They could reduce the price of the MacBook. If the MacBook Pro does go thinner and lighter, they would have to prevent cannibalisation of the MacBook.
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Will Apple merge the MacBook Air & MacBook Pro lines into one in the next 5 years?
- Thread starter Carl Sagan
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They could reduce the price of the MacBook. If the MacBook Pro does go thinner and lighter, they would have to prevent cannibalisation of the MacBook.
The line-up is such a hot mess right now that anything is possible. Personally I would be happy to get a 14" Macbook with Air-style keyboard, which is the one thing that definitely isn't going to happen.
The lineup has always been based on Intel's CPUs. For Skylake that means:
- MacBook - Intel Core M (4.5W)
- MacBook Air - Intel Core i U-Series (15W)
- MacBook Pro 13" - Intel Core i U-Series (28W)
- MacBook Pro 15" - Intel Core i HQ-series (45W)
until last year macbook, we never had a intel core m, so everything can change. To be or not to be the macbook air is not related to intel, if apple wants a more clear macbook lineup we will see the 11" Macbook air removed this year, and keep the non-retina 13" mba like the 13" MBP non retina still exist, this year Apple will remove the non retina MBP, and starting from next year or 2018 even the 13" MBA will be removed since the Macbook will have some price cut and starting around $999 or 1099$
There was no Core M before Broadwell last year, hence the MacBook wasn't possible before that.
It seems that Apple is no longer trying to make simple lineups. The iPad lineup is the greatest example with iPad mini 2, mini 4, Air 2, Pro 9.7" and Pro 12.9". The "old Apple" would simply have mini 4 and the Pro in two sizes, but instead Apple is now targeting a variety of different price points with somewhat overlapping devices.
That's why I don't see Apple making any dramatic moves in simplifying the Mac lineup, at least not right now. The 12" MB and 11" MBA are not even direct competitors because the MB carries a $400 premium. I don't see Apple axing their lowest cost Mac because all their actions lately (iPhone SE, iPad Air 2 & mini 2) suggest that they are going after lower price markets, which makes sense given that the premium market segments where Apple play are all highly saturated. iPhone, iPad and Mac sales are all either flat or in a decline, so one of the ways Apple can generate more sales is to go after markets it has yet to conquer (i.e. the lower cost segments).
What I think will happen is that the lineup stays more or less the same for the next two years. The MBA will stay the way it is for another two generations (2016 and 2017), and in 2018 it will be superseded by 12" and 14" MacBooks. That's the time when Intel Cannonlake (10nm) is supposed to be ready and it should finally bring native USB 3.1 Gen 2 support (all data on Kaby Lake suggests that native USB 3.1 Gen 2 will only be present in quad core mobile and desktop chips, which have a separate PCH). The lithography shrink from 14nm to 10nm also allows for greater performance improvements, so replacing the MBA with a lower power MB wouldn't be a catastrophe from a performance perspective. Personally I think Kaby Lake will be a very incremental update because it will more or less be an iteration of the Skylake architecture with some upgraded fixed function hardware blocks thrown into the mix. By 2018, Apple should also be able to drive the cost of MacBook down to the neighborhood where the MBA is today ($999 for 12" and $1199 for 14" are my bets).
As for the MBP, I believe that we will see some changes to the design this year that shave off a few millimeters and the addition of the new bling-bling colors, but overall it won't impact the rest of the lineup. The truth is Apple can't do much to make the MBP better or they will sacrifice performance. In order to utilize higher power parts, the design can't be as thin as the MB. A few millimeters can be done with smaller bezels and the rumored hinge redesign, but a substantial change in size sounds very, very unlikely to me. The non-retina 13" probably gets axed now as you said and the 13" retina will start from $1199 to compensate that.
Of course, that's just my take and pure speculation.
Why not ask about MacBook and iPad lines merging?
Or iPhone and iPad merging? Just use the iPad mini as the iPhone 6SS double plus.
Predicting 5 years down the road is really hard in computers. We were supposed to crack Moores law for 10nm in 2010, but didn't.
Or iPhone and iPad merging? Just use the iPad mini as the iPhone 6SS double plus.
Predicting 5 years down the road is really hard in computers. We were supposed to crack Moores law for 10nm in 2010, but didn't.
That's too funny. The OP and people who responded four years ago are probably shocked that here in future world we have yet to receive any answers to the questions they asked.
Apple has a timetable. They have yet to share it.
We are the people from the future!
And just like Jon Snow, we know nothing.
I'll check back in 2019
And just like Jon Snow, we know nothing.
