Apple on Monday announced a “Special Experience” event for March 4, likely dedicated to various new products the company may unveil via press releases. Apple won’t hold a livestreamed event, like the iPhone launch in September, but it will host local events for select media members. The company is expected to unveil several new products in the coming weeks, including the low-cost MacBook laptop that appeared in several reports in the past. On Sunday, well-known Apple insider Mark Gurman mentioned additional details about the cheap new MacBook, including a new metal manufacturing process for the chassis, and fun new colors not offered on current MacBook Air and MacBook Pro models. The Bloomberg reporter also said that Apple will unveil the iPhone 17e handset, new iPads (standard and iPad Air models), and other computers (new MacBook Air models, new MacBook Pros, and new Macs) soon.
Apple’s invite features a few of the colors the company had reportedly tested for the cheap MacBook, including light green, blue, and yellow. Gurman mentioned these colors in his Power On report on Sunday. In addition, Apple had tested blue, pink, silver, and dark gray colorways for the more affordable laptop. Colors aside, Gurman suggested that the cheap laptop will not compromise on build quality. The device will feature an aluminum chassis, like other MacBook models, but Apple has devised a new manufacturing process for it.
Gurman reiterated some of the rumored specs for the cheap laptop, including a screen size under 13 inches, which would make the laptop slightly smaller than the smallest MacBook Air. Also, the MacBook will use the A18 Pro chip that powers the iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max smartphones.
Will the affordable MacBook be stuck with 8GB of RAM?
As 9to5Mac points out, the A18 Pro may be an iPhone chip, but benchmarks show it outperforms the M1 chip that Apple unveiled in 2020. That chip powered the M1 MacBook Air and MacBook Pro models, the iPad Pro, and the iPad Air. This implies that the A18 Pro MacBook should be at least as powerful as the M1 MacBook Air, a device that’s still available from some retailers, including Walmart.
However, MacBook fans who may want to buy an Air-like laptop in fun colors with solid performance for everyday tasks should be prepared for a potential limitation. The A18 Pro MacBook may only be available with 8GB of RAM, even though all the MacBook Air models that Apple sells feature at least 16GB of memory. That’s only speculation for the time being, as Gurman didn’t mention the upcoming laptop’s full set of specs. However, the A18 Pro chip that Apple manufactured for the iPhone 16 Pro models only comes with 8GB of RAM. The A19 Pro that powers the iPhone Air, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone 17 Pro Max is paired with 12GB of RAM.
That said, Apple may have customized the A18 Pro for MacBook use, which may include creating additional memory options. The base model could feature 8GB and start at $699, while a RAM bump to 16GB may cost extra. As for storage, that detail hasn’t leaked, but based on Apple’s current MacBook Air and Pro lineup, 256GB feels like a safe bet. The M1 MacBook Air that Walmart sold last year featured 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage.
