Apple to Boost Display Panel Orders For Rumored 13-Inch MacBook, Hints at MacBook Air Cancellation
Apple is expected to shelve the MacBook Air series this year after reports emerged it would order more display panels for a new 13-inch MacBook model.
According to Digitimes, Apple is likely to order hundreds of thousands of LCD modules (LCM) from touch panel maker General Interface Solution that it intends to use for an upcoming entry-level 13-inch MacBook laptop to be released this year.
Digitimes' industry sources added that the GIS LCM shipment is expected to reach up to 600,000 per month by late 2018, which is double its current 300,000 units.
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Meanwhile, reports speculate that this development could be a hint that Apple will finally put an end to the production of the MacBook Air, which currently serves as the company's entry-level notebook.
In 2016, Apple subtly discontinued the 11-inch MacBook Air. While its 13-inch variant is still in the market, the Cupertino, California technology giant obviously did not give much focus to expanding this product lineup and has only issued minor updates by offering optional configurations for its processor, random access memory, and storage.
When the MacBook Air was launched in 2008, it was one of the highlighted offerings from Apple and was advertised as the world's thinnest laptop, which explains the product name. However, in the more recent years, other laptop makers and even Apple have released new models that have already surpassed MacBook Air's light dimensions.
On the other hand, the MacBook Air is still an obvious choice for consumers wanting to shift to a macOS-powered laptop. For $999, the MacBook Air comes with a 5th-generation Intel Core i5 chip running on two cores and clocked at 1.8 GHz with 8 GB RAM and 128 GB SSD storage.
However, in terms of its design, the MacBook Air no longer has the edge in terms of dimensions, especially when compared to the 12-inch MacBook. The MacBook Air remains 0.11–0.68 inches thick while the MacBook is also within that range with a height of 0.14–0.52 inches.
In the most recent product announcements Apple had, the MacBook Air seemed to have been left out compared to the MacBook and MacBook Pro. The standard model of the 12-inch MacBook costs $1,299 but its higher 256 GB SSD, Retina display, 16 GB RAM option, and newer features such as the MagSafe 2 port that are missing from the MacBook Air can justify its higher cost.
