Apple’s MacBook Air M2, launched 2022’s Worldwide Developer Conference, is nearing the end of its life; the latest signpost is the reduced production of the M2 chipset driving the consumer laptop. With this year’s WWDC coming up in June, the launch of the MacBook Air M3 is looking like a good bet.
This new Air is going to bring more power to a consumer laptop that is more than most consumers need, thanks to the M3 chipset. A new MacBook Air with a larger 15-inch screen is also expected in the near future for those needing something a bit bigger.
There’s going to be a new MacBook Pro as well. And everyone should avoid it.
Izmir, Turkey – January 10, 2022: Half opened Apple Brand M1 Model Macbook pro laptop computer with … [+] purple and blue colored lights
When the MacBook line ran on Intel silicon, it was easy to understand the two roles of the MacBook Air and the MacBook Pro… the former focused on being light and portable at the expense of performance, and the latter focused on power and performance in a heavier laptop.
With the launch of Apple Silicon, Tim Cook and his team changed that equation. The M1 chipset debuted on the MacBook Air in 2020, offering similar power to the last Intel MacBook Pros. Consumers could have the performance they needed with the portability they strived for.
Apple Silicon’s promise of power was extended with the M1 Pro and M1 Max arriving in two new sizes of MacBook Pro with 14-inch and 16-inch variants. These MacBook Pro models stretched away and put the professional into pro. As for the MacBook Air, Apple delivered a great laptop to consumers needing a macOS machine.
And then there was the 13-inch MacBook Pro M1. Launched alongside the M1 MacBook Air, it offered a step up in power from the Air and was briefly the most powerful MacBook on the market until the larger Pro laptops appeared. The 13-inch MacBook Pro found itself down on power compared to the top end, and squeezed by the power already available in the MacBook Air. It offered the worst of worlds.
Perhaps there was an argument for launching the Apple Silicon laptops with an Air and a Pro, but it didn’t take long for the 13-inch MacBook Pro to be superseded.
For some inexplicable reason, Apple continued to offer the 13-inch MacBook Pro with the launch of the M2 chipset… it stayed slightly ahead of the M2 MacBook Air for a significant premium, while the larger MacBook Pro laptops screamed ahead in terms of performance.
Now it looks like Apple is about to double down on the awkward and ill-defined MacBook Pro. With the third version of the Apple Silicon deskbound chip – the presumptively named M3 – on deck to be revealed at Apple’s Worldwide Developer Conference in June, everyone is looking forward to the next MacBook Air and another step up in performance of the consumer laptop.
Those needing power are looking at the larger laptops, those looking for an all-rounder will take the M3 Air, and those more focused on value for money will be hoping the M2 Air becomes the entry-level MacBook at $999. And that’s before we throw an attractive 15-inch MacBook Air into the mix.
Apple is seen as a company that delivers on customer expectations. Who’s waiting on another anemic 13-inch MacBook Pro?
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Ewan Spence
