Since its launch in January 2008 the MacBook Air has proved popular as the ultraportable – and also cheapest – model in Apple’s line-up. The last major revision was back in 2015, and since then we’ve seen only minor tweaks such as processor updates. Will we ever see a new MacBook Air?
When is the 2018 MacBook Air release date?
Early reports suggested a new MacBook Air would launch in Q2 2018 but volume production has allegedly been pushed back to Q3, handily placing it just in time for back-to-school sales. We’re now in Q3 2018, so where’s our new MacBook Air?
Apple held a special event on 12 September 2018, but no new MacBook launched. It’s possible there will be another event in October as in previous years, or that we’ll get the news via press release.
How much will the 2018 MacBook Air cost?
Analysts suspect Apple will look to push sales in 2018 by making its cheapest laptop even cheaper, which could mean reducing the price even further from the current £949/$999 for the 13in Air.
What are the rumoured specs for the new MacBook Air?
Chief among all new MacBook Air rumours is a Retina Display, though this doesn’t sit happily with the idea the pricing will also be reduced.
Much more likely in this respect is a processor and potentially memory bump, with everything built inside the same chassis – more or less, in any case, because it’s high time Apple added a USB-C port and Touch ID support.
We don’t expect many other changes to the current spec, which has an 1.8GHz Intel Core i5 Broadwell chip and 8GB of RAM as standard, with optional 128GB/512GB flash storage and HD Graphics 6000. This model has a claimed battery life of 12 hours, and is easily portable thanks to its 13in screen, 1.35kg weight and 1.7cm (at the narrowest point) design.
Author: Marie Black, Editorial Director
Marie is Editorial Director at Foundry. A Journalism graduate from the London College of Printing, she's worked in tech media for more than 17 years, managing our EMEA and LatAm editorial teams and leading on content strategy through Foundry's transition from print, to digital, to online - and beyond.