If the starting price of a MacBook seems a bit too high to you, Apple apparently thinks so as well. According to Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo (link), the company is working on an affordable MacBook offering with the A18 Pro chip instead of an M-series chip.
Kuo claims that the new Mac will be powered by the A18 Pro chip from the iPhone 16 Pro and Pro Max. The A18 Pro comes with a 6-core CPU, a 6-core GPU, and a 16-core Neural Engine for AI tasks. However, in comparison with the M4 processors found in current-gen MacBooks, the A18 Pro is around 40% slower.
That said, the A18 Pro’s multi-core performance is on-par with the M1 chip, and it actually performs better than the M1 chip in graphics processing (link).
Replacing the M1 MacBook Air?
It is likely that the new MacBook with A18 Pro is being considered by Apple as a replacement for the M1 MacBook Air, which is still available to purchase. Since the current-gen MacBook Air starts at $999, and the M1 MacBook Air is available around $649 on most retail outlets, it is possible that Apple will position the new A18 Pro-powered MacBook at the $600 to $900 price range.
That will make it an affordable Mac option for people who want an every-day laptop, rather than a powerhouse.
Other details about this rumored upcoming MacBook are awaited. However, if the rumors about the A18 Pro are true, we can already tell a couple of things. First, this MacBook will be limited to regular USB-C ports instead of Thunderbolt ports since the A18 Pro doesn’t support Thunderbolt, as noted by 512 Pixels (link).
What’s more, since the iPhone 16 Pro and Pro Max only come with 8GB of RAM, it is likely that a Mac with the A18 Pro will have similar RAM limitations, alongside other spec-related cost-cutting that will be required to bring a MacBook to an affordable price.
Release Date
There is no concrete information about the release date of such a MacBook. However, Kuo says that the device might go into production in the last quarter of 2025, or early in 2026. And it should go on sale sometime in 2026. Beyond that, we can only guess as to when Apple will announce this product.
What do you think? Would you be interested in an affordable MacBook powered by the A18 Pro chipset? Let us know in the comments.