I'll check back in 2019
I think the iPad Pro will replace the MacBook eventually and you'll have a merger of two operating systems. iOS and Macos hybrid. The keyboard add on is needed if your at a desk. I think you'll also see facial recognition with touchid and eye tracking when your reading a document. I think the new iPhone 7 will have eye tracking so it will automatically scroll for you while reading, that would be nice.
Im not going to read the thread, as I don't have time.
And I could of course be wrong.
But not as far as I can see.
Macbook - so light in every respect, it can't really be compared to an AIR, the current offerings anyway.
AIR - Not sure what will happen. I can't see why it wouldn't stay. Id have an air any day, but would never want a macbook.
PRO - For work purposes, for many, it is immensely more powerful than an AIR. Again, the two are so different I can't see the lines being merged.
To merge product lines, apple would need to conclude that there are not 3 types of consumer, but only two.
The only reason the air and pro would merge, is if apple decided to pull OUT of the pro market, catering for professionals who would go nuts trying to do any really demanding work on an underpowered machine.
I just cannot see apple merging the air and the pro in the near future. One is twice the machine (or more) that the other is.
If I haven't convinced you with the comments above, then just look at the obvious: Compare an entry level AIR to a top spec PRO. They have no similarities.
Retailers aim to supply as few machines as possible to as many different types of buyer as possible. AIR and PRO are just two different, to merge them entirely... unless apple pulls out of the PRO market.
[doublepost=1466104485][/doublepost]
And I could of course be wrong.
But not as far as I can see.
Macbook - so light in every respect, it can't really be compared to an AIR, the current offerings anyway.
AIR - Not sure what will happen. I can't see why it wouldn't stay. Id have an air any day, but would never want a macbook.
PRO - For work purposes, for many, it is immensely more powerful than an AIR. Again, the two are so different I can't see the lines being merged.
To merge product lines, apple would need to conclude that there are not 3 types of consumer, but only two.
The only reason the air and pro would merge, is if apple decided to pull OUT of the pro market, catering for professionals who would go nuts trying to do any really demanding work on an underpowered machine.
I just cannot see apple merging the air and the pro in the near future. One is twice the machine (or more) that the other is.
If I haven't convinced you with the comments above, then just look at the obvious: Compare an entry level AIR to a top spec PRO. They have no similarities.
Retailers aim to supply as few machines as possible to as many different types of buyer as possible. AIR and PRO are just two different, to merge them entirely... unless apple pulls out of the PRO market.
[doublepost=1466104485][/doublepost]
This could happen one day. I'll wager the MBP will be around for a good while yet, but the iPad pro and the macbook possibly merging one day, it could happen.
Why would anyone do this? No one compares things like this, especially when actually researching a purchase. That's like comparing the bottom spec mini to a Mac Pro.
The 13 inch Pro has always seemed like a strange machine to call Pro. It started life as a regular premium regular MacBook, and then settled into the primary Pro computer. But really it's a premium middle sized laptop, the real Pro power is in the 15inch Quad CPUs.
There's some overlap between the 13 inch Air and the 13 inch Pro. You either get cheaper, lighter, and missing key premium features and slightly slower cpus or you get slightly faster cpus, more ports, much better screen and a few other bells and whistles.
I'd say the best 'normal' laptop will eventually converge to the 13 inch Pro, and the 13 inch Air will go away. Apple still may need a 13 inch 'non Pro' focused laptop in the $1000 starting price range. So I bet we see a slightly redesigned Air, maybe with very few upgrade options.
I have a hunch that Apple will discontinue the 11 inch. Anyone who needs this size will just be told to get a retina Macbook. And anyone who wants more power than the Macbook will be just be told to get a Pro.
For me though, the i7 11 inch is a special machine... lots of power and super portable. The
There's some overlap between the 13 inch Air and the 13 inch Pro. You either get cheaper, lighter, and missing key premium features and slightly slower cpus or you get slightly faster cpus, more ports, much better screen and a few other bells and whistles.
I'd say the best 'normal' laptop will eventually converge to the 13 inch Pro, and the 13 inch Air will go away. Apple still may need a 13 inch 'non Pro' focused laptop in the $1000 starting price range. So I bet we see a slightly redesigned Air, maybe with very few upgrade options.
I have a hunch that Apple will discontinue the 11 inch. Anyone who needs this size will just be told to get a retina Macbook. And anyone who wants more power than the Macbook will be just be told to get a Pro.
For me though, the i7 11 inch is a special machine... lots of power and super portable. The
Wow this was actually quite accurate (if you were referring to thickness) seeing as Apple are now making a MacBook Pro that is thinner than an Air.