Apple computers and devices tend to fall under the “premium” or “boutique” category of tech devices. The quality of Apple products is usually high, but the price tends to reflect that as well. The lowest cost laptop Apple sells, for example, is currently the $999 13 inch MacBook Air. While you definitely get a lot of bang for your buck thanks to the M4 chip under the hood, paying about a thousand dollars for the most entry level MacBook can put off some consumers and businesses who want or need the MacOS environment.
Based on recent rumors, we may get a new low cost option in the near future. The MacBook Weekly podcast reported earlier this month that Apple is planning to release a 12.9 inch MacBook laptop running on the A18 chip currently in the iPhone 16. While this chip is designed for mobile devices, Mac computers in general already run on the M series of Apple Silicon chips, which are based off of those same mobile processors, so it is not a stretch that a MacBook could handle most everyday tasks which users would want an Apple laptop to do.
The best part of this news is the potential price point, which is currently reported as $599 or $699, significantly lower than the MacBook Air price. This could open the door for businesses, schools, and other organizations who want the quality of Apple computers without the need to break their budgets to do so, especially since this already a price point which the iPad Air sits at. Unlike a MacBook, the iPad Air does not come with a keyboard, requiring a separate purchase that drives the total cost up.
Would a MacBook for potentially less than $600 interest you, your business, or any organization you are associated with?
