MacBook Air 2017 Rumors: Apple Should Carry Out a Design Overhaul if Product Line Will Continue
The fate of the MacBook Air is still on the chopping block. However, if rumors are correct that a new MacBook Air is slated to arrive this year, Apple might need to execute a design overhaul.
The MacBook Air was introduced as a subnotebook computer variant from Apple, and its selling point used to be its much thinner dimension and lighter bodywork.
Unfortunately, even the latest MacBook Air model does not live up to that selling point anymore. In a recent Business Insider report, it has been pointed out that the latest MacBook Air model (0.68-inch thick) is now thicker than the newer MacBook Pro laptops (0.59-inch to 0.61-inch thick).
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Facts like this make many people wonder if Apple still has plans for the MacBook Air product line when its premium laptop brand, the MacBook Pro, already offers a much thinner device with lighter dimensions alongside its update and top-of-the-line specs and features. In fact, even the standard 12-inch MacBook model already has a slimmer built being 0.52-inch thick.
Despite that, a new MacBook Air laptop is still one of the anticipated products to come out this year. In fact some people have been waiting to find an all-new MacBook Air since last year but it did not arrive.
However, in an earlier MacRumors report, noted analyst Ming-Chi Kuo reportedly mentioned in a research note that a 12-inch MacBook model running with the latest Intel 7th generation chip, aka Kaby Lake, is expected to enter mass production in July. With that, the MacBook Air's future is becoming more bleak.
Meanwhile, it appears that without any formal announcement from Apple, speculations are likely to hold on to the possibility that a new MacBook Air is in the pipeline, especially when major retailers, such as Best Buy, continue to offer a $200 discount on the latest MacBook Air model.
Orders made until Monday, May 15, at 11:30 p.m. EDT will let people get the latest 13.3-inch MacBook Air model with 128 GB storage and 8 GB random access memory for $799.99 instead of the regular price $999.99.
Major sales like the one that Best Buy currently offers are one of the reasons why some believe that Apple will still release a new MacBook Air this year. Reports deem such discounts are made to sell the remaining units, thus to prepare for the arrival of a new model.
Meanwhile, if Apple really does want to release an all-new MacBook Air, 2017 is the right time to do it since other manufacturers have been releasing premium models and entry-level notebooks that stand out for their extra slim dimensions — an area that MacBook Air used to dominate — plus updated specs and features.
Recently, Microsoft released the Surface Laptop with the same standard price as MacBook Air but with a tad lighter and thinner bodywork which makes the two worth comparing.
