MacBook Air 2016 Release Date, Specs and Features: Will Apple Laptop Come with an Improved Trackpad and Apple Pencil?
Apple has not released any statement regarding the MacBook Air 2016 or even the MacBook Pro, but nothing's keeping tech analysts or fans from coming up with rumors based on leaks, trends, or mere speculations.
Release Date
There is no official word from Apple regarding the release of their latest rendition of the MacBook Air. There have been rumors, though, saying that the MacBook Air 2016 will actually be released this month.
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In an interview with Forbes, Rhoda Alexander, IHS Markit Technology Director for Tablet and Notebook PCs, said, "Apple is planning to release some of the new Mac products as soon as October. The updated line includes tweaked MacBook Air devices with multi-functional USB-C port technology and iMacs with an option for new graphics chips from Advanced Micro Devices."
Alexander added that Apple actually already started producing the MacBook Air 2016 during the second quarter of this year.
However, other rumors report that Apple is waiting for Kaby Lake processors to be made so that they could use it on their new MacBooks. Kaby Lake processors are better than the current Skylake processors when it comes to providing better graphics.
Specs
Apple's MacBook Air 2016 is rumored to have AMD's Polaris-based graphics cards. It will also come with Retina display and a USB Type-C port. Polaris graphics cards are a huge upgrade from the current MacBook Air model, which uses Intel HD Graphics 6000.
The laptop is also rumored to use NVIDIA graphics. This speculation comes largely from a job vacancy announced by Apple for a team in charge of creating NVIDIA Mac graphics drivers.
This implies that NVIDIA and Apple are collaborating to enhance the graphics of upcoming, highly anticipated devices such as the MacBook Air and MacBook Pro 2016. However, both firms haven't said a word about their partnership yet.
Trackpad and Apple Pencil
The MacBook Air 2016 is also rumored to have a trackpad coupled with a much-improved Apple Pencil. The new Apple Pencil is said to have an "inertial sensor" with various modes, such as rotational controller mode, joystick mode and air mouse mode.
Techradar also said that the MacBook Air 2016 will be much larger than its predecessor, going from having an 11-inch diagonal previously to the new 15-inch diagonal.
Just Rumors
As most rumors go, odds are not all of these won't be realized, so fans should wait for the official statement from Apple regarding the release of the MacBook Air 2016 and its features and specs. In fact, back in July, MacBook Air was rumored to vanish for good, replaced by MacBook Pro instead. We'll just wait and see.
