you and I would consider basic. You keep trying to map your experience and priorities onto them.
But here's the rub: offering them a 1TB drive option at time of initial sale doesn't do anything. They wouldn't buy it anyway. All that storage tier does is let a TINY number of people like you buy the base MacBook instead of the MacBook Air. So yes, Apple strategically denies you that option.
Don't like it? Buy a cheap windows laptop. Except those are going to be just as expensive as Macs at the same RAM/storage tiers for the next two years.
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I would imagine education centres would rather offer these to their pupils rather than ipads of chrome books , they would no doubt get hefty discount on bulk buys and parents would rather pay towards apple products and try to get them away from tablets, there will definitely be a big enough market in schools , colleges and universities plus a lot of parents will want their kids to step up to keyboard, for s lot of everyday use as huge % never really do anything the potential their ipads can , video editing, photo editing ect , price will come down eventually also, kids might feel a little more grown up going to secondary or high school with these .
Funny Apple Man
macrumors 6502a
Genius solution to the non-backlit keyboard issue: Make the keycaps out of phosphors material so that the keyboard will glow-in-the-dark 😎👍
Dirk Pieters
macrumors 6502a
You’re crazy if you think subsidized education centers have money to spare.
There’s a reason why Chromebooks are successful.
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If Apple doesn't use their N1 chip in this that means it either has a higher marginal cost of production than the per-unit pricing on MediaTek's chip or there's some really bad cost accounting going on at Apple. Or Apple has a minimum purchase contract with MediaTek and needs to fulfill its obligations...
Tagbert
macrumors 604
It is possible that the N1 chip is cheaper than the chipset that Apple has been using for their other Macs but that the Mediatek chipset could still be cheaper than the N1 just due to it being produced in large volumes for use in many other devices. Since Apple is looking at any way it can to reduce the price of this new MacBook, that Mediatek chip might be just enough cheaper to justify it.
Is the N1 more 'full-featured'? Not supporting wifi-7 would be a way to demonstrate differences in tiers of laptops..
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My 2018 MBP is ready for retirement and I would love to see a follow up to the 11” MBA or 12” MacBook for travel. I’m excited for this week!
Le0M
macrumors 65816
4sallypat
macrumors 603
My 2017 12" rMB i5 is slowing down and the battery life is poor so it's time to replace her with the new budget A18 Macbook.
Have travelled the world with my 12" rMB for almost 10 years and it still works which means the new budget A18 Macbook should last as long because of the decrease in heating!
Have travelled the world with my 12" rMB for almost 10 years and it still works which means the new budget A18 Macbook should last as long because of the decrease in heating!
My 2016 12" is at 65% original capacity. Still enough most of the time, but it doesn't like cold temperatures. I was briefly excited a few minutes ago when I went to Apple.com and found the Mac section shut down as often is the case with new hardware. Then I realized that I was in Safari, where many sites are broken, and so was Apple! I use Chrome and Firefox for most sites these days. Old forums seem to be the exception and I still use Safari for MacRumors.
I would be surprised if MediaTek has access to fab capacity that Apple doesn't. Or that Apple's volumes on the N1's aren't already enough to give it the economies of scale to beat MediaTek's per-unit volume pricing on a marginal cost of production basis as another person suggested as a justification for this decision. Granted I've been surprised before.
Unfortunately for my curiosity, no one here is likely to ever see the raw data behind this decision if Apple does go with the MediaTek over its own N1.
Lenovo been running the 360° hinge game for a while and it's been working well for them.
Vincent Hanna
macrumors 6502
4sallypat
macrumors 603
My Acer Chromebook with touchscreen opens up all the way till the screen becomes a tablet (almost 360 degrees).