Apple_Robert
Contributor
Seems rather illogical to be upset over the specs of a computer that, for all intents and purposes, doesn’t even exist (for us).
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Super disappointing new MacBook configuration
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throAU
macrumors G4
entry level machine has entry level spec. this is a Chromebook/crappy windows laptop competitor and will smoke both performance wise.
M (and A) series machines are fast even when running into swap. As I discovered with my 16GB M1 Pro previously, and when running way more than fits into ram on my 64 GB M4 Max.
4sallypat
macrumors 603
Same here - great deal on a 15" MBA - love it so much it's my daily device.
As for the A18 Macbook, for $799 it's not a bad price but should be 16GB base ?
I paid $999 for my 17 Air and love it so $799 wouldn't be too bad of a price point, but 8GB is a joke with AI & Tahoe....
InlawBiker
macrumors 6502
$799 seems high, but the "$999" base-level Air is $899 at retailers. If that means a realistic $699 at Costco or Amazon, 8gb ram, 256 SSD, that's not bad but not great. $599 would be a bargain.
Non-Euclidean
macrumors 6502a
Probably not. This is the new, cheapo iPhone CPU entry model. But apparently people can't subtract from their own biases and preferences to understand inexpensive options for OTHER people.
The Apple Experience commences at 9:00am ET on March 4, 2026.
Hopefully, we will see the new MacBook. MacOS Tahoe 16.4 and 16GB RAM hopefully in a package lighter and smaller than the MacBook Air. Ports? I’d be satisfied with HDMI, MagSafe and one Thunderbolt 4.
Hopefully, we will see the new MacBook. MacOS Tahoe 16.4 and 16GB RAM hopefully in a package lighter and smaller than the MacBook Air. Ports? I’d be satisfied with HDMI, MagSafe and one Thunderbolt 4.
4sallypat
macrumors 603
it will start from $699 with 8gb ram or 12gb if they use the pro soc, 256 ssd and hopefully the current MBA display and not some ancient one
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chrono1081
macrumors G3
This is what a lot of people in this sub don't seem to understand. I have a buddy who edits 4k surgery videos on his MacBook Air M2 with 8 gigs of ram *perfectly fine*. It's the only thing he does on his computer. He got a great deal on the base model and although he can afford to buy whatever he wants, the price point is why he pulled the trigger.
I mention the fact that he edits 4k videos because these machines are a lot more powerful than people realize. Too many people seem to think you can compare hardware specs for M series with Intel chips and it just doesn't remotely equate.
I had an M2 16 gig air that beat the utter **** out of my maxed out i9, 64 gig ram Intel Mac.
this is my dream as well. I had a 2017 with the Intel--I think--m3 chip. The A18 would run laps around that. I loved that as my couch and travel browsing device. I want this device, but am also happy with my MBA that is more powerful.
A18/pro is only available with 8GB. 12GB comes with A19 pro. So it might take a few years till it gets 12GB of RAM. But it's still speculation what SOC it will get.
JPack
macrumors P6
How much memory Apple bundles with the chip has nothing to do with how much memory it can address. A18 has no problem with 12GB or 16GB. This is the A12Z DTK all over again.
losthismarbles
macrumors regular
I see it as an unlocked portable Apple device. No jailbreak.
(emphasis on portable)
- It's bigger than your average tablet; and slightly heavier.
~ Similar pricing for both.
+ It's 100% unlocked, do your thing, no violating warranty portable device.
I can see people that would go for the latter over the former.
Because i've seen and continue to see loads of people that would have found "tablets" attractive (size, weight, touchscreen), perhaps even preferable to "lap/mini-tops".
If only they didn't have everything locked down.
So.. yeah. Not for me, but i can see it.
(emphasis on portable)
- It's bigger than your average tablet; and slightly heavier.
~ Similar pricing for both.
+ It's 100% unlocked, do your thing, no violating warranty portable device.
I can see people that would go for the latter over the former.
Because i've seen and continue to see loads of people that would have found "tablets" attractive (size, weight, touchscreen), perhaps even preferable to "lap/mini-tops".
If only they didn't have everything locked down.
So.. yeah. Not for me, but i can see it.
A12Z is not A12 right? When did Apple ever change the amount of RAM years later of a specific SOC with the same naming? So it would not be named "A18" or "A18 pro" anymore. This is why I wrote that it's only speculation with the SOC "A18 Pro". But if it comes with the "A18" or "A18 pro": It will come with 8GB.
throAU
macrumors G4
Your buddy has M2 not an a18 ..cpu will be outstanding for this kind of laptop price but the gpu , bandwidth and I/O will be weaker than M series with usbC with 0 thunderbolt support.
This will not utter beat your maxed out intel mac on graphics power in apps that dont use ray tracing
MacDaddyPanda
macrumors 65816
This feels like it's paving the way for the Iphone to become a laptop with the clamshell as a dumb terminal dock. yeah the counter argument is that would cannibalize it's devices or it's siloed segmented skus. Sure, but this is using the iphone CPU seems to show that path is possible. And the younger generations would probably embrace this more than the legacy users.
4sallypat
macrumors 603
Yes, Apple did say awhile back that mobile iOS devices will turn into a merge with MacOS.
Since I am a legacy user (old timer started out with CLI monochrome display Apple IIe), I am probably the first to say that I am looking forward to the iPhone / iPad A18 inside a Macbook.
Knowing how energy saving and much efficient RISC programming goes into a mobile device, and it can run either iOS or MacOS is the reason I would go with the "budget priced" A18 Macbook.
I am looking to replace my 2017 12" rMB after so much travel internationally over the years. The A18 MB weight, slimness and battery life is what I am looking for to replace it.
BTW if I really needed more processing power, RAM, multi threads, etc - I would just use my Mac Studio desktop w/ dual 27" displays or my M2 Macbook Pro or iPad Pro.......
curnalpanic
macrumors 6502a
4sallypat
macrumors 603
While nothing official from Apple, there's been lots of folks talking about the merge.
https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=28180735
I have a base M2 MBA with 8gb Ram and have zero issues running the latest version of Tahoe. I do typical everyday productivity and office stuff on my laptop. Smooth as butter. No problems.
A18 gets better graphics than the M1, a similar multi core score to the M2 and a similar single core score to the M4.
It will beat the pants off any Intel MacBook.
4sallypat
macrumors 603
This is great news since our work 2020 Intel Macbook Pros are showing very degraded performance, awful battery life, and heating.
Can't wait to have our government agency buy 1000 new A18 Macbooks for our staff/faculty...
Apparently in the A19 Pro, where Apple used a slightly different version in the iPhone Air versus the iPhone 17 Pro:
I know I was surprised when I first saw that. Personally I would have at least given the 8 and 12GB variants different part numbers...
As far as technical possibility, it should be possible for Apple to produce an A18 Pro variant with 16GB of RAM. The A18 Pro has 4 memory controllers and each memory controller can support up to 4GB of RAM (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apple_M4). Whether Apple has actually produced such a thing, we'll soon find out...
If not, I hope they've been working to optimize macOS and encourage 3rd parties to do the same. 12GB -- and even 8GB -- is certainly enough for the most common productivity tasks when the OS and related aren't a bloated mess that leak like a flat roof. Just haven't seen that since ~ Mojave.