At the end of 2020, Apple began relying on its own processors for Macs and turning its back on Intel. Five years later, it can be seen that this change was a stroke of luck for the vast majority of users, because Macs have become significantly more performant and more energy efficient. Apple computers, especially laptops, have become the reference for the entire industry. Since Apple is not only further developing the M chips, which are used in Macs and iPads, but also the A chips, a situation has now arisen that allows the company to move into a cheaper market. The A18 Pro, which Apple uses in the iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max, can now compete with the first generation of the M chip. For many Mac users, an M1 without an additional name is still completely sufficient – and for this reason, according to various reliable sources in the past, Apple has decided to offer a cheap MacBook at a price significantly lower than the MacBook Air – with an A18 Pro.
Release in March – including event
Bloomberg now claims to have learned that a presentation of the new MacBook is imminent. Apple is currently planning to launch the A18 MacBook in March 2026. Mark Gurman from Bloomberg says that the introduction should take place via a pre-recorded presentation – and not via a simple press release. However, it is still unclear what Apple will call the new model. It’s possible that the company will simply call it “MacBook” without adding a name like Air or Pro.
Aluminum housing in “fun colors”
Some previous reports suggested that Apple would forego an aluminum casing and use plastic as a material – but according to Bloomberg, Apple is still using aluminum. A new manufacturing process is intended to significantly reduce costs here. Unlike the MacBook Air and Pro, the A18 MacBook will use brighter colors such as light yellow, light green, blue and pink – but the company will also include a silver and black model in the range. By the way, the screen is said to be 12.9″ slightly smaller than the MacBook Air.
Compromises not yet fully clarified
It is clear that Apple definitely does not want current users of the MacBook Air and MacBook Pro to switch to the cheaper model in the future. Therefore, the company will most likely not offer some functions of the more expensive models. It is conceivable that the inexpensive MacBook does not support external screens or that there are other restrictions regarding connectivity. It can also be assumed that Apple will limit the SSD and RAM options.